User:Hyliombi

FFXIV Refugees / About This Page

This page is to serve as general information for any FFXIV player looking to try out Guild Wars 2.
My goal is to try to answer a variety of potential questions that would be had by players from the variety of different FFXIV silos.

If you'd like to skip this page and watch a video instead, I think the streamer and content creator Laranity goes over the similarities and differences between GW2 and FFXIV extremely well! (but please note that her comments about housing are incorrect as housing has been added to GW2 as of Janthir Wilds.)

About Me / Why I've Been Playing GW2

I'm a long-time player of FFXIV that started back during the tail-end of Heavensward (patch 3.5). I played a lot in Stormblood learning Dark Knight, loving being "caught up" with the MSQ, and joining lots of Extreme Trial learning parties to help others learn fights. After falling in love with the game even more after experiencing casual savage raiding in Shadowbringers, my /playtime shot through the roof and I've been addicted ever since... Since then, I have moved to start clearing additional content in the game like, week 1 savages, ultimates, deep dungeons, relic grinds, crafter/gatherer grinds, PvP, or whatever I decide to do that day.

With the end of Endwalker and the patch cycle thus far in Dawntrail however, the fears that I had back during Shadowbringers and the launch of Endwalker with job changes were finally realized. While the game itself still offers a lot of content for the new player, for the veteran player, the developer's seemingly mismanagement of developers and lack of a guiding creative vision has led the game to reach a state where it feels stale and more uninspired with every patch. The decisions to homogenize and lower the skill ceiling of jobs with every patch/expansion doesn't leave veteran players with a lot to look forward to until the supposed "major job rework in 8.0". With all of that and a big content draught coming in FFXIV in the upcoming 7.3 patch cycle, I believe it's a good time for FFXIV players to play other games or try other MMOs that fit their expectations more. With all of that being said, I do still regularly play FFXIV and still enjoy it to this day. (I gotta keep my house :3)

After continued requests of a friend of mine, I decided to give Guild Wars 2 an honest try once again and was pleasantly surprised to see how great it felt after not having played since pre-Heart of Thorns (the first expansion). Since then, I have been playing for at least 5-6 hours a week as I slowly start to replace more and more of my time in FFXIV with GW2. Throughout this experience so far, as much as the community in FFXIV says "just follow Yoshi-P's recommendation to play other games" and that "FFXIV respects your time" because of that, GW2 is beating it in that regard in every way possible in my opinion. GW2 both respects your time and your wallet which makes statements from the development team of FFXIV recently about lack of resources for their shortcomings hit even harder.

Neither GW2 or FFXIV are perfect, but I do firmly believe that playing these MMORPGs in tandem is a match made in heaven as they both make up for the other's shortcomings.

General

What's the payment model?

GW2 runs on a "Buy to Play" model. You only have to buy the expansion itself and you will forever have access to the game without having to pay a subscription fee. As of writing, expansions are $25 and collections containing multiple expansions frequently go on sale.
The current list of collections can be found on their official store page under collections.

How much does GW2 cost to play compared to FFXIV?

Based off of a timeframe of 5 years (as of July 2025):
FFXIV = (60 months X $12.99 per month) + ($40 expansions X 2 two-and-a-half year cycles) = $859.40
GW2 = $25 expansions X 5 years = $125

What's the patch/expansion release schedule?

As of Secrets of the Obscure (SotO), the developers have moved to yearly expansion cycles with 3 major updates (called releases) over the course of a year before the next expansion is released.

How is the controller support for this game?

Officially, the developers do not support it. Some members of the community have found ways to play with controller however.

Can I adjust my HUD?

Unfortunately the HUD does not have the same amount of customizability as FFXIV. But you can adjust the scale of the HUD in the settings.

What's the point of Action Camera?

It changes your style of targeting to something similar to a third/first-person shooter.
It's not uncommon for players to switch between these two cameras.
More about the action camera can be read on the Wiki.

I feel like my inventory gets filled up EXTREMELY fast in this game... What gives?

This is one of the pain points for GW2 coming from FFXIV. You will frequently have to take a break to clean out your inventory of miscellaneous items you have gathered from completing quests and killing mobs. You will eventually add more "bags" to your inventory to give yourself more space but you will have to make sure to utilize things like your material storage and salvage kits to keep it clean. That being said, it is extremely manageable as long as you spend a few seconds every now and again just sorting/depositing/selling items.

Speaking of selling items, does GW2 have a marketboard?

Yep!! GW2 calls it a trading post and it can be accessed at any time to both buy and sell items by accessing the Black Lion Trading Company menu. In order to pick up currency or bought items however, you will have to talk to a Black Lion NPC.

What about retainers? How do I store the stuff I don't need right now?

GW2 doesn't have retainers, but it does have a bank. The bank is shared across all of your different characters on your account, and is accessible from all major hubs.

A game as cheap as this has to have some sort of money grabbing cash shop right? How does that compare to FFXIV?

GW2 employs the use of loot boxes with Black Lion Chest Keys that you can get from playing the game or by purchasing through the gem store. The gem store also includes some quality of life things such as Unbreakable Gathering Tools, Additional Character Slots, Additional Bag Slots, etc etc. None of these are absolutely necessary however and can mostly be ignored until way later in the game if you really need them.
Outside of that, GW2 also has cosmetics tied to the gem store. The cosmetics include different skins, outfits, and mounts but get unlocked across your entire account for every single character. So you will only have to purchase a cosmetic item once.

