Note: This post is directly taken from the gwo forums, created by the user Quintis Antonius. I did not write it up.
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Alright folks, I've reviewed the PCGamer article and I am going to give a brief summary of what we are to expect in GW:EN.
PART I: The New Races
PART II: The Story
GW:EN will have three acts, and will require that a player have one of the three prior chapters (Prophecies, Factions, or Nightfall) to play, as in it's an expansion, not stand-alone.
In the first act, earthquakes reveal the Asuran tunnels below Tyria (the planet, not the continent) and these lead down to the Asuran empire below the earth. There you find out that the Asura are fighting against the Great Destroyer. You go with them, apparently through a magical gate, and meet the Norn. It also says "We're told you will encounter some 'suprises and a few familiar faces' " along the way. So, once you get to Norn-land (my term, not their's), you find out that the Dwarves are gearing up to fight off the Great Destroyer.
In the second act, you learn more about the Norn culture, and end up in Northern Ascalon, in (drumroll) the Charr homeland! The Charr homeland looks like Pre-Searing Ascalon, and is not seared like heartland Ascalon. The Charr are unravelling. They are in civil war, and are suffering from the loss of the Titans as their gods. You also learn that the Asura are preparing to fight the Great Destroyer using "their own brand of supermagic".
In the third act, we finally meet and fight the Great Destroyer.
PART III: Locations
According to the article, there will be familiar and new locations. First of all, most of the game takes place north of Tyria, or underground Tyria. There are four main locations given:
Underground: Basically imagine the Pre-Searing Catacombs, which we apparently get access to again, only on a much larger and vaster scale. There are apparently also lava tubes.
Far North Shiverpeaks: Snow, rocks, Norns, Dwarves. Not much more to say.
Tarnished Coast: Borders Maguuma jungle, a land of rocky outcrops, and waterfalls. Lots of caves, Asura country.
North Ascalon: Charr homeland. Looks like Pre-Searing Ascalon.
PART IV: Gwen
Yes, it is indeed that Gwen.
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/4016/gw25wz2.jpg
View the image. Need I say more on this? Apparently she is alive, and has grown up. The circumstances of this are unknown.
PART FIVE: Quintus's Closing Thoughts, and Implications of Lore
So there you have it folks. A nice tidy summary of the lore revealed in the new article in PCGamer. I will not provide full screenshots, and I will not post any more pictures than I have already as I will not violate copyrights. If you want to know more, or if you want to see the screenshots and other pictures, which there are plenty, then I suggest you pickup your own copy of PCGamer when it hits the shelves Apirl 3rd.
Now onto the implications these new places and face have on the lore.
Unfortunantely, there is no mention of the Mursaat. The Asuran race looks like a catch all race thrown in to explain some of the mysterious parts left from Prophecies, such as the Catacombs. But it is important to remember that the article only outlines what GW:EN will have that is new. Very little, if anything, is mentioned about older things and how they relate. So it is still entirely possible the Mursaat will make an appearence. What worries me, however, is that the Asura are seemingly taking up the role of the Mursaat. Almost everything about them, from their home near Maguuma, their magical and technological superiority, and their attributes and "words to live by", reek of the Mursaat. It bothers me that ANet crapped out a new race of magical superbunnies, faeries, and giant bearmen instead of developing the races we already have, like the Tengu, the Mursaat, the Dredge, and the Centaurs. But as I said, the article mainly covered new things, not old things, and unless ANet has planned to completely abandoned the lore and story of Chapter One, those groups and others must certainly have some role or mention.
What we do get to see, however, is an exploration of Charr culture, and Dwarven mythos, two things greatly lacking in Prophecies and subsequent chapters. The Charr are confirmed to be a Mongolian-esque tribal structure, and their attack on Tyria is confirmed to be a Genghis Khan-like conquering of Eurasia, with a fantasy twist, of course. Also, the prospect of seeing new old unseared Ascalon in all its beauty is really exciting.
Ah, the Great Dwarf-Great Destroyer mystery will finally be solved. I must admit, I'm happy about this. Also, on the page that talks about the Great Dwarf, there is a picture of Balthazar surrounded by Kurzick-like statues. This may prove my theory of ol' Balthie being the Great Dwarf, however, the mystery of the Great Destroyer remains unsolved, he was not, apparently as I theorized, Abaddon, but there is still a credible theory that he is the Lord of Destruction, and Balthazar's half-brother Menzies. I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see. There are several threads on this already active, so please don't discuss it here.
