History YMMV / GuildWars2

* ArchivePanic: The game has ten years worth of story - meaning that for a newcomer? There is a ''LOT'' to get caught up on. While the game does not outright ''require'' players to play all seasons of the Living World, three expansions, and the Icebrood saga to get caught up, ''not'' doing so can cause a [[ContinuityLockout lot of confusion]] to a newcomer.

** If you miss the window for when a Living World chapter is released? You have to purchase it separately. While Arena net on ''occasion'' releases chapters for free to all who log on during a certain timeframe ''after'' its content, players might not always know this. This not only creates ContinuityLockout for newcomers, but can also make some players feel as if they are punished for taking a break for whatever reason. What's worse, Living World Season one was largely unavailable for a while.

** If you miss the window for when a Living World chapter is released? You have to purchase it separately. While Arena net on ''occasion'' releases chapters for free to all who log on during a certain timeframe ''after'' its content, players might not always know this. This not only creates ContinuityLockout for newcomers, but can also make some players feel as if they are punished for taking a break for whatever reason. What's worse, Living World Season one was largely unavailable for awhile.

** On a more meta level, the fact that one point, Lion's Arch was ''destroyed''. And for awhile? It was literally ''in ruins''' before later being rebuilt. Very ''few'' {{MMORPG}}s even ''did'' this.

** While many felt "End of Dragons" was a good expansion, others felt its post release was a bit lacklustre. Living world Season one was revamped to be more up to par with the modern standards and cut out much of its filler. On one hand? Many appreciated this as Living World Season one was unavailable for ''years'' and this created some ContinuityLockout. On the other? Some felt that this took away from what ''could'' have been a "Living World Season" length story of its own, exploring much more ''of'' Cantha since only its northern peninsula has ''ever'' been seen.[[labelnote:*]]To put it into perspective? The post "End of Dragons" storyline is only about three chapters long - while the "End of Dragons" doesn't really go to many ''new'' areas that weren't introduced in ''Guild Wars Factions''[[/labelnote]]

* ContinuityLockout: An unfortunate side effect of a game having multiple story arcs that have lasted over ten years. This is aggravated by the fact that (prior to end of Dragons) the first season of "Living World" was largely unavaialble to newcomers, other seasons must be purchased separately as they aren't packaged their expansion (See ScrappyMechanic), and players can jump to any expansion (or living world season) they own. This unfortunately has the side effect of making newcomers confused - since many [[CallBack call backs]] and [[AsYouKnow recaps]] end up getting lost on them.

*** [[DarthWiki/MostAnnoyingSound "This is a place of refuge! Not a den of iniquity!"]] [[labelnote:Explanation]]Arborstone, one of the new hubs added in ''End of Dragons'', has one particular Tengu NPC who is in close proximity to the central gathering area who shrieks this line (or others if you do not have your Arborstone mastery maxed out) ''every time you go near him'', which you are liable to do, especially if you're buying your weekly Ancient Summoning Stones. Cue immediate annoyance and ironic quotage from the player-base.[[/labelnote]]

* GameBreaker: Special mention has to go to Support Chronomancer in PvE.

* GoddamnBats: The Krait. They haunt the most spacious watery places on the map. More often than not, you'll have to fight them underwater, which limits what skills you can use. It's impossible to move through their territory without attracting attention, and they can come at you from just about any angle. Worse, players seldom actually stay in their areas for long, so don't expect much backup when dealing with them or their Dynamic Events (on the plus side, Krait slaying sigils might be the only ''useful'' racial targeting upgrade, and on the underwater weapons that don't see much use elsewhere). The Risen are another example for most of the game, being extremely annoying but not particularly difficult to defeat. Then you reach Orr and they become DemonicSpiders instead...

** Those who felt Baraham was feeling irritating in Living World Season 3&4, [[spoiler: being able to beat the shit out of him at the end of the Icebrood Saga]] ''multiple times'' was a well needed exercise in this.

** Pocket Raptors in Maguuma are weak individually, but there's usually 8-10 clustered up together. If you're not actively fighting them and they notice you, prepare to get taken down. Especially if you don't have any ranged or AOE attacks.

