Guild Wars - News

ArenaNet Artists at Emerald City ComiCon!

Tue, 02 Mar 2010 19:06:03 GMT -0700

Come meet three fantastic ArenaNet artists at Seattle's Emerald City ComiCon on March 13^th and 14^th! Katy Hargrove, Kristen Perry, and Matt Barrett will be hanging out all weekend in Artist's Alley. For more details about each of them (and what they'll have to offer at the show), head over here.

If you're in town Saturday night and want to hang out with some ArenaNet devs, here's your chance! Check out our Facebook event page for more information.

Community: A Weekend "Maragon"!

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

This weekend, the [KISS] Alliance will host an epic riddle-based marathon through Guild Wars! Find out more in Community News!

February Game Balance Update!

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 17:12:49 GMT -0700

It's one of the biggest skill updates we've ever done! We've addressed a wide range of game balance issues such as Shadow Form, Hammer Mastery in PvE, the role of the Ritualist in PvE, and much more. For an overview of the update, head here. For more detailed info about the skill changes, head on over to this month's developer's update.

Ghosts of Ascalon: The First Guild Wars Novel

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 17:43:29 GMT -0700

It's almost here! Ghosts of Ascalon, the first original Guild Wars novel, hits bookshelves this summer! An epic tale written by Matt Forbeck and Jeff Grubb, Ghosts of Ascalon helps to set the stage for the release of Guild Wars 2. Head over here to learn more!

The Most Influential Women in MMO Development

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 17:36:19 GMT -0700

Massively interviewed twelve of the most influential women in MMO game development, including our very own Linsey Murdock and Katy Hargrove! Read the first of the fascinating multi-part interview here.

Jeff Grubb Gets Loreful with Ten Ton Hammer!

Fri, 19 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

World-builder extraordinaire Jeff Grubb sat down with Ten Ton Hammer to discuss the lore of Guild Wars 2. Jeff talks about Elder Dragons, gods, dwarves, and more—read the interview here!

Canthan New Year Is Here!

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

Shing Jea Monastery has completed preparations for the annual Canthan New Year festival! Starting at Noon Pacific (-8 GMT), it's time to put on your party mask and join in all of the holiday festivities, games, and quests. For complete details, head over to our special event page.

Community: A Tiger Feast!

Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

In this edition of Community News, you're invited to The Brotherhood of Shadows Alliance Tiger Feast! Plus, we've got a great new Guild Wars blog for you to check out. Read more in Community News!

Making it as an MMO Blogger

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

Massively.com has posted "Making it as an MMO Blogger", a fascinating interview with nine community managers - including our very own Regina Buenaobra - about what it takes to build a successful MMO blog. Check out the first of the two-part series right here!

Community: Gamers Giving Back to Haiti

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

In this week's Community News, we provide details about Gaming World Events, who will host an in-game event to help raise money for the Canadian Red Cross and their relief efforts in Haiti. Head over here to find out more about this event and other cool stuff happening in the community.

The Canthan New Year is Nearly Here!

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:02:49 GMT -0700

The Year of the Tiger is upon us! We've posted an overview of all the fantastic stuff we have planned for the Canthan New Year's Festival, which begins on Friday, February 12^th. For a detailed look at the festival, check out Massively's comprehensive guide right here!

Community: Fansite News

Fri, 29 Jan 2010 13:57:22 GMT -0700

In this update, we've got some exciting news to share from several of our fan sites. Read more in Community News!

New Update: PvP Changes and GvG Updates

Thu, 28 Jan 2010 17:58:23 GMT -0700

In today's live update, we've focused on resolving several pressing PvP skill balance issues, making refinements to the Codex Arena, and making GvG participation a little easier. Head on over to our newest Developer Update to learn more!

Wintersday Redux!

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 17:58:23 GMT -0700

Wintersday comes twice this year! Due to Grentchy technical issues with the Festival Hat distribution during the Wintersday finale earlier this month, we're hosting a special encore festival, complete with all the Wintersday activities you love!Wintersday Redux begins at noon Pacific time (-8 GMT) on Friday, January 29^th and runs until 11:59 PM Pacific time on Sunday, February 7^th. During the big finale, everyone will get another chance to pick up a Wintersday Festival Hat. If you can't make it to the finale, look for special holiday collectors who will exchange Festival Hats for Candy Cane Shards!

Check out our Wintersday page for more info.

Wintersday Art Contest Winners!

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:23:25 GMT -0700

Congratulations to the winners of the 2009 Wintersday Art Contest and a warm thank you to everyone who entered! Find out who won right here!

