14 DAY TRIAL // Developer ArenaNet has revealed that both alpha and beta testing stages for their upcoming Guild Wars 2 will be taking place during 2011, suggesting that the launch date could be set based on the feedback derived from them for sometime in 2012.
The official Guild Wars 2 Frequently Asked Questions section mentions the 2011 date and says that “the feedback from these tests will determine when we will do public beta tests and ship the game.”
Fans of the first Guild Wars game and those looking forward to the sequel have quickly begun speculating about a possible launch date and about the current state of development but the developers quickly stepped in to say that the game could still be pretty far from an official launch.
Regina Buenaobra, a representative from ArenaNet writing on the official forums, has stated, “The existence of friends and family closed alpha and closed beta this year has changed nothing about the release date. The release date continues to be: when the game is ready.”
Guild Wars 2 will still use the instanced concept for the Player versus Environment section of the game, with players able to choose a race and a profession and then experience a series of tailored quests, or events, which evolve based on how the player reacts to his environment.
The Player versus Player mechanics are also being modified, with clan versus clan engagements still available, but the developers emphasize that they are thinking about much more grandiose world versus world battles.
The game uses an entirely new game engine, which allows for the use of Havok physics and for real three-dimensional environments, with better-looking areas and characters.
Guild Wars 2 will be published by NCsoft and will be only delivered on the PC, with no talk of possible versions for home-gaming consoles.