GW2: winner of ZAM's Most Anticipated Original IP 2009

[Fril Estelin]

They won against TSW, FF XIV and JO!

http://www.zam.com/story.html?story=21012&page=5

Announced in 2007, Guild Wars 2 is the upcoming sequel to ArenaNet's successful Guild Wars series, originally released in 2005. During a time when the subscription-based revenue model was flourishing, Guild Wars was the industry-bucking maverick that helped pave the way for Western free-to-play MMOs (illustrating that quality wasn't only synonymous with subscription-based MMOs).

In the midst of their success, the developers of ArenaNet realized the original Guild Wars had a finite shelf-life; players might stick around for years to come, but they needed more incentive to keep buying expansion packs and new campaigns. Almost three years ago, ArenaNet announced it would begin focusing most of the company's time and resources on Guild Wars 2, rather than material for the original game.

Fans were ecstatic; but as time went on, the developers barely had anything to show their community. "We announced it before we even started working on it," ArenaNet's founder and president Mike O'Brien told ZAM last summer at PAX. "It killed us to have to be developing in the dark, because obviously we're making cool stuff and we want people to see what we're working on. But we wanted to get the game to the point where it really shows what it is."

And that's exactly why Guild Wars 2 was met with such renewed anticipation in 2009, when ArenaNet was finally able to share the first details and media of the upcoming MMO with the public. The official video trailer displayed an exciting new rendition of the IP; the new graphics engine paints the familiar world of Tyria a strikingly-fresh and unique light, featuring amazing detail in everything from landscapes to architecture.

In the past six months, we've also learned a lot about the gameplay in Guild Wars 2. Unlike the original, the sequel allows players to roam a fully-persistent world. Revamped gameplay mechanics and simplified combat systems promise an entirely new game, with five playable races and a much richer storyline than the original.

In October, we heard rumors that the sequel's PvP might incorporate appealing real-time strategy genre elements, and earlier this month, ArenaNet released another video offering a closer look at the MMO's races and environments. We still don't know exactly how close the developers are to post-production, but after almost two years of being left in the dark, fans were grateful for every little detail announced in 2009, and they can't wait to see more in 2010.

[Sabre Wolf]

Woof.... just to beat a FF title is good enough for me!

[Eliz Genevieve]

*speechless* Yay!

[Daelin Dwin]

Yes, yes.


Congratulations Arena-net!

[Tr0n]

It's not original IP any more. It's GW2.

[Fril Estelin]

Originally Posted by Sabre Wolf

Woof.... just to beat a FF title is good enough for me!

Beating TSW with a fantasy setting is quite a feat! TSW has a very original IP in a contemporary MMO world not really seen before. But GW2's steampunk-ish stylized fantasy is FTW.

[Maglama]

I wish Maglama knew what an IP was.

[moriz]

"intellectual property"

[Maglama]

Originally Posted by moriz

"intellectual property"

I wish Maglama knew what they meant by intellectual property.

[Arghore]

Grats to Anet ... and:

fans were grateful for every little detail announced in 2009, and they can't wait to see more in 2010.

QFT !

[Dutch Sunshine]

They deserve it

[Default]

Originally Posted by Maglama

I wish Maglama knew what they meant by intellectual property.

ANET came up with Guild Wars, its story, and the world of Tyria, thus, it is their "Intellectual Property", this means they own it, and everything in it, and people cannot make games based on this world without their permission.

For example, Warcraft is Blizzards IP, nobody else can make a Warcraft game without Blizzard giving the say so, because they "own" Warcraft, they "own" their brand of Blood Elves, etc.

A "new" IP basically means a new world, which is why Guild Wars is not exactly a new IP, ANet has owned it for awhile now, this is not some newfangled idea like a horror based game, or anything like that.

Either way, great job ANET!

[Geroui]

Wow... that's...so..awesome...

[Arduin]

I wish Arduinna knew what ZAM was.

[Maglama]

Originally Posted by Default

ANET came up with Guild Wars, its story, and the world of Tyria, thus, it is their "Intellectual Property", this means they own it, and everything in it, and people cannot make games based on this world without their permission.

Thanks for the explanation, but isn't that no different from copyright?

[Ravious]

Originally Posted by Maglama

Thanks for the explanation, but isn't that no different from copyright?

Mostly yes, but IP can also include patents (technology) and trademarks. Most of the time, though, when a media talks about their IP (e.g., "The Avatar IP is going to be huge.") they mean copyrightable material.

[Greibach]

Maglama- Yes, it is basically a very similar concept. The point is though that it is a concept that they own (hence, intellectual), in addition to specifics (like the actual games/novels/etc). Pretty much everything is an IP, but IP is usually used in the software industry to describe a completely new franchise, not the items that are in it (Like say, God of War is an IP, whereas each actual God Of War game is part of that IP)

[Maglama]

I got it. Thanks.

[IDarko]

Oh! that's some interesting news! Good job Arenanet! =D

[Maglama]

What I find amazing is how the original Guild Wars is one of the most ridiculed online game franchises yet it tends to bring a lot of real MMOs to shame.