Digital Arts Workshop with ArenaNet Artists

Fri, 08 Jan 2010 16:50:44 GMT -0700

Witness the creation of a gallery's worth of art—in real time! FuturePoly's Digital Arts Workshop is a fascinating 5-hour live art demonstration featuring some of the gaming industry's top talent. In this interactive workshop, ArenaNet artists Daniel Dociu, Kekai Kotaki, Matthew Barrett, and more will discuss their technique and create beautiful pieces of digital art, from sketch to completion. A portion of every ticket sale goes to the amazing charity Child's Play.

The Digital Arts Workshop takes place on Saturday, January 23^rd at Bellevue College's Paccar Auditorium in Bellevue, WA. To register or learn more, visit the FuturePoly website.

New Holiday Papercraft: Avatar of Dwayna!

Tue, 22 Dec 2009 15:59:32 GMT -0700

We saved the best for last—this impressive papercraft model of the Avatar of Dwayna is ready to grace your tree or desk with her serene presence. It's the biggest model we've ever done! Click here to get started.

Community: Player-Run Wintersday Events!

Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:57:22 GMT -0700

Our fantastic player community has a bunch of great events in store for the Wintersday season! Read the latest Community News for details!

New Costumes and Wintersday Cheer!

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 13:19:01 GMT -0700

The preparations for our annual Wintersday celebration begin today! Starting tomorrow and running until January 4^th, Wintersday festivities will sweep across Tyria like a chill wind from the Shiverpeaks. Here's what revelers can expect this year:

Brand-new for 2009—a unique set of Wintersday costumes are now available in the In-Game Store and the NCsoft Store! Head over to our new costumes page to read all of the details.

You've spoken, and we've listened! Costume slots have been added to the character portrait. Now, you can wear costumes over your armor, meaning you can look fabulous in your Dwayna costume or festival hat without sacrificing protection! Learn the details here.

Starting tomorrow, our annual Wintersday festival will bring loads of seasonal treats, festive decorations, holiday quests, snowball tournaments, and more! Check out our Wintersday 2009 page for more information.

Wintersday Gifts for Friends and Followers

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:29:10 GMT -0700

Do you follow us on Facebook or Twitter? If not, you should! Over the next few days, we'll be spreading extra Wintersday cheer with early presents for some of our lucky friends and followers. Simply friend us on Facebook and/or follow us on Twitter (if you don't already, of course), and then watch our updates on these sites for further details. Good luck and happy Wintersday from all of us!

Go Behind the Scenes with the Voices of Tyria

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 10:32:51 GMT -0700

We've posted a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the voice acting behind Guild Wars 2, featuring top-tier talents like Felicia Day and Steve Blum! Check it out on our Facebook page or YouTube channel.

Wintersday Approaches!

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:59:32 GMT -0700

Wintersday is almost here! Soon, cities and towns all across Tyria will be decked out in splendid holiday decor, enchanted snowman henchmen will serve your adventuring needs, and vendors will be selling all manner of Wintersday consumables.

The festivities begin on December 18^th and run until January 4^th, so be sure to clear your calendars! Head over to our Wintersday 2009 event page for all of the details.

New Holiday Papercraft: Rollerbeetles!

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:59:32 GMT -0700

Check out this week's holiday papercraft: rollerbeetles! These speedy little bugs are waiting to be printed out and assembled. Make a whole pack of them! Click right here and we'll show you how.

New Guild Wars 2 Interview at MMORPG.com

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 11:07:45 GMT -0700

Following the release of the new Guild Wars 2 video, we sat down with MMORPG.com to discuss the races of Tyria, GW2's massive game world, and more! Read the whole thing right here.

New Holiday Papercraft: Moa Bird!

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:59:32 GMT -0700

This week's holiday papercraft model is the ubiquitous, flightless moa bird! Normally these birds are the size of ponies and fond of pecking, but these paper moas are small and harmless! Make yours today—we'll show you how right here!

New Guild Wars 2 Video: The Races of Tyria

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 07:24:22 GMT -0700

Experience the Races of Tyria, an incredible new video that looks at the five playable races of Guild Wars 2—asura, norn, humans, charr, and sylvari. Learn more about each compelling race and watch the video here!

Community: Calendar Time!

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 13:57:22 GMT -0700

In this edition of Community News, we've got a new fan-made video for you to check out, and the glorious return of the Guild Wars Advent Calendar from Wartower.de! For details, click through to Community News.

Guild Wars Holiday Papercrafts

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:57:08 GMT -0700

Just in time for the holidays—a collection of charming papercraft Guild Wars models! We've got paper moa birds, rollerbeetles, a tiny Gwen doll, and a brand-new surprise model that you'll just have to see! They'd all make great tree ornaments.

