War in Kryta - this is just the beginning!

Some people might disagree.

If you think viral marketing is targeted at the existing fans then, well, I don't think it means what you think it means.

For years the white mantle sacrificed the chosen. This may be seen as evil but we also know that those sacrifices powered the soul batteries to keep the Door of Komalie shut. (SEE: http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Door_of_Komalie)
What would have happened if there was no sacrifices to power those soul batteries?
Tyria as we know it would be dead.
The ends by far justifies the means.

The White Mantle followed false gods. But those 'gods' were saving the world. I assume the Mursaat care about nothing but them selves. They are creatures of great power and have a common purpose with the other races... they do not want to die.

The reason I made this rant was because I think that people forget that while the White Mantle was saving the world... The shining blade was helping a lich.

Look the whole concept of Guild Wars from the start was to build a Successful, profitable, MMORPG style game that could be run and supported without charging a monthly fee to do so.

In almost all aspects this was a great success. However part of building a free game is that they make the money on people buying the software itself. So part of what you give up in playing a game that is sustained by the development of its next chapter is having limited updates in the between time.

Now this is an abnormally long between time sure however this is something that we all have to accept as part of what we give up for not paying more for this game then we did already.

so with this new storyline and whatever's bound to come next, I wanna clarify one thing. Are we gonna have to pay for the so called quests/missions/whatever there is, is it going to be something like a new campaign? Or are the costumes the only ones whom we will have the possibility to buy, the rest of the new content being added for free?

With the way things are going, I would say that the new content would be free, with only the costumes or other non-essentials being offered for sale

This place is filled with negative nancys...You like it good? You dont like it? Then dont buy the costumes and go play another game. You want something fixed? Then make a constructive post about it than whine all the time. I love the updates and this viral campaign and i cant wait for whats in store for us.

This kind of viral marketing relies on hints and clues that mean very little to anyone outside the existing fan community. You target the marketing at the fans, who will then create buzz and excitement. Number one goal is creating greater loyalty amongst your fan base and pulling fringe members in closer, number two is attracting others through word of mouth or press attention.

Take the Portal 2 campaign. A lot of that was subtle in-game additions, or vague references. How can that apply to anyone who is not already a fan of Portal? It was discussed by Portal fans, and it was written about on the same sites that cover Portal news already.

The cleverest one I've seen was the Blizzard WotLK announcement, with the frozen over page that slowly cracked open over time. It generated a huge amount of attention, at a low cost. The Starcraft community thought it might be Starcraft 2, the World of Warcraft community thought it might be Wrath of the Lich King, and the Diablo community thought it might be Diablo 3. They managed to get three large communities all interested in one campaign. Why is that clever? Because you usually only get one.

So, yes; the end result of a viral campaign is certainly generating greater interest in a product. Most of that interest will be within your current community, or fringe communities, which is fine. It's important to build brand loyalty and a strong core of evangelists. The buzz and press attention might also bring in some fresh blood too, but that's just a bonus on the side. That growth can be attained much more easily by just throwing out some exclusives and a couple of interviews to A-list gaming press.

"Several travelers reported that a White Mantle supply caravan en route to Bergen Hot Springs had been ambushed by rebel forces. The Shining Blade allegedly burned a great quantity of Wartime Travel Permits and absconded with a supply of White Mantle uniforms, which they will no doubt disperse to their troops."
- Murro, Apr 15

There is a reason those are labled Shining Blade Uniform and White Mantle Disguise.

Ha wow if I hadn't had read this I so wouldn't have noticed.

Hmmmm this phrasing worries me just a bit. I hope it won't turn out to be a "BMP" sort of thing where you can only take part if you have bought the costumes.

Is Guild Wars Beyond going to be free? Or something like the BMP? I am actually surprised that Linsey/Marketing/PR didn't say "free" a bunch of times in the interview.

Nit picking - net picking whatever you call it some of you are missing the point. Any update to a 5 year old game with no monthly fee that for some reason keeps peoples attention almost daily is great. Kudos to a-net. Personally I like the way it slowly got seeped out it actual added some hype. (Speculation) I just hope this is not a carrot for having to push back GW2 release for some unknown reason. At least I hope everything is on schedule

Is that a new Golem Construct, the third Assassin Hero we've always wanted?

me too!

I just figured it out this morning lol "live" ummm I'm a bit slow

This is just so great!! And I love those costumes they're top notch

Nah, he's not new.

What the White Mantle and Mursaat were doing was a temporary solution with no foreseeable end. In comparison, the players actions took out the stone summet, the lich, the titans, and saved countless innocent lives from an ultimately pointless death at the hands of the mantle.

Ahah lol, that was meant to be a pun, yet we actually had a P.O.X named golem, didn't remeber that!

Wait, does this mean we have to buy the costumes in order to play those new quests?