Guild Wars an Evolution
Originally Published by Sonya of Red
In the beginning Anet created Guild Wars and all was good. The denizens of this small world left their tiny homes in Ascalon and
went out into the big, bright world and foraged for tools and searched for adventure. Being young and ignorant (the hallmarks of
youth) they seldom stopped to reflect upon the nature of their universe and their purpose in this digital world. Why were they
there? Who had put them there? What were they supposed to do? These questions went unasked by these simple people. Instead they roamed, fought, laughed, and left the big questions for those who would come later.
As time passed, the population ballooned. Not just locked to the tiny land of Ascalon, GuildWardians could be found in every nook and cranny of the known world. With the huge increase in population, the face of this gaming planet changed. Those citizens of old, the gaming elders, whose very existence once centered upon survival and exploration, were now replaced by a new type of citizenry. This new group, thanks to their forefathers, came to the game with a fundamental knowledge of the world they invaded. They had maps, builds, and perhaps more importantly, access to advanced weaponry that their forbearers could only dream of.
As societies age they become more impatient, more time conscious. These new people, not wrapped up in the day-to-day needs of survival, were fundamentally different than their predecessors. Many came to the world solely for fame and glory, others for wealth. These would be conquerors, these modern day Hernan Cortezes, could not abide by the anarchaic, ritualistic foraging that once marked the sole existence of their ancestors.
Thus, the gaming world changed. With the modern age came new ideas. No longer satisfied with traversing the world through the vehicle of missions and quests, modern GuildWardians often would travel in caravans, led by gaming elders across the digital landscape. The elders themselves, no longer forced to eke out a dismal living by foraging for wood, iron and raw materials, now had time to ponder those once unasked questions: Is this all there is, or is there more? Why am I here? And, most importantly, how do I distinguish myself from the hoards of gaming newbies?
Gold! It all comes down to gold and greed. Once the world was conquered it was time to amass fortunes and laud it over the rest of the gaming citizenry. Thus farming and rushing were invented. Fortunes increased and more than ever a sense of urgency was brought to the game. In the pvp arenas, scorn was heaped upon those gaming neophytes in their Ascalon armor, wielding their low level non-elite skills.
In the rush towards “leetness” the echoes of the past crying out for a simpler world were shut out. Gone were the days of the missions and quests. Gone too were the days of the innocence of youth when all you needed was a simple sword and a small group of friends.
When once the population spread across the globe, now they huddled in the larger cities; hocking their wares, dreaming of riches, and of a life encased in an armor that would inspire fear and awe in those fortunate enough to behold them.
The modern age of Guild Wars is here - all hail my shiny, black Fissure of Woe armored ass!