Print out and make your own paper models—we'll show you how! Click here to get started!

Wintersday Art Contest Begins!

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 20:55:35 GMT -0700

Spread some holiday spirit and share your creativity with the Guild Wars community! Enter our annual Wintersday Art Contest, which starts today! Head over to this year's contest page for more details.

Eye of the North: Free with any Campaign!

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 13:36:39 GMT -0700

The holidays are fast approaching, so we'll help you celebrate a little early! Starting today, when you buy any Guild Wars campaign from the In-Game Store or the NCsoft store, you'll receive Eye of the North for FREE! This special holiday offer ends January 5, 2010—get yours today!

Buy The Art of Guild Wars 2, Get a Free Art Print!

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 11:59:29 GMT -0700

Until January 4^th, whenever you buy The Art of Guild Wars 2 from the Penny Arcade store, you'll receive a free limited edition Guild Wars art print. Choose from three awesome pieces of signed concept art from award-winning ArenaNet artists. Hurry over to the Penny Arcade store today!

New Update: Dhuum Awakens!

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:30:18 GMT -0700

Something stirs in the Underworld. Something ancient, powerful, and utterly evil: Dhuum. Banished eons ago by Grenth, this dark avatar of death has bided his time and grown in power. Now, Dhuum is free! We've added this terrifying new end boss to the Underworld—face him if you dare.

To find out what other updates we've made today, be sure to check out the rest of the update notes.

Community: Autumn Soiree!

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:37:46 GMT -0700

The Order of the Phoenix Alliance invites you to attend their autumn celebration, the Soiree at the Sanctum on November 14^th in the Imperial Sanctum! To learn more about this special event, check out this week's Community News.

MMO Calendar 2010 is Now Available!

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:16:59 GMT -0700

The fourth annual MMO Calendar is now available, featuring original artwork from the hottest current and upcoming MMOs—including an awesome piece of Guild Wars 2 artwork from our very own Kekai Kotaki! 100% of the proceeds go directly to the good people at St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital. You get a fantastic calendar and get to support a great cause at the same time—it's a win/win!

Plus, everyone who purchases a calendar will be entered in a drawing to win cool MMO prizes, including a boxed copy of the Guild Wars Trilogy. Head over to http://www.mmocalendar.com and order yours today!

Halloween Art Contest Winners!

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 14:39:02 GMT -0700

It was a tough decision, but we have selected the Halloween Art Contest winners from a field of fantastic entries. Thank you to all who participated! Check out the winning art right here.

Web Developer Job Opening

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 12:05:17 GMT -0700

Are you an outstanding web developer with a passion for MMOGs? Why not join our team? Qualified candidates will be passionate, creative team players who produce high quality JavaScript code and love agile development. ASP.NET and ASP.NET MVC experience is a huge plus. Check out our job listing for more details!

Community: Listen, Look, Create!

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:57:22 GMT -0700

This edition of Community News spotlights some awesome player events: the monthly Ascension Show on Sanitarium.fm, a Halloween update to Healbot Blues, and a video contest by InfestedHydralisk! See our Community News for more!

Community: Halloween Events and More!

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:57:22 GMT -0700

Halloween is nearly here, and we have some frightfully fantastic player-organized events coming up. But that's not all! For you bloggers out there, one of our fan sites has created a Guild Wars theme for WordPress. Plus: Guild Wars fan fiction for the iPhone! Come check it out!

New Live Update

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 19:00:33 GMT -0700

Today's update is now live! Here's a sample of what you'll find in the new build:

We've got tricks and treats galore and new quests to explore during the 2009 Halloween Event, which starts tomorrow! Head over to our event page for more details.

A new PvP format is now available! Learn more about the brand-new Codex Arena here!

To read all of the details, be sure to check out the rest of the update notes.

Halloween Approaches!

Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:21:59 GMT -0700

Halloween is coming, so prepare for ten days of mayhem, mirth, and the Mad King! Festivities kick off on Friday, October 23^rd at Noon Pacific (-7 GMT). Keep your eyes open for spooky special event collectors and monsters dropping trick-or-treat bags. Crash our annual PvP Costume Brawl! Venture into the Underworld on a series of all-new quests—if you dare! And, on Halloween, October 31^st, Mad King Thorn will make a series of appearances!

Head over to our Halloween 2009 event page for all of the gory details!

Fall Storage Sale: 25% off Xunlai Storage Panes!

Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:05:09 GMT -0700

There's never been a better time to expand your storage! Xunlai Storage Panes are 25% off from October 7th through November 1st.

Visit the Guild Wars In-Game Store or the NCsoft Store to take advantage of this limited time offer!

September Tournament News

Tue, 06 Oct 2009 15:27:32 GMT -0700

In September, Inadequately Equipped [GeAr] claimed victory over I Disposable Heroes I [DirT] to become the champion guild of the month. On the 1v1 front, Cleanup Time defeated Julie Loves Cindy to become our September 1v1 champion. For a complete list of the monthly rankings, check out the full GvG and 1v1 results.

Since it's a new month, the Zaishen Chest will offer a new tonic. Use those Zaishen Keys for a chance to find October's sensational Skeletonic! To see the full tonic schedule, check out the Zaishen Rewards Calendar.

Community: E-Zines and Horrorween!

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 13:57:22 GMT -0700

The player community is celebrating October with a lot of creativity, starting with two great publications from Photics and ending with a massive Halloween event: The King and Queen's Horrorween! Read on for community news!

Henchman Skill Bar Contest Winners!

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 17:09:13 GMT -0700

Congratulations to the winners of the Henchman Skill Bar Contest! Who won? Find out right here.

Halloween Art Contest

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 11:26:18 GMT -0700

Help us celebrate the season by entering your Guild Wars themed Halloween art in our fifth annual contest. Design a costume, bake a cake, carve a pumpkin—go nuts! Check out the details here.

Chinese Community Localization

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:26:18 GMT -0700

We'd like to announce an exciting opportunity for Guild Wars players who speak Traditional Chinese! We've created a way for you to submit localized content for skill names and descriptions. If you would like to help, check out this page on the Official Guild Wars Wiki. Please note that we are currently focusing on Traditional Chinese skill names and descriptions only.

Skill Bar Contest Winners Revealed October 1

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:26:18 GMT -0700

We received a huge number of entries to the Henchman Skill Bar Contest—more than 30,000! We're still reviewing all of the submissions, so we've moved the announcement of the contest winners to October 1^st. We're sorry for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience!

The Art of Guild Wars 2 - NOW AVAILABLE!

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:44:04 GMT -0700

This incredible hardbound collection of Guild Wars 2 concept art is now available for sale! Head over here to pick up your copy today.

Community: Discussions and Awesome Tunes!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:26:17 GMT -0700

Interested in Guild Wars discussion? Love music? Tune in to the Ascension Show this month on Sanitarium.fm! For more details, check out Community News!

Kill Ten Rats Interview Posted

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:59:45 GMT -0700

Guild Wars Live Team Lead Designer Linsey Murdock and Guild Wars 2 Game Designer Isaiah "Izzy" Cartwright recently sat down with the folks from Kill Ten Rats to discuss Guild Wars combat and the metrics used for skill balance. Head over to see what they have to say!

PAX Videos Are Now Online!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 11:57:31 GMT -0700

Couldn't make it to PAX this year? To make sure you didn't miss anything, we've posted videos of our panel interviews from the Penny Arcade Expo on our YouTube channel. Head over to watch discussions about the art of Guild Wars 2, a panel interview with the Guild Wars Live Team, and a lore-filled talk about the upcoming Fall of Ascalon novel!

New Update Now Live!

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 12:03:57 GMT -0700

Check out our latest game update and read what the developers have to say about it here.

Aion Wings FAQ Updated!

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 16:06:59 GMT -0700

Due to popular demand, we've made some changes to the Aion wings emote promo. Players who purchase Aion digitally will now be able to get the wings emote for their Guild Wars accounts. Pop over to our revised Aion wings FAQ for more info!

PAX Updates All Weekend!

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:20:45 GMT -0700

PAX is upon us! We'll be posting updates all weekend from the Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle. To stay up-to-date on the latest breaking news:

If you're heading to the show, be sure to swing by booth #842 in the Exhibit Hall and say hi!

Test Krewe Applications Closing September 8th

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:20:45 GMT -0700

As a reminder for those interested in becoming a member of the Guild Wars Live Test Krewe, the deadline for submitting applications is this upcoming Tuesday, September 8^th. If you haven't submitted your Test Krewe application, be sure to do so before then.

Thanks to everyone who has applied! Going through all the applications will take some time, but we'll announce the Test Krewe members as soon as we can. Stay tuned!

Guild Wars 2 Art in ImagineFX!

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 18:20:45 GMT -0700

Check out the August issue of ImagineFX, which features two beautiful pieces of Guild Wars 2 concept art by our very own Art Director Daniel Dociu. Look for this special issue on shelves now!