Guild Wars 2: Flame & Frost (The Gathering Storm)

Last time we left off we were helping refugees. And while our help has been instrumental in saving lives...things are about to get worse.

The story unfolds...

February 26, 2013

The situation worsens for the citizens of Wayfarer Foothills and Diessa Plateau. Volunteers have eased the burden, but more refugees hobble down from the Shiverpeaks. The storm there gains momentum, but the forces of good are beginning to rally. They’re sending their heroes to defend the land and its peoples. Someone must hold back the gathering storm.

In Flame and Frost: The Gathering Storm, the second installment in this four-part series, the stakes are raised, and battles rage, in the foothills of the Shiverpeaks.

New Features 

Brand new PvP Map - Spirit Watch

This peaceful green vale, nestled between cliffside shrines to the Norn Spirits of the Wild is about to echo with the sounds of combat. In Spirit Watch, players will score bonus points by capturing the Orb of Ascension and running it to any of the three shrines on this newest PvP map.

 Team up for Guild Mission

Join your fellow guild members to take on an entirely new category of content! These missions, designed for coordinated group play, include everything from bounties to group puzzles to cross-country challenges. You’ll need to work together to complete the missions and earn new Guild Merits, which can unlock cool upgrades and rewards. It pays to be in a guild!

 Two Team Rated Play in PvP

It’s time to prove your skill! In this new type of competitive PvP, two teams of equal average rating are pitted against each other in a quick, intense match. The ratings for every member of each team is then adjusted after the match.

 Choose Your Own Daily Achievement

With our new selectable achievement system, you’ll have a chance to set new daily challenges for yourself and to choose what kind of content you want to be rewarded for playing.

And finally, best for last... 

Preview Items in the Trading Post

Try before you buy! You’ll have the ability to preview items in the Trading Post before you buy them. Simply right-click an item icon and select “Preview” to see the item equipped on your character. Check out how a weapon looks by itself, how it looks when sheathed, and how it looks when wielded by your character.

More info

Guild Wars 2: Flame & Frost (Prelude)

So apparently some new things have been happening in the land of Tyria....like literally the sky is falling.

UPDATE:
This new event, like previous, comes with it's own achievement: Living Story

Currently, one needs to assist refugees in the Diessa Plateau (Charr) and Wayfarer Foothills (Norn).

More info 

The story so far...

January 28, 2013

The sky falls and the ground shakes in the lands of the north. Charr and norn refugees crawl from the wreckage of their homes in the Wayfarer Foothills and Diessa Plateau, struggling to find shelter in the south. The call goes out for volunteers to assist the victims in this time of need, when earth and sky seem to have become the enemy…

 On to the actual game changes.

Temple of the Silent Storm Week

From January 28—February 4 the regular eight-team/three-round paid tournaments will be replaced by two-team/single-round paid tournaments in the Temple of the Silent Storm map. After the week is over, we’ll add Temple of the Silent Storm to the regular rotation of both free and paid tournaments.

Another arena... Why is it Massively Multi-player Online games want to sequester its players into small boxes? With so much control over what is done inside said box that the fighting ends up being a battle of Rock 'em Sock 'em Robots.

Improved Achievement System

We’re adding a new rotation of daily achievements to add variety and encourage you to explore the open world. You’ll get different achievements every day of the week and a new achievement tracker in the UI to make it easier to track your progress.

This seemed like a nice addition. Until you realize the new daily achievement requires you to Dodge. Now this is just plain silly.

New Achievement Laurels

You’ll earn these brand-new laurels as a reward for daily and monthly achievements!
Redeem these laurels for rewards like the new Ascended gear and Infusions!

What's this? Achievement points that actually do something?! But what can I purchase...

New Utility Infusions and Ascended Amulets

We’re adding a wide range of new gear that can be purchased with the new laurels.
With 5 new Utility Infusions and 30 Ascended Amulets to choose from, there’s something for every style of player.

More character customization? Yes, PLEASE!


Guesting

With the new guesting system, you can play with friends on other worlds in the same region (North America, Europe) without changing your homeworld. Guesting is free, but going forward there will be a gem fee for transferring home worlds, so make sure you’re on the home world you want to permanently play on before 28 January!

FINALLY! No longer shall we need to plead with our real life / other game friends to switch to our homeworld just to quest. *Does not apply to PVP

...and finally

New Store Items

It’s a new year, which means all-new items and a redesigned favorite in the Gem Store!
From Baby Quaggan Backpacks to Riding Brooms to the revamped Box o’ Fun, you’ll find it all in the Gem Store!

Can't wait to see how many Quaggan-packs are sold.

More info

Dead Space 3: It begins

Who's ready to stomp some more monsters. All while going insane from girl friend turned alien-ish artifact?

Dead Space 3