** Those who felt Baraham was feeling irritating in Living World Season 3&4, [[spoiler: being able to beat the shit out of him at the end of the Icebrood Saga[[/spoiler]] ''multiple times'' was a well needed exercise in this.

* CatharsisFactor: For those who felt that Cantha's heavy [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kowloon_Walled_City Kowloon]] inspiration in ''VideoGame/GuildWars'' was ugly, it's absolutely ''gorgeous'' in ''End of Dragons''. Additionally, Vizunah Square and Tahnhakai Temple (both ThatOneLevel in Guild Wars) are at the bottom of the sea now.

* ItsShortSoItSucks: This is how some people feel about the post "End of Dragons" story, as it is only ''three chapters long'' instead of a "Living World" season exploring new area(s) ''of'' Cantha.

** While many felt "End of Dragons" was a good expansion, others felt its post release was a bit lacklustre. Living world Season one was revamped to be more up to par with the modern standards and cut out much of its filler. On one hand? Many appreciated this as Living World Season one was unavailable for ''years'' and this created some ContinuityLockout. On the other? Some felt that this took away from what ''could'' have been a "Living World Season" length story of its own, exploring much more ''of'' Cantha since only its northern peninsula has ''ever'' been seen.[[Labelnote:*]]To put it into perspective? The post "End of Dragons" storyline is only about three chapters long - while the "End of Dragons" doesn't really go to many ''new'' areas that weren't introduced in ''Guild Wars Factions''[[/labelnote]]

** Condition Mirage might be the [[HighTierScrappy most hated build]] to ever exist in the game's life. Mirage's mechanic is their ability to [[{{Intangibility}} both dodge and use skills at the same time.]] Want to interrupt a mirage that's casting his heal skill? Chances are you can't because they're using their intangibility. Want to counter pressure the mirage while he attacks you? As soon as he's in danger he can become intangible and still attack you at the same time. Combine Mirage's unique ability to phase through attacks while attacking at the same time with mesmer's ability to hit you with a brick wall of condition damage, especially confusion, [[DoppelgangerSpin spamming the screen with clones]], [[ConfusionFu going invisible, and teleporting around]] and you have a recipe for an extremely oppressive build to fight against.

* ShockingMoments: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDpzAUWmklA This trailer for the Living Story Season 2, Episode 3.]] It starts off quite unassuming and quiet, showing scenes of the Mordrem encroaching across Tyria, a few frames with Eir and Braham... and then we're suddenly treated to a small scene showing ''[[MoodWhiplash Rytlock attempting to break the Foefire's curse with Sohothin.]]'' The trailer didn't actually show if he succeeded or not, but even before the actual release, that part of the trailer had already set the lore section of the community on fire with speculation and excitement.

** While rarely to the level of other examples, the fact that no new races have been PromotedToPlayable or added to the game. Particularly in the Tengu - which were actually a fairly popular request for a playable race since ''VideoGame/GuildWars Factions''. Some sides think this is some wasted potential, others think it makes no sense and [[RememberTheNewGuy would cause some odd additions to justify]]. Some acknowledge that it is wasted potential, but point out just how much ''work'' this would be for little payoff as the race ''of'' the commander largely stops being relevant once every Personal Story paths converge. Adding to this is that racial skills aren't considered very useful in the long-run to avoid [[TierInducedScrappy balance issues]] that some [=MMORPGs=] encountered.

** Condition Mirage might be the [[TierInducedScrappy most hated build]] to ever exist in the game's life. Mirage's mechanic is their ability to [[{{Intangibility}} both dodge and use skills at the same time.]] Want to interrupt a mirage that's casting his heal skill? Chances are you can't because they're using their intangibility. Want to counter pressure the mirage while he attacks you? As soon as he's in danger he can become intangible and still attack you at the same time. Combine Mirage's unique ability to phase through attacks while attacking at the same time with mesmer's ability to hit you with a brick wall of condition damage, especially confusion, [[DoppelgangerSpin spamming the screen with clones]], [[ConfusionFu going invisible, and teleporting around]] and you have a recipe for an extremely oppressive build to fight against.