As I've mentioned before, the article didn't really cover how old lore will connect with the new lore. There was no mention of the Mursaat, or even any of the three kingdoms of Tyria. There was nothing on the White Mantle, or Glint and the Forgotten, and it didn't mention a single one of the Six Gods. Yet, unless ANet is completely planning on rewriting the lore of Tyria in one chapter, which I do not believe they will do, these groups must have something to do with Eye of the North. If they do not, I for one, will be very dissatisifed. However, the article does put a strong emphasis on meeting with "familiar faces and places" and does stress that it is meant to tie up the lose ends of the Prophecies-Factions-Nightfall arc, and transition into GW2. GW2 is still two to three years away, so I will not discuss that at this time.
So it looks like GW:EN will be an epic, and long, game. We will see familiar faces, new faces and races, and hopefully revisit old mysteries that have not yet been tied up. Undoubtably, more information will leak out before Q3 2007 when the game is slated for launch, and there is a beta coming up this summer, so hopefully we'll hear some word on some of our favorite characters. Here's me hoping for more Mursaat, and no Re-Undead Rurik!
DISCLAIMER: Quoted texts are copyrighted property of PCGamer and content is copyright of ArenaNet and NCSoft. Images are copyrighted material of ArenaNet/NCSoft and PCGamer.
-----
Yes, you read it correctly.
GWEN.
Those of you with Prophecies will remember the annoying little thing who used to follow you around Pre-Searing Ascalon. For many years, people have wondered what has happened to her. Did she perish in the searing? Was she taken hostage? Is she still alive, somewhere?
The answer is: Yes, she is still alive.
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/4016/gw25wz2.jpg
-----
Alright folks, I've reviewed the PCGamer article and I am going to give a brief summary of what we are to expect in GW:EN.
PART I: The New Races
A young race of nature spirits who have awakened with the rise of a new age in Tyria, Sylvari are beings of light, as yet uncorrupted by knowledge of sorrow, suspicion, or hatred. Sylvari are proficient in things related to magic and dexterity, with a supernatural connection to plants and other an innate empathic bond to each other.
A diminutive race from the depths of Tyria, Asura wish to expand their empire to the surface world. Exceptionally intelligent and techinically minded, they use magical skills, stone, and metalworking to create weapons. Asura believe they are destined to rule the world, with the larger, less intelligent races as their subjects.
A savage race of sentient beasts, the Charr will use any means avilable to destory their enemies: an ambush is as honorable as a fair fight, as victory is what matters. Though Charr have no concept of mercy, they can be protective of those within their tribe.
A race of shape-shifting half-giants from the north, the Norn value personal strength, victory, and purifying the soul through battle. They revere the spirits of animals and call on them like shamans. Norn can access a skill that changes them into a half-Norn/half-bear, with increased health and melee damage.
PART II: The Story
I am not going to post the rest verbatum because I do not want to violate copyright laws, however, I will provide a summary:
GW:EN will have three acts, and will require that a player have one of the three prior chapters (Prophecies, Factions, or Nightfall) to play, as in it's an expansion, not stand-alone.
In the first act, earthquakes reveal the Asuran tunnels below Tyria (the planet, not the continent) and these lead down to the Asuran empire below the earth. There you find out that the Asura are fighting against the Great Destroyer. You go with them, apparently through a magical gate, and meet the Norn. It also says "We're told you will encounter some 'suprises and a few familiar faces' " along the way. So, once you get to Norn-land (my term, not their's), you find out that the Dwarves are gearing up to fight off the Great Destroyer.
In the second act, you learn more about the Norn culture, and end up in Northern Ascalon, in (drumroll) the Charr homeland! The Charr homeland looks like Pre-Searing Ascalon, and is not seared like heartland Ascalon. The Charr are unravelling. They are in civil war, and are suffering from the loss of the Titans as their gods. You also learn that the Asura are preparing to fight the Great Destroyer using "their own brand of supermagic".
In the third act, we finally meet and fight the Great Destroyer.
PART III: Locations
According to the article, there will be familiar and new locations. First of all, most of the game takes place north of Tyria, or underground Tyria. There are four main locations given:
Underground: Basically imagine the Pre-Searing Catacombs, which we apparently get access to again, only on a much larger and vaster scale. There are apparently also lava tubes.
Far North Shiverpeaks: Snow, rocks, Norns, Dwarves. Not much more to say.
