However, I found that the story isn’t as pedantic as some of
the other critics of the game have explained, and I actually enjoyed
the cut scenes and missions available to me. The voice acting
wasn’t of incredible quality, but I did find that the NPCs I
recruited all had interesting comments to make concerning the situation
in their homeland and it was fun to see quest-giving NPCs return as
recruitable henchmen in later levels of the game.
In fact, the questing and mission system took a huge step forward from
the original formula in Guild
Wars. Instead of making
“optional” side quests that players can embark
upon, almost every quest is essential in unlocking the storyline
– and thus the further content – within Factions.
The distance between outposts has also been shortened in the beginning
of the game, so you’ll feel that your time spent in the game
has less to do with running and more to do with the actual questing.
border="1">
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/13749"
title="Master Togo">
src="/image/view/13749/preview"
width="200">
style="font-style: italic;">Master Togo acts as
your initial guide through Guild
Wars: Factions.
Cooperative missions have also received a major face lift by becoming
completely mandatory and intrinsically including a
“bonus” mission that is a timed component of the
cooperative mission. By being a speedy group and clearing out a dungeon
quickly, players will receive better rewards and more experience for
their efficiency. Mission “bosses” have also been
added to give the players an added sense of drama to their missions.
Players of the original game will be relieved to learn that grabbing a
copy of Factions
won’t be like stepping into a completely
different world. All of the play control styles and communication
techniques are the same, with merely an added touch of common sense
support added here and there to help things along. Characters still
only have eight skill slots to dole out to hundreds of skills and
players looking to find the best min/max combination will be working
for hours to develop a cutting edge strategy.
On the other hand, nothing major has changed within the gameplay of
Guild Wars
with this pseudo-expansion. The move-via-click function
still works the same way (and is bothersome to some new players) and
chatting within the game is fraught with the same sort of problems that
has plagued the game since its inception. Unlike some of its
multiplayer cousins, Guild
Wars isn’t made to be a socially
active game and even when gathering a party it still does not match up
to the caliber of World
of Warcraft or its lot.
Putting the Factions in
Factions
Having thoroughly explained both the new classes and the upgraded
mission system, you may still be wondering where
style="font-style: italic;"> Guild Wars: Factions
derives its name. Simply put, factions are one of the major additions
that ArenaNet added to Guild
Wars. Players can earn faction points with
one of two factions – the Kurzick or the Luxon – by
completing PvE quests and missions, or by competing in PvP Alliance
battles. Players who do not want to be relegated to one faction may
spend their built up faction points on armor or weaponry, but players
that stock pile faction point in either the Kurzick or the Luxon
faction become known as supporters of that faction.
Surprisingly, finding a guild in Guild
Wars wasn’t any
trouble at all. If you spend any time in the major city hubs as a
higher level character, you’ll meet up with a number of
players that are looking for new meat to bring into their guild. Play a
few PvP battles, and you’ll be well on your way to becoming
the next PvP guild winners!
On the Technical Side
border="1">
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/13747"
title="Poets and Epics">
src="/image/view/13747/preview"
width="200">
style="font-style: italic;">Every NPC has
different flavor text, including some thoughts on epics and poets.
Since I originally installed Guild
Wars way back in May 2005, I really
haven’t been discouraged with the graphics that are available
in the game. Just like its competitors of the same time period,
something about the graphics simply does not seem to become lackluster
with age.
On that same note, Guild
Wars: Factions is full of beautiful vistas and
amazing architecture. The developers that worked on the graphics in
Factions
should be commended; I have rarely seen a landscape that can
seem so lush and so dangerous all in the same horizon. Jutting
landscapes and ruined Asian architecture cover the hillsides, and
awe-inspiring waterfalls little the lands. While
style="font-style: italic;">Prophecies bounced
between being vivacious and utter desolation, Factions has a moodier
quality in its lands; the cities are darker and the land is more
passionate.
Along similar lines, the music between
style="font-style: italic;">Prophecies and
style="font-style: italic;">Factions has lost
none of its luster. ArenaNet has provided a quality sound experience
that is a pleasure to listen to even 40+ hours into the game.
Final Comments
Despite a few niggling complaints I still have with the original
style="font-style: italic;">Guild
Wars system, I found the Factions really stood up as a
quality
stand-alone product. Though not as thorough or intriguing as
style="font-style: italic;">Guild
Wars: Prophecies, Factions still can be looked at as a
quality addition
to the Guild Wars
line and a very fun product overall. With its rich
PvP system and updated PvE experience,
style="font-style: italic;">Factions brings a
more efficient
experience to the Guild
Wars journey, which also detracts from the
overall experience of the storyline. All in all, Guild Wars: Factions
remains a power-house stand-alone product and can be explored by new
and veteran players alike.
border="0" height="83" width="227">
border="0" height="83" width="227">
- Updates to the quest and mission systems
- Tremendous graphics
- Quick and easy leveling
- Free to play after purchase
- Chat interface can be clunky
- Point-and-click movement remains problematic
- Average storyline compared to Prophecies
|
width="100%"> |
|
| width="55%">Difficulty: | Easy - Medium |
|
style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">Server Stability: |
Very High |
|
style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">Graphics: |
border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> |
| style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">Value: |
border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> border="0" height="17" width="17"> |
Curve:
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
border="0" height="17" width="17">
src="http://media.tentonhammer.com/tth/reviews/hammerIcon35x35_2.gif"
border="0" height="35" width="35">
src="http://media.tentonhammer.com/tth/reviews/hammerIcon35x35_2.gif"
border="0" height="35" width="35">
src="http://media.tentonhammer.com/tth/reviews/hammerIcon35x35_2.gif"
border="0" height="35" width="35">
src="http://media.tentonhammer.com/tth/reviews/hammerIcon35x35_2.gif"
border="0" height="35" width="35">
src="http://media.tentonhammer.com/tth/reviews/hammerIcon35x35_faded.gif"
border="0" height="35" width="35">
(4 / 5 Hammers)
style="color: rgb(255, 255, 0);">Ten Ton
Recommendation:
is certainly an excellent addition for any style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars player.
If you haven't purchased any Guild
Wars product, don't be afraid to try out style="font-style: italic;">Factions with the
others.
Ten Ton Hammer is your
unofficial source for
Guild Wars
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/taxonomy/term/47">news
and features!
Make sure you check out all
of our articles in the reviews
section!
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Guild Wars Game Page.