* BreatherLevel: ''End of Dragons'' is basically a breather ''expansion''. ''Heart of Thorns'' and ''Path of Fire'' were filled to the brim with DemonicSpiders, GoddamnedBats, long levels, bosses that are walls of health, bosses with somewhat unpredictable attack patterns, constant damage making your healing abilities only delaying the inevitable, and very long levels. ''End of Dragons'' surprised many people by being much ''much'' easier.

* AcceptableReligiousTargets: Out-of-universe example. Mentioning you believe that Abaddon (who, WordOfGod confirms is DeaderThanDead) will return, whether it be as an off-hand remark or as part of a theory, is a sure-fire way to get yourself chided at and scolded by the majority of the fanbase for not looking up the fact that he is... well, ''[[KilledOffForReal really dead]]''.

* HarsherInHindsights:

** The Icebrood Saga, even amongst those who felt it tedious, had a rather climactic DualBoss (Technically Quadra-boss) fight against Primordus, Jormag, and both their champions, Ryland and [[spoiler: Braham]]. You have to knock down both of the champions at around the same time, then [[AttackItsWeakpoint hit the elder dragons]]. It ends up becoming ''quite'' frantic like any elder dragon battle should.

* SpecialEffectFailure: The game tries to place characters flat on the ground. While most incline angles are subtle enough that you wouldn't notice, sometimes sharp changes in elevation may end up with your character standing at a bizarre angle - especially notable when you're playing a smaller character like an Asura, human, or some Sylvari.

* AntiClimaxBoss: For such a hyped up BigBad, the fight against Zhaitan is an incredibly impersonal battle where you never get to face him directly, the final phase of the encounter having the players bombard him from afar with artillery while he spews poison breath attacks and undead dragon tentacles all over the ship. While initial bugs in the encounter that prevented him from attacking were fixed you still never feel very invested in the battle. Although to be fair, the idea of "facing Zhaitan directly" is borderline absurd because he's ''the size of a small mountain.''

** The fights against Kraklatorik in Living World Season 4 are considered to be some of the best if not ''the'' best fights against Elder Dragons if not the entire game. The first is against a ''giant'' dragon - bigger than an ''entire zone''. The second? Another BattleInTheCenterOfTheMind - but this time you have ''Aurene'' at your side. CrutchCharacter aside? You're still basically fighting it your own. It's a [[spoiler: literal manifestation of his torment. All while Kralkatorik comes to terms with his impending death]]. Season 4 of the "Living World" has in general been seen as one of the game's highlights.

* BrokenBase: The change to the waypoints in the Dungeons. One camp feels that it's a good change, claiming that it makes people improve instead of relying on an exploit. The other camp feels that it's a bad change, claiming that casual players will be left out of dungeon runs as a result.

** As of "End of Dragons", most if not ''all'' Engineers will max out the "Mechanist" elite specialisation.

* DisappointingLastLevel: "Champions", the final episode to the otherwise-well-received Icebrood Saga, was universally agreed upon as the worst part of the saga and perhaps one of the worst set of chapters in the whole game. Culprits include a total and abrupt shift from the intriguing "Charr civil war" plot to yet another "destroy the Elder Dragons" scenario [[spoiler:with an incredibly underwhelming and abrupt finale that sees both Jormag and Primordius killing each other after only a few chapters of build-up]] and the much-loathed "Dragon Response" missions, which consist of an incredibly formulaic three-phase mission practically copy-pasted over the length of 10 chapters, with key plot dialogue and elements haphazardly plastered in them. [[WordofGod According to ArenaNet]], IBS was initially supposed to be more fleshed out, but upper management suddenly greenlit a new expansion, ''End of Dragons'', to be made, hence they had to shift resources to that and had no choice but to punt the final episode out the door.

