Guild Wars: Factions Review

As for the PVP side of things, the combat itself never quite grabbed me. The way that the system has been expanded and worked on in Factions is very good (especially with the addition of Battle Isles where players from both the original Guild Wars and Factions meet), but the nitty-gritty of the combat itself simply doesn't have the right feeling for me. Yes, I know. Don't tell me. I was a WOW PVP whore and I admit it (even despite the horrible grind). Still, in order to truly experience the massive battles and all that that entails, you'll have to be pretty hardcore about your guild and alliances with other guilds. It simply will take a lot of time and effort, which is not something I, or many other players will want to put in, given that the combat itself just doesn't feel right.

It's all fun and games until someone loses a rare crafting material.

Meet the Ritualist chick.

As far as the itemization is concerned a bunch of new items have been added, but the concept of "no phat loot from the bosses" remains the same. You still have to craft all the best stuff and do pretty much what you did in the original game, dyes and all. This is another thing that I do not fully understand. Yes, the principle behind it is clear - have the players focus more on the gameplay, rather than obsess over "epixx" - but it still renders the game of one crucial component that makes RPGs interesting.

Is Guild Wars Factions a good purchase? It most certainly is. You get plenty of bang for your buck and if you liked the original, you're bound to like Factions. The "sequel" or whatever you like to call it offers a lot of great stuff, albeit for the more hardcore GW fans. This in turn should give you something more to do when you've finished the main campaign. Did the new stuff do the trick for me? I'm not quite sure, but now we're delving into the realm of personal affinities. Overall, I can say that NCSoft did a great job on Factions. They are staying true to their design philosophy, while adding a bunch of new stuff for their loyal fans... even though they are likely still feeling Blizzard's hot breath streaming down the small of their back.

NOTE: The shots in the review are from the official site. I have managed to fry my brand-new HP laptop while playing Guild Wars: Factions. Nothing to do with the game, of course. Thank you Hewlett Packard - your Chinese-made laptops are the best!