What would you suggest for someone who played a little at launch and want to get back into the game?
🎶♬ Go chasing waterfalls. Don't stick to the rivers and lakes that you're used to. ♬🎶 (They have achievements for that now!) On a more serious note, it can be a good idea to start over with a fresh character, learn the mechanics as if you were new to the game, and see if GW2 is still enjoyable for you, as quite a lot has changed between launch and now! Other Things You Can Do: - /wiki is a command that can be typed in-game to pull up useful information from the GW2 wiki site. You can use this to look up items, quests, NPCs, locations in the game (and how to get there) and loads of other useful things that will make navigation and item crafting easier. For example, typing /wiki Butter will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about butter in Tyria. - Discord is full of GuildWars2 players; finding the server and group that is right for you can sometimes take a bit of poking around, but it can't be beat for chatter, asking questions, and coordinating with other players to complete content. There are several large GW2 Discord servers with hundreds of players, and these can be great places to find information and make friends for those who haven't played in a long time or for those completely new to the franchise. - Join a guild! Whether you find a group through a place like Discord or just an advert in map chat, guilds are a great way to find friends to play with and request help. - The GW2 Subreddit is another handy resource for troubleshooting, memes, and obtaining obscure information about the game and how to work around the parts of it that may be bugged. If you're having a technical issue with GW2, adding 'reddit' to your search engine terms will almost always point you in the right direction. - Play through the main storyline of the game, including Living World if possible. If you're a lore nerd or if you just want to know who all these weird NPCs are that keep showing up acting like they know you, the story is the best way to keep track of who's who, what's what, and why certain things have happened over the past decade in Tyria since launch. ArenaNet has finally begun offering the entire Living World in packages (including season 1 which was finally put back in the game!!) as well as several expansions which are also worth picking up if your interest in the game continues. Alternatively, the madlad content creators on YouTube and other video platforms have released a number of lore overview videos that you can watch instead if you don't feel like playing through the story. Some of these are very in-depth, spanning across the entirety of the game's timeline from launch to present day. - Consider mounts. They are a feature which was added during the Path of Fire expansion, but have since become available in other ways. These mobile beasties provide unique and convenient ways to run (and fly) around the world and also have many cosmetics you can buy to personalize their look. And most importantly, - Take your time, and enjoy the journey. Some people come to the game expecting to skim their way through 10+ years of content or skip it completely to catch up with the current release (which is something you can do!) but this can come at the expense of not understanding game mechanics or the current storyline, which can lead to burnout or general frustration down the line. ArenaNet has done away with time-limited free releases (Old Living World model), so that means the content will be there when you are ready to play it, and you won't be punished if it takes you a bit longer to get there. So that's what we'd suggest. Run around, hit things, use tools, collect 250 garlics just because you can, ask questions, and chase anything you see that looks fun or intriguing. Follow these tips and you'll be on a roll in no time!
