Guild Wars: Eye of the North

We were dying for more details on the Hall of Monuments since Eye of the North was announced. But now that we’ve seen it, the new area seems designed mainly to fight the feeling that you'll be "losing" your original Guild Wars characters if you upgrade to Guild Wars 2, and soon took a back seat to other new features announced.

A Pokemon-inspired minigame flying under the title of Polymoog was announced. You'll select a team of creatures with various strengths and weaknesses and pit them against your opponent's team one at a time. Your choice of characters and the order you put them into to battle will be the primary strategic factors in these battles of wit and skill at bashing the number keys to use your powers. Another arena-based minigame that tosses you in 1 vs 1 battles with heroes from previous Guild Wars campaigns was also announced.

Above: Besides a new Charr hero, expect Asura and Dwarf heroes to join your cause as well

Instead of trying to cater to both Guild Wars vets and strangers to the series, Eye of the North seems focused on players who already have at least several level 20 characters.By packing in loads of additional dungeons, minigames, and heroes, it appears that ArenaNet is hoping for one last hoorah with their concluding title for the original Guild Wars. Still, as good as the Guild Wars series is, it's always felt like a faux-MMORPG at times with lots of instanced areas that lack the immersive qualities of other titles with their monthly fees. Be sure to check back here to find out if the conclusion to the current Guild Wars series goes out with a bang or flops on the floor when the game releases. In the meantime, you can check out new screens by clicking on the Images tab above.

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