Old-style missions vs "instanced questing"

Contraflow to many opinions expressed at the mo, I really like EotN in just about every way. However, there is one thing which is niggling at me.

The new "instanced quests" that seamlessly blend into the primary quests, rather than having missions on the map like (for example) Prophecies are a really interesting idea.

However, Guild Wars is meant to be a multiplayer game, and I don't know if having the quests like that is really conducive to an MMO feel. I liked arriving at a mission area in the old chapters, then recruiting teammates and going through the missions together. I despise full teams of heroes and henchmen, and I at least like to have 1 other actual human in my team.

This is the problem - I the missions provided areas for people to congregate and meet up before moving into the mission - do they new quests really do that? I tend to find the game is becoming less of multiplayer RPG, and more of a single-player game with a PvP mode and guild chat.

What does everyone else think? Personally, I would like to see them go back to the Prophecies way of doing things for Guild Wars 2.

you can just bringa group into HOM and go to any of the mission quests right from there.

Edit: but to answer, I like this more. i think having an open world is more important then having set aside areas it opens alot more to do. in proph the mission maps couldnt be explored without doing the mission. I dont really like the idea of the master completion of missions, it makes it seem more like a console action game rather then an online mmo.

having specific ncs that can make a n area into a special mission instance makes more sense to me

I completely agree... however I think I dislike the new system a lot more than you do.

I absolutely 100% HATE the new mission style. I also liked to be able to take a break and do the mission at my leisure, maybe call a few guildies over and blow through it. But with the missions integrated through quests it makes it much more difficult and less fun. GWEN has a ton of problems, and in my opinion, this is the worst.

I really like the new quest structure, as it feels more organic and natural than the classic way. That said, I do like the traditional mission structure as well. I think the best approach for GW2 would be an even mix of the two styles.

I have to agree that while I love the idea of dungeons and repeatable quests (ie missions), i cant help but feel they havent been done quite right.

Dungeons work alot better in games like WoW where people all exist in the same time frame and instance and can meet outside the entrances.

But in GWs you have to all meet in the outpost and THEN walk to the dungeon entrance or start the quest from either inside the outpost or in the instance.

I would have prefered it if you could just start everything from inside outposts, as you did with missions.

I find it a bit confusing just finding how to start alot of these repeatable quests or dungeon quests because you have to find the NPC first, and alot are scattered inside instances.

I personally think we need big icons on the map where dungeons and repeable quests are located, so we dont have to zoom in for them.

It would have been better if dungeons had outposts at their entrances too, but allow us to form parties easier and find them. Alot of dungeons are actually located next to HUGE mobs of creaters and just getting into them is a challenge enough.

I like the new system a lot better. As has been said, they blend in a lot better and make the game feel more seamless, instead of everything coming to a stop so you can start the missions. This just seems more natural, and in my opinion, they're a lot less stressful than missions. It does make the game a good deal easier, which some people may see as a bad thing, but I prefer it this way. After all, we have the dungeons and so forth to provide extra challenges for those who want it.

But yes, I would definitely change it to make them more noticeable, and easier to repeat.

I'd say go Factions-style.

Prophecies... as mentioned... didn't allow the exploration of mission areas. Furthermore it also allowed for missions to be done out of order or in many cases not done at all.

Factions had to be done in a specific order... quests leading to missions and progression across the world somewhat controlled... but there was still a button to enter the mission once you got there, rather than having to talk to some random NPC hidden in a back-corner of the area after completing the quest.
The Nightfall-introduced system of having missions via quest-finisher is a pain in the arse... and it has just been getting kewkier since then.

I don't like the travel timesinks that the new mission format and the dungeons have resulted in.

It would be super nice if the devs could add a 'Asuran Gate hub' that you can unlock through a quest chain after beating the game.
It would be a nice outpost that everyone can meet in that is circled with special Asuran Gates leading to each dungeon.
It would become the after endgame dungeon runners outpost! XD
Does anyone else think that would be neat?

If they want to go with this system for GW2, I'd like the party search to be improved dramatically - I want it to search a database of people in your guild/alliance, and people in your district/region, cross-referencing the quests you need to do with the quests they need to do. That way, you could always find people that need to do the same quests as you.

Well, I've always played GW as a solo game, so I like it. Not too multiplayer is fine by me.

The new instance quests have res shrines detracts from the feel of a mission.

The new system is kinda good, how it seems together and unexpected things can happen, however is really puts the last nail in the coffin for grouping together. Its ligley people will do the quest with hero/hench, as people dont normally do the primary quests in groups, then just go strait through the mission. It also leads to somtimes getting missions when you dont really want to do them.

lol I kinda like it, half of the time I didn't even know I was doing a mission. I just thought "Wow, this quest sure is epic, cutscenes acting and everything" then bam! mission reward.

I have to disagree with most of you and say I like knowing when I'm in a mission (and being able to prepare for it as such) and when I'm doing a casual quest. Missions tend to take more time than most quests.

Now that being said, I DO like the res srhines in "missions" and I do see how making it more seemless appeals to more people.

I agree that I like knowing I'm in a mission. I also agree that Factions had it about right, with a mission button and all. I prefer the Prophesies mission bonus, but like res shines in the mission.

If you're going to have this quest structure, then the Dungeons should be like missions. I should be able to map jump straight to any of the Dungeons, meet groups there, and play.

I'm mostly a solo player with just a few hours to play here and there. I want to be able to get in, jump to where I need to go, get what I need, and get out. The quicker the better, before the baby starts crying or it is time to get some sleep.

i prefer the oldstyle tbh

I like the new systems alot better than the old ones.

The only thing I distaste about is the travel to these new areas, .

I agree that FACTIONS got it right.

Prophecies allowed you to skip almost all the missions, or do them in any random order. Even then you can't explore the mission area.

Factions forced you to do the mission, but you could explore it afterwards.

i like this one, makes me feel theres an open world, not just completing missions-gettting directly to other mission-completing mission etc.