* MemeticMutation:
** Watch the ledges. [[labelnote:Explanation]][[WelcomeToCorneria Repetitive]] line uttered by Pact Researcher Darrin whenever the high-level Claw of Jormag boss summons {{Mooks}} in its third and final stage. Since the third phase is generally the longest part of the fight, players hear this line and comment on it a lot.[[/labelnote]]
** You heard Krast. '''HOLD THE LINE!''' [[labelnote:Explanation]]In Ascalonian Catacombs, all explorable paths will go towards the center with the ghost of Krast as a boss. The line is uttered whenever a player first approaches that area. Of course, because it's a party, the line gets repeated, often cutting "You heard Krast!" into a loop.[[/labelnote]]
** '''NO NO NO! WE SHOULD GO TO THE ARMORY!''' [[labelnote:Explanation]]In Sorrow's Embrace explorable path 3, you are teamed up with Koptev. He will yell this repeatedly at you as you actually proceed to the armory.[[/labelnote]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xyg_Vjw1xaQ "CITIZENS!"]] [[labelnote:Explanation]]One of the first patches to the game brought the Fractals set of mini-dungeons... including one NPC who, thanks to a hilarious case of GoodBadBugs, would call out to every '''single''' passerby to check them out.[[/labelnote]]
** ''I can outrun a centaur!'' [[labelnote:Explanation]]Female Humans will say this when getting a speed boost. Since you'd be using a speed boost as a way of getting around, you'd be hearing this ''a lot''. Especially if you're a mesmer with an Inspiration Signet (a signet that grants a swiftness and one random boon every 10 seconds.[[/labelnote]]

** If Mordremoth could attack the Mother Tree in the Grove, it can attack anywhere. [[labelnote:Explanation]]This is one of the NPC voice lines in the Silverwastes, a popular zone for farming materials and gold. Anybody who has spent time cleaning up their inventory while in Camp Resolve will have heard the nearby NPC chatter over and over again.[[/labelnote]]
** "Wow. That's quality armor." "THANKS" "THANKS" "THANKS" [[labelnote:Explanation]]The entrance to Heart of Thorns zones has [=NPCs=] trying to call attention to the new armor rewards, but the line is repetitive, and involves several [=NPCs=] shouting 'thanks' nearly simultaneously, making it sound all the louder, causing it to be quite the joke.[[/labelnote]]

* FunnyAneurysmMoment: At the end of the core story, after the Pact has finally destroyed Zhaitan and proven that the Elder Dragons are ''not'' indestructible, there is massive rejoicing with everyone talking about how they're "one down, five to go", discussing which one to go after next, and swearing oaths that one day all the Elder Dragons will be destroyed and the people of Tyria will be able to live in peace forever. [[spoiler:Fast forward to chapter 5 of the Living World Season 3 and Taimi reveals that the Elder Dragons are {{Cosmic Keystone}}s and if any more are destroyed (after you've already destroyed Mordremoth as well) then the entire world will probably be annihilated. Not only have all your efforts towards destroying the Elder Dragons been AllForNothing, but the climax of the chapter actually forces you to ''[[SaveTheVillain stop]]'' the mad god Balthazar from destroying Primordus and Jormag.]]
** Another moment in this same chapter is when Taimi calls in to check in with the commander about their temperature level [[spoiler:while they are rescuing the druid spirits in exchange for a fire-resistant shield of protection so they can face Balthazar in the volcano]]. They have a hilarious exchange about the Commander possibly hallucinating and 8 voices, but if your character is a Sylvari and so soon after the events of Heart of Thorns [[spoiler:it might a little too soon to start hearing voices and seeing delusions again, especially since Mordremoth was [[MindRape messing up their head]] the entire story]].

* AcceptableReligiousTargets: Out-of-universe example. Mentioning you believe that Abaddon (who, WordOfGod confirms is DeaderThanDead) will return, whether it be as an off-hand remark or as part of a theory, is a sure-fire way to get yourself chided at and scolded by the majority of the fanbase for not [[CriticalResearchFailure looking up the fact]] that he is... well, ''[[KilledOffForReal really dead]]''.

** The male Asura PC is voiced by Steve Staley... using the ''exact voice'' that he used for [[Manga/{{Naruto}} Neji Hyuga]], [[VideoGame/TalesOfLegendia Jay the Unseen]] and [[VideoGame/TalesOfGraces Hubert Oswell]].