Guild Wars® Reforged Review Summary

Highly praised game experience: Players consistently describe the game as amazing, with countless hours of fun, a fantastic story, and great combat system. The unique gameplay experience, excellent graphics, and awesome soundtrack are frequently highlighted.

Solo-friendly with NPCs: The game is noted for its solo playability, with NPC customization and the ability to play solo with NPC allies. Players appreciate the flexibility to play solo or with others.

Beautiful art and music: The game's art style, graphics, and soundtrack are highly praised for being beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. The music, in particular, is often highlighted as memorable and evocative.

Fun with friends: The game is noted for being fun to play with friends, offering a shared adventure and long-term enjoyment.

Variety in builds: The game offers a wide variety of classes and builds, allowing players to customize their characters and gameplay experience extensively.

Dated graphics and mechanics: The game's graphics and some mechanics are considered outdated compared to modern standards. This includes animations and textures that have not been updated.

Account management issues: There are significant issues with account management, particularly with linking ArenaNet and Steam accounts. Players also report problems with logging in and accessing old accounts.

Lack of optimization and player base: The game suffers from a lack of optimization, leading to issues like lag and disconnects. Additionally, there is a lack of fresh servers and a low online player count.

Clunky and awkward gameplay: The gameplay is described as clunky and awkward in parts, with difficult sections and unintuitive controls. Movement and overall gameplay mechanics feel outdated.

Poor customer support: Customer support is often unresponsive and not helpful. Players report issues with support not providing solutions or being slow to respond.

Deep skill and build system: Players appreciate the unique skill system that allows for extensive experimentation with skill combinations and character builds, providing a high level of customization.

MMO and RPG gameplay blend: The game combines elements of MMORPG and classic MMO gameplay, offering a familiar experience for fans of the genre with a mix of single-player and multiplayer features.

Instanced missions and exploration: The game features instanced mission zones and exploration areas, blending persistent world elements with instanced gameplay for a varied experience.

Solo and cooperative play: Players can enjoy the game solo with AI teammates or in cooperative modes, making it accessible for both solo and multiplayer experiences.

NPC customization and interaction: Players can customize and recruit NPCs, allowing for solo play with AI teammates and enhancing the overall gameplay experience.

Excellent Steam Deck performance: The game runs exceptionally well on Steam Deck, with multiple reviews highlighting its smooth performance and compatibility.

High-quality graphics: The game features improved and high-quality graphics, optimized for modern widescreen formats and higher resolutions.

Compatibility with various devices: The game runs well on different devices, including ROG Ally X and phones with virtual gamepads.

Cross-platform compatibility: The game is noted for running well on various hardware and operating systems, including PC, Linux, and different devices.

Frequent game crashes: Several reviews mention that the game crashes frequently, including during fights and after resurrection.

DLC purchase options: Players are advised on where to buy DLCs, either through Steam or directly from Arenanet for full access.

Guild Wars Reforged praised: Guild Wars Reforged is highlighted as a significant update and is highly recommended by players.

Old school MMO charm: Players who enjoy old school MMOs and are looking for a change from current MMOs are encouraged to try this game.

Long-term support desired: Players express a desire for continued long-term support and development of the game.

Nostalgic and new player appeal: The game is recommended for both nostalgic players and new players looking for a unique experience.

Community fair range: $15.00 - $25.00.

Game completion: 200.0h.

Story completion: 100.0h.

Endgame: 100.0h.

The game offers a varied onboarding experience depending on the campaign chosen, with some players finding fun early in the tutorial area, while others might experience a slower start. The enjoyment generally increases as players progress and gain more skills and resources.

Reported time to anchor: 5h.

Friction: slow start in Prophecies campaign; challenging early fights in Factions campaign; lack of basic QoL features.

Tactical Strategist: Focuses on builds, movement, positioning, and strategic decision-making. Motivation: Enjoys the strategic and tactical depth of the game. Stance: buy.

Cooperative Explorer: Mix of multiplayer and singleplayer, focusing on cooperative PvE content. Motivation: Enjoys the cooperative and exploratory aspects of the game. Stance: buy.

Nostalgic Relaxer: Prefers slower-paced, simpler gameplay with a focus on relaxation and nostalgia. Motivation: Enjoys the relaxed and nostalgic aspects of the game. Stance: sale.

The game performs well on hardware with less than 8GB VRAM, but higher VRAM configurations show mixed results.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. The game runs well on this hardware configuration.

Steam Deck: The overall user feedback for the Steam Deck experience of the game is mixed but leans towards positive. Many users appreciate the controller support and the modernized UI, which make the game more accessible and enjoyable on the Steam Deck. However, there are notable issues with login and account verification, as well as limitations in controller customization. Some users also feel that the Steam Deck Verified badge might be misleading, indicating that there are still areas for improvement.

Linux and Proton: The game generally has positive feedback regarding its compatibility and performance on Linux and Steam Deck. Users report that it runs well and can be easily installed and launched. However, there are some reports of graphical glitches and occasional crashes, particularly when using dxvk.

Monetization: The user reviews for this game highlight several concerns related to its monetization strategy. Many users perceive the game and its DLCs as a cash grab, with some expressing frustration over the addition of a cash shop to an old game. Significant issues with purchasing and accessing DLCs have also been reported, which negatively impacts customer satisfaction. Additionally, there are mixed feelings about the pricing of the game and its DLCs, with some users finding the cost reasonable while others feel it is too high. Despite these concerns, some users appreciate the lack of pay-to-win mechanics and the absence of a subscription model.

External guides: The analysis of user feedback reveals a strong dependency on the Guild Wars wiki for various aspects of gameplay. Players frequently need to refer to external documentation to understand quests, build guides, and complex mechanics. This reliance on the wiki is a common theme, indicating that the in-game resources may be insufficient for a comprehensive understanding and enjoyment of the game.

Character skill acquisition required: Players need to acquire skills individually for each character they use.

Skills shared among heroes: Heroes have the ability to share and use skills that are unlocked by other professions.

Skip early stages with purchases: Players can purchase skill packs or hero slots to bypass early stages and utilize high-level heroes sooner.

Desire for more updates: Users express a hope for additional updates or content to be added to the game.