Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds Review

For games that have been around 12 years, it's not often we see something unexpected that chances to ignite a new kind of love for the game, but that's exactly what ArenaNet has delivered with their latest expansion for Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds.

In the second instalment of the new annual expansion cycle, we are drawn deep into the northern wilds – an inspired blend of the Scottish Highlands and Nordic terrain. While visiting as part of the new Tyrrian Alliance delegation, we make friends with the local inhabitants, find new places to call home, and uncover an emerging threat in the north.

ArenaNet didn't leave much to the imagination in the lead up to this release, so I had a relatively rounded level of expectation heading into this expansion. Settling into the game, however, I was surprised by the sheer volume of new content. From richly designed maps and fun new adventures, to a refined story which meaningfully incorporated the new features, this expansion very much stepped out from behind the curtain more than anticipated.

While I'm no lore buff, I do enjoy a well executed narrative, and so far the team have brought us back to the best parts of a Guild Wars 2 story. We start by taking the time to go back and put the events from Secrets of the Obscure in some well needed perspective for the rest of Tyria. Not to linger though, we're swiftly on our way to visit the Lowland Kodan to the north. I'll leave it there for readers to discover the rest themselves, but I've so far enjoyed the direction Janthir Wilds is taking and I'm hopeful for what's next.

The writing itself, as with all new content, feels stronger than the last. With some continued dry humour and a seemingly new-found level of self awareness for characters and the world, there is a gamut of humour and poignancy to carry you through. Notable mention here for Isgarren's lines during the initial Summit.

Sinking my teeth into the story missions, I was relieved to find that the chapter padding varied from past releases. I had a moment of terror doubt when tasked with rift hunting in the early story - not only for a bug preventing me from detecting T1 rifts - but this quickly passed as the story offered alternatives adding some much needed diversity. The new tiered Hearts provide a much more connected experience, making it meaningful to complete them in the story, while offering later replayability. There is some tweaking due for the amount of completion certain tasks offer, but this doesn't detract significantly from the overall experience.

Playing through each of the new maps they feel like a step up on previous expansion maps. Lowland Shore points towards a new standard of map design for the game, combining warm earthy tones during the day, and moonlit aesthetics at night. The aurora borealis and cosmic sky are an immersive treat. The team deftly blend coastal, mountain, and forest environments, making it feel natural as you pass between them. The second map, Janthir Syntri has a darker tone, but yet again surprises with an array of landscapes and destinations for players to explore.

A quick mention for creatures as they are practically everywhere adding to the immersion and setting; special highlight for the Janthir Bee as one of the new designs introduced for the region.

Combat in the expansion delivers what I expect from Guild Wars 2, with the team continuing the pattern introduced during Secrets of the Obscure to iterate upon and introduce new skills, telegraphs, and mechanics. New visuals showing the expected number of players in an area is a well designed improvement, hopefully solving the confusion we've seen previously in the community.

A notable new mechanic introduced in several fights is the use of the Warclaw mount's grapple to make an enemy vulnerable. There's some early speculation around whether we'd see mechanics such as this in the upcoming Raids in November, however, I think this would strike as a big departure from the general practice applied to the game's 10 man content. I wouldn't put it past ArenaNet to utilise it for the larger 50 man convergence content though.

Enemy design itself keeps up with previous efforts that we saw in Secrets of the Obscure to bring raid-level mechanics into the open world. Rather than relegating higher pace and incoming damage combat to raids, we're continuing to see an increase in mechanic and gameplay diversity across all PvE modes. This is an exciting prospect for the raid community, as this ramp-to-entry may see broader adoption of Raids than we've historically seen in the game.

To diversify combat gameplay – without adding Elite Specialisations – ArenaNet introduced Spear as a new land weapon for every class with this expansion. Bearing early community feedback about Spear, I chose to stick with my main class (Engineer) and didn't regret it for a moment. It's been a fun experience poking and slicing at enemies, while firing javelins in their direction from time to time, and the new visuals deserve specific praise.

Across the team, however, there have been mixed reviews. While Spear has some visually stunning skills and achieves its goal of diversifying the gameplay, it doesn’t rise to the occasion for all classes and can be forced out of slot for better-known alternatives.

While we all felt that Spear was a good idea, it has suffered from the inconsistent impact across professions, as has happened in the past with Elite Specialisations. I imagine we'll see Spear shuffled better into the balance as the studio reviews its performance over time.

No review of Janthir Wilds would be complete without a mention of Homesteads, the new player housing system for Guild Wars 2. Game Director Josh Davis has spoken at length about the studios' desire to stop "putting a hat on a hat" and to instead iterate legacy gameplay systems. They have lived up to this with an essential rework of player Home Instances. The new decorations and revised decorating tools are a fantastic addition.

The use of the mastery system to unlock new recipes is a welcome change from the traditional crafting approach, while the in-game economy benefits from a new player-driven demand for resources. Something that's been noted as missing, however, is a preview window which makes the process slightly experimental when choosing decorations to craft.

With the groundwork placed, we can only wonder if there will be additional housing designs and locations in the future. ArenaNet have so far been tight-lipped on this, but I expect we’ll hear more nearer to this time next year. All in all, Homesteads are likely to become the enduring legacy of this expansion and a hit with old and new players alike.

Finishing on a high note, let's talk music. As with past expansions, the audio team continue to deliver the goods. The soundtrack pairs astutely to the terrain, from the vast grandeur of the northern tundra to quiet river swells and coastal paths, adding a valuable dimension to both the open world and narrative gameplay. Combat music diverges from the core theme of the expansion in parts, but this seems like an intended move from the team.

I must call out "Janthir Wilds", "The Lowland Kodan", and "False Gods" as particularly strong tracks. They’re sweeping and emotive and exactly what I'm looking for to pull me into a different world as I run into battle, explore new maps, and pounce around on my giant pet cat.

A notable mention too for "This Unknown Hemisphere". After several replays of the soundtrack, it struck me as vaguely reminiscent of Valheim's in-game underscore. Its breezy tones make for the perfect backing of many a Homestead activity.