Two of the biggest MMO announcements this past month were the Guild Wars 2 expansion, Heart of Thorns, and Elder Scrolls Online soon to stop its subscription model. This month on MMO Co-Opportunities we take a closer look at both of these announcements.
Guild Wars 2 Unveils First Expansion, Heart of Thorns
The Guild Wars 2 expansion announcement kind of came out of left field, but no doubt it’s very welcome by GW2 players. Heart of Thorns will introduce a ton of new stuff to the game, including the new Revenant profession, Masteries (a post-level-80 PVE progression system), new open world zones, profession specializations, a new PVP mode called Stronghold, a new World vs. World borderland, and Guild Halls. That definitely sounds like a hefty expansion with something for every type of player.
Since Heart of Thorns was so recently announced, only a few of the expansion’s features have been detailed to any degree. The ones that have been highlighted thus far, however, make it clear that Arenanet isn’t planning on just putting out of more of the same. For example, the Heart of Maguuma (the joint term for all the new zones being added in the expansion) is designed to provide more replay value and deeper content than any of the core game’s zones. To accomplish this, new open world concepts such as Outposts and Adventures are being introduced into these new zones.
More information will surely be coming out on Heart of Thorns in the coming months. For now, enjoy the announcement trailer.
Elder Scrolls Online Announces Tamriel Unlimited
Around the end of January, Zenimax Online announced their upcoming plans for Elder Scrolls Online in the coming year. They revealed Tamriel Unlimited, a system that will apply to both the already released PC/Mac version of the game and the upcoming console versions. Tamriel Unlimited means that players only have to buy Elder Scrolls Online to play the game - no subscription required anymore. A new, 100% optional “premium” membership (ESO Plus) will replace the existing subscription model. ESO Plus members will receive access to all DLC packs as well as a monthly allotment of Crowns, a currency that can be spent in the in-game store on cosmetic and convenience items. DLC packs and Crown Store items will also be available for individual purchase by players who don’t wish to partake in the ESO Plus membership.
Tamriel Unlimited goes into effect on March 17th, 2015 for PC and Mac. As for the PS4 and Xbox One, it will be the status quo day from day one on those platforms, which is June 6th, 2015.
Some pretty big announcements so early on in the year. Will 2015 continue to bring more? Only time will tell.