Guild Wars 2 players will get first raid in 5 years in a new major expansion

Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds — Expansion Announcement — UK

Guild Wars 2 players are about to experience a massive new expansion, which is set to bring two long-requested features to the game.

The new expansion, “Janthir Wilds,” will release August 20 starting at $25, according to a blog posted on Tuesday. It’s bringing a ton of new features to the still-popular MMORPG, including a new weapon type, new mechanics, and rewards. However, the two standout additions are a new player housing system and the return of raids.

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First up, let’s talk about raids. They were removed from Guild Wars 2 in 2019, almost five years ago. Developer ArenaNet transitioned to strikes, which were standalone missions that were more player-friendly and easier to jump into when you got toward the endgame. But raids are much larger and more difficult, so a lot of longtime players have been wanting to return to that model.

The new raid, unfortunately, won’t be available at launch. Players will have to wait until November to play through the three encounters. ArenaNet will also be introducing new challenge modes for the raids in early 2025. The game is also adding homesteads, which are homes players can now decorate and share with others. The update post also notes that you can access unlocks and access nodes that you’ve gotten in our regular home instance. There aren’t any other details, but ArenaNet promises to share more information before launch.

Otherwise, players will get access to a new weapon type: spears that you can use on land. Previously, spears could only be used underwater, and now they can be used interchangeably. The warclaw mount also got a rework, and there will of course be more rewards, including a legendary backpack.

The standard edition of Guild Wars 2: Janthir Wilds will cost $25, while a deluxe edition will add more features like a character slot expansion and a unique homestead