14 DAY TRIAL // ArenaNet has announced that it will not have a booth at this year's E3 trade show. This means that there will be no news about the highly anticipated Guild Wars 2 during the convention. Chris Lye, from ArenaNet's marketing department, wrote on the company's blog that it would be skipping E3, as it is a closed event, available only for the press and investors, and not for the fans.
Lye quoted mixed feelings about E3, writing that, “On the one hand it can be a great centralized way to meet press and retailers. On the other hand, it’s anti-fan. As the marketing guy, if I’m going to spend a boatload of money on a booth, videos, props, etc., I want to be able to share it with the folks who’ll geek-out on it the most – the fans!”
Guild Wars fans can be happy, though, as Lye is promising a presence to be reckoned with at Gamescom 2010, in Köln. According to the marketing man at ArenaNet, Gamescom is better than E3, as it combines the best of both worlds, having special areas set for the industry officials and for the consumers. Those that will make the trip to Germany this August will be able to see and play the first public hands-on demo of Guild Wars 2, as well as take part in other activities.
Guild Wars 2 is a new massively multiplayer online role-playing title developed by Arena Net. It follows in the footsteps of the first Guild Wars by maintaining the lack of a subscription fee. Five races and eight professions will be available for players to choose from when creating their character and the level cap will be increased in the sequel. Quests will be available only in instances, while the persistent game world will host various events, dynamic scenarios dependent on player action in the area that will see characters of any level interacting. ArenaNet is hoping to release Guild Wars 2 sometime in 2011.