Guild Wars 2 paid-for dungeons are TBC

Paid-for dungeon content in Guild Wars 2 isn't a done deal; the feature may not happen. It depends what you lot want, developer ArenaNet has said.

"We haven't decided on what exactly we are or aren't going to offer for money post release," lead designer Eric Flannum commented, in a post written by community manager Regina Beunaobra on the GW2 Guru forum.

"My answer to the dungeons question was meant to say, 'We're open to whatever our players seem most interested in.' If after release you guys would like more story content, more dungeons, more events, more maps or whatever, it's something that we have to consider because ultimately making you happy is what makes us successful. Whether we release that in DLC (like the bonus mission packs in GW1) or whether we do it through expansions (Like Eye of the North) is yet to be determined.

"As to whether or not there are going to be items like XP boosts available in the in-game store I can only reiterate what we've said before (and will continue to say), that we'll release details on it when they are available and that our core philosophy - of not requiring you to spend additional money to play the game and not making the game difficult or painful to play in order to encourage you to buy things from the store - still stands."

Content available to buy for Guild Wars 1 ranges from add-ons to costumes, and from character and account services to unlock packs. You can buy a character makeover for £6.99; a new costume for £4.99; extra missions for £5.99; or a PVP Access Kit for £13.99 that gives you a top level character with loads of skills and lets you play the PVP side of Guild Wars 1 without even having to buy the game.

That pricey micro-transaction model may at first seem strange, but remember that Guild Wars 1 has no monthly subscription fee. You buy the MMO and that's it. Therefore, ArenaNet needs to charge for additional content. Only recently, however, has this been any less than a full expansion pack.

Incidentally, Guild Wars 2 will also not have a monthly subscription fee.

There's no release date for Guild Wars 2 yet. The MMO is expected next year but the official FAQ line is: "When it's finished. Guild Wars 2 is the largest project ArenaNethas ever undertaken, and we want to make sure we take the time to do it right."

ArenaNet has plenty of bright ideas for Guild Wars 2. There are no healers or tanks, for instance, and there will be personal storylines that grow from the results of a personality test taken at the game's start. That's in addition to a world story that can dynamically alter zones and spread throughout the land.

The Guild Wars 2 website stays well abreast of the new game information and offers in-depth posts on different features as they are announced. Alternatively, keep an eye on the Guild Wars 2 blog for developer musings and game coverage from around the web.