Should i play GW 1 before GW 2?

[chromlucina123]

Hello everyone,
I recently bought the complete edition and want to roll a new character in GW 2.
my question is: as someone who cares about lore and story in games should i play GW 1 before GW2?
or should just watch a YouTube video or just skip GW 1 altogether?

[SinisterSlay]

You can but they are entirely different games. Not even the same genre. So you may not like GW1 if you prefer GW2. Or vice versa.
I would probably suggest just watching some youtube videos.

[Sychon]

Seeing as you are just starting out in GW2, you might not want to divide your attention between two games that can keep you occupied for 1000s of hours each. Then again, you might be fine with that.

From a lore perspective, Guild Wars has a lot to offer, arguably even more so than GW2. If all you are after is the lore, there are entire series delving into that and the story of all three of its campaigns and the expansion (which connects the game to the sequel) on YouTube.

[chromlucina123]

Originally posted by Sychon:

Seeing as you are just starting out in GW2, you might not want to divide your attention between two games that can keep you occupied for 1000s of hours each. Then again, you might be fine with that.

From a lore perspective, Guild Wars has a lot to offer, arguably even more so than GW2. If all you are after is the lore, there are entire series delving into that and the story of all three of its campaigns and the expansion (which connects the game to the sequel) on YouTube.

Damn 1000 hours is a lot :D.
I could post pone playing Gw2 if the story of GW1 is worth it

[Stockwerk 13]

you can enjoy GW2 story without knowing GW1 story

there are just a few throwbacks to gw1 story, but they are all well explained in gw2

i've played gw2 story without knowing gw1 and i never had problems

Originally posted by chromlucina123:

Damn 1000 hours is a lot :D.

yes, the amount of story content in Guildwars2 is monumental

i played gw2 for ~380 hours and i am only done like 70% with all the story content
propably will hit 500 hours for 100%
tho i do other stuff than only story on the side

[Nibbie]

GW2 is set something like 200 years after GW1. A short enough time for the effects of the first game to still be impactful in the world, but more than long enough that knowledge of the past isn't needed to enjoy the present. If you are really invested in the story and lore, at least starting GW1 is preferable (even just completing the "tutorial island" can give you context on the world of GW2), and you can see if you are willing to go through the relatively dated mechanics and graphics before proceeding to the more modern GW2.

[SinisterSlay]

It'll make you hate the Charr

[Khaziir Everflight]

Honestly, it's not needed. It will give you some of the backstory, especially regarding the rivalry between Charr and Humans, but it in no way is a necessity. I personally would say play them both no matter which you get to first. Tho be aware, GW1 is not a open world MMO in the modern sense. It is more of a coop-optional instanced game with multiplayer hub-cities.

[ebaG-gamma]

The lore callbacks in Guild Wars 2 are kinda funny when you think about them:
Basically, whenever anything happened "a long time ago", you can be pretty sure that it happened about 250 years ago and that you as the Guild Wars 1 player character were somehow involved in it. (The player character in the original Guild Wars wasn't a famous hero, rather you follow around and aid the actual heroes.)

If you consider playing Guild Wars 1, it should be mentioned that there is a reward system that lets you earn some cosmetic/prestige rewards for Guild Wars 2 by playing Guild Wars 1 (they are quite some work though).
This only works when you play Guild Wars 2 on a standalone website-created ArenaNet account, not on an account made with your steam account.
There are some more reasons for why I think using a standalone Anet account for GW2 is better and I wrote them down in this guide:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3335333185
Switching over does require starting from scratch, but it can all be done without the need to redownload anything. Just skim the differences in the guide and make up your mind, is what I'd suggest.

There are some nice videos about Guild Wars 1 out there, to help you decide if you want to dive in:
https://youtu.be/V8jiVTPusvA
https://youtu.be/-Vw76W8KFU4
This one's more analytical/reviewy: https://youtu.be/S5ykqmMIjQk

I had a buddy chaperone me through the first campaign Prophecies in the spring leading up to GW2's launch, and it was really great. Maybe you can also find someone who wants to do that with you.

[chromlucina123]

Originally posted by ebaG-gamma:

The lore callbacks in Guild Wars 2 are kinda funny when you think about them:
Basically, whenever anything happened "a long time ago", you can be pretty sure that it happened about 250 years ago and that you as the Guild Wars 1 player character were somehow involved in it. (The player character in the original Guild Wars wasn't a famous hero, rather you follow around and aid the actual heroes.)

If you consider playing Guild Wars 1, it should be mentioned that there is a reward system that lets you earn some cosmetic/prestige rewards for Guild Wars 2 by playing Guild Wars 1 (they are quite some work though).
This only works when you play Guild Wars 2 on a standalone website-created ArenaNet account, not on an account made with your steam account.
There are some more reasons for why I think using a standalone Anet account for GW2 is better and I wrote them down in this guide:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3335333185
Switching over does require starting from scratch, but it can all be done without the need to redownload anything. Just skim the differences in the guide and make up your mind, is what I'd suggest.

This one's more analytical/reviewy: https://youtu.be/S5ykqmMIjQk

I had a buddy chaperone me through the first campaign Prophecies in the spring leading up to GW2's launch, and it was really great. Maybe you can also find someone who wants to do that with you.

Nice, thanks for your comprehensive answer
It was actually Josh Strife Hayes video that convinced me to try GW1. Even though he said it in the video i was really surprised how many people still play this game. The starting area was more populated than WoWs last expansion :D

[Sychon]

Even though he said it in the video i was really surprised how many people still play this game. The starting area was more populated than WoWs last expansion :D

If you mean pre-Searing Ascalon, the pleasant-looking, rather peaceful starting area in the Prophecies campaign, that is a very popular place for people to hang out. If you progress the story beyond a certain point, it becomes inaccessible, but many players chose to have characters permanently left there. It has always been well-populated, compared to later areas. Be sure to do every available quest there to pick up all the skills you can for free before moving on! :D

[Jin-]

The original is an epic game. Definitely should play it if you enjoy old school PC roleplaying games. It's closer to strategy and deckbuilding (the way you spec your character and your team) type of game than WoW type of game

[Kigum]

Original has an an almost grim dark feel, humanity is on the retreat , the great kingdoms destroyed or crippled. Gods have abandoned them. Things just get even worse and they can not catch a break. Very dark fantasy lore stuff.

Charr carrying out genocide, doomsday first strike killing a huge portion of Ascalons populace, rest left to fight with no chance of winning. It is the equivalent of a nuclear wasteland especially north Ascalon.

[Demonsouls1993]

Originally posted by chromlucina123:

Hello everyone,
I recently bought the complete edition and want to roll a new character in GW 2.
my question is: as someone who cares about lore and story in games should i play GW 1 before GW2?
or should just watch a YouTube video or just skip GW 1 altogether?

IMO GW1 is the far better game but like some people said they arent even near the same style game i say give both a try give GW1 to level 10 (50% of level cap) and do the same for GW2 thats level 40 and see what one you enjoy more

[Angel]

Gw2 is MMORPG
Gw1 is CORPG

If you're interested on story and lore more than playing in large fights with friends, I'd say Gw1 first for many reasons

Action Combat, Relaxed big fights, playing with community of players: Guild Wars 2

Gw1 is quite old game, not always a bad thing but you can feel it, and if you're modern videogamer you might get even little confused ( At least I did )

Whatever you end up playing first, Hopefully you will have a blast

[Psil_Semilan]

Asking questions like this you might just as well support fascist movements