Tarnished Coast: Borders Maguuma jungle, a land of rocky outcrops, and waterfalls. Lots of caves, Asura country.
North Ascalon: Charr homeland. Looks like Pre-Searing Ascalon.
PART IV: Gwen
Yes, it is indeed that Gwen.
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/4016/gw25wz2.jpg
View the image. Need I say more on this? Apparently she is alive, and has grown up. The circumstances of this are unknown.
PART FIVE: Quintus's Closing Thoughts, and Implications of Lore
So there you have it folks. A nice tidy summary of the lore revealed in the new article in PCGamer. I will not provide full screenshots, and I will not post any more pictures than I have already as I will not violate copyrights. If you want to know more, or if you want to see the screenshots and other pictures, which there are plenty, then I suggest you pickup your own copy of PCGamer when it hits the shelves Apirl 3rd.
Now onto the implications these new places and face have on the lore.
Unfortunantely, there is no mention of the Mursaat. The Asuran race looks like a catch all race thrown in to explain some of the mysterious parts left from Prophecies, such as the Catacombs. But it is important to remember that the article only outlines what GW:EN will have that is new. Very little, if anything, is mentioned about older things and how they relate. So it is still entirely possible the Mursaat will make an appearence. What worries me, however, is that the Asura are seemingly taking up the role of the Mursaat. Almost everything about them, from their home near Maguuma, their magical and technological superiority, and their attributes and "words to live by", reek of the Mursaat. It bothers me that ANet crapped out a new race of magical superbunnies, faeries, and giant bearmen instead of developing the races we already have, like the Tengu, the Mursaat, the Dredge, and the Centaurs. But as I said, the article mainly covered new things, not old things, and unless ANet has planned to completely abandoned the lore and story of Chapter One, those groups and others must certainly have some role or mention.
What we do get to see, however, is an exploration of Charr culture, and Dwarven mythos, two things greatly lacking in Prophecies and subsequent chapters. The Charr are confirmed to be a Mongolian-esque tribal structure, and their attack on Tyria is confirmed to be a Genghis Khan-like conquering of Eurasia, with a fantasy twist, of course. Also, the prospect of seeing new old unseared Ascalon in all its beauty is really exciting.
Ah, the Great Dwarf-Great Destroyer mystery will finally be solved. I must admit, I'm happy about this. Also, on the page that talks about the Great Dwarf, there is a picture of Balthazar surrounded by Kurzick-like statues. This may prove my theory of ol' Balthie being the Great Dwarf, however, the mystery of the Great Destroyer remains unsolved, he was not, apparently as I theorized, Abaddon, but there is still a credible theory that he is the Lord of Destruction, and Balthazar's half-brother Menzies. I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see. There are several threads on this already active, so please don't discuss it here.
As I've mentioned before, the article didn't really cover how old lore will connect with the new lore. There was no mention of the Mursaat, or even any of the three kingdoms of Tyria. There was nothing on the White Mantle, or Glint and the Forgotten, and it didn't mention a single one of the Six Gods. Yet, unless ANet is completely planning on rewriting the lore of Tyria in one chapter, which I do not believe they will do, these groups must have something to do with Eye of the North. If they do not, I for one, will be very dissatisifed. However, the article does put a strong emphasis on meeting with "familiar faces and places" and does stress that it is meant to tie up the lose ends of the Prophecies-Factions-Nightfall arc, and transition into GW2. GW2 is still two to three years away, so I will not discuss that at this time.
So it looks like GW:EN will be an epic, and long, game. We will see familiar faces, new faces and races, and hopefully revisit old mysteries that have not yet been tied up. Undoubtably, more information will leak out before Q3 2007 when the game is slated for launch, and there is a beta coming up this summer, so hopefully we'll hear some word on some of our favorite characters. Here's me hoping for more Mursaat, and no Re-Undead Rurik!
DISCLAIMER: Quoted texts are copyrighted property of PCGamer and content is copyright of ArenaNet and NCSoft. Images are copyrighted material of ArenaNet/NCSoft and PCGamer.
-----
Yes, you read it correctly.
GWEN.
Those of you with Prophecies will remember the annoying little thing who used to follow you around Pre-Searing Ascalon. For many years, people have wondered what has happened to her. Did she perish in the searing? Was she taken hostage? Is she still alive, somewhere?
The answer is: Yes, she is still alive.
http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/4016/gw25wz2.jpg
