Exploration/map design in GW3
Since the announcement I’ve been dabbling in Reforged a bit more and have been thinking about the differences in map design from GW1/2.
GW1 explorable zones feel large and wild, probably because there’s no mounts/movement mechanics like GW2. I really enjoy this aspect, especially the lack of POIs and Vistas, etc. I find myself more naturally curious in the environment, wanting to peek around corners just to see what’s there, rather than motivated to check off a missing POI and move on.
In GW2, I love that you are rewarded with XP for exploration. I hope something like that continues in GW3. Maybe if they keep POIs/Vistas in the game, they could stay hidden until you stumble upon them? Or there could be a way to toggle them off? I just think that based on our first looks at the game, the environment looks beautiful, and it’d be a shame for the map to be cluttered with icons like GW2 is. Let me explore based on my own curiosity, then reward me for stumbling on something important.
Also I hope we move away from the square/rectangle format of GW2 maps. That feels like a given.
Lastly, since GW3 is being built around “joy of movement” with mounts, wall climbing, and gliding baked into the base game, I hope that the scale of the areas (instanced or continuous) are scaled accordingly.
Can’t wait to get lost in Orr. What do you all hope for in regard to exploration?