Does it matter which server/world I create my character on?

Not really. You should be able to play with anyone regardless with the only relevant choice being NA servers or EU servers. The only other thing to keep in mind is that it will affect the people you play with in modes like "World vs World".

How much downtime does this game have for maintenance?

None :)... Patches are applied and servers are updated live.
Even during expansion releases! (What a weird concept coming from FFXIV lol)

Does this game have Seasonal Events?

They sure do!! They are called festivals and they are actually pretty in-depth and fleshed out when compared to FFXIV events. Other than having a ton of festival related mini-games, they also include all of the previous years' rewards in the in-game event shop. This removes the feelings of FOMO from FFXIV and the fear that you will have to buy the holiday items on the cash shop at a later date if you don't always do the event. GW2 festivals are so in-depth that when some of them roll around, some players opt to mainly focus on the festival for the duration of it.

What is GW2's stance on mods and addons?

While not officially supported by ArenaNet, they do have a more open-ended policy to them when compared to Square Enix's "zero tolerance" when it comes to add-ons.

As a general recommendation, it's best to avoid using add-ons in GW2 until you've exhausted the new player experience exploring the game since most, if not all, of the add-ons are created in order to maximize efficiency in GW2. Just like in FFXIV, trying to min-max everything without spending time to "smell the roses" and enjoy yourself are an easy way to burn out.
If you are curious on what add-ons exist, you can see a list of them here.

For other online resources that make use of GW2's API, check out this list of applications here that will likely be more useful to you starting out than add-ons will be.

I don't see character mods on here... Are those non-existent?

As far as I can tell, there haven't really been any efforts to create mods for characters in GW2. My understanding of it is that it is due to the fact that they would have to edit texture files in places that would break the ToS.

I hear this game has horizontal progression or something? What's the end-game like?

As I have not reached end-game yet, here is a link [to the end-game Wiki page] describing it.
One thing that will feel weird coming from FFXIV, is that you will reach max level (level 80) during base game. All of the additional progression comes from things that change how your profession plays like building out skill trees.

Combat and Professions/Elite Specializations (Jobs)

Is GW2 a tab-target MMORPG like FFXIV?

Yes and no. While it does utilize some of the tab-targeting systems similar to WoW and FFXIV, it also adds in quite a bit of action combat as well as you will actively have to aim and place abilities.
These two videos are a good overview on what the combat looks like: An Overview of Combat in GW2 & Guild Wars 2: Combat & Skills

My hotbar is only 10 abilities? Surely that can't be right...

It actually is! Unlike FFXIV where you have multiple hotbars with a slew of different abilities, GW2 opts to encourage a variety of builds and different playstyles instead of forcing every player into one playstyle. The first 5 abilities of your hotbar change based off of which weapon you have equipped at that moment in time and will change upon switching weapons both in and out of combat. The last 5 abilities are picked based off of personal preference and what build you are going for. Each ability is from a different specialization, profession skill, or elite specialization. In addition to those abilities on your hotbar, you also have access to your toolkit which is located above the left side of your hotbar and changes based off of abilities chosen from the last five of your hotbar.
Including weapon-swapping, each profession has about 19 skills per build!

In FFXIV I can level and play every job on the same character. Can I do that in GW2 as well?

No. GW2 only lets you play one profession per character. Each profession offers you 3 "elite specializations" to choose from and a variety of builds for each of those offering and encouraging unique playstyles.

So you keep mentioning builds and elite specializations or whatever, can you explain that?

Imagine every profession in GW2 has a "starting class" like how FFXIV jobs in a Realm Reborn has a base class before you unlocked your job stones. Upon reaching a certain level in GW2, you will unlock the ability to unlock new traits and skills for an Elite Specialization of that base profession that introduces new mechanics and new customization opportunities.
You can swap between these Elite Specializations whenever you'd like outside of combat and is as close as GW2 gets to playing multiple "jobs" on one character.

Here are a few user pages on the Wiki that have good information on builds:

• "So You Want To Gear A Character"
• Masel's User Wiki Page

Okay so how am I supposed to know which profession will lead to a role I want to play? How am I supposed to know what leads to tank, healer, or DPS?

In GW2, they don't follow the familiar trinity system of class balance. Due to how customizable gear builds and specializations are, every profession in the game can fill any of these roles and oftentimes, responsibilities you are solely responsible for having in FFXIV are spread across everyone (everyone has their own heal as an example)

So dodging huh??

Yeah, there's dodging in this game and is limited based off of the yellow stamina bar above your health pool.
If you're used to the snapshot in FFXIV, you're going to have a rough time getting used to dodging and moving in time in GW2.
Dodging and not getting hit is one of the most effective forms of mitigation in GW2 (and FFXIV).

Maps / Overworld

Does GW2 have its maps instanced like FFXIV?

Similar to the launch of an expansion, GW2 does have each individual zone instanced. It is extremely easy to join the instance of a friend or party member however. All you have to do is right-click their name and "Join Instance."

Does GW2 have loading screens between zones?

Yes, but the zones themselves are a lot bigger than those in FFXIV and take a lot longer to traverse with more things to do throughout the map.

What can I do in each zone?

Each zone has its own map completion. Map completion can be accomplished by finding all of the points of interest, unlocking all of the waypoints, viewing all of the vistas, and completing "hearts." In addition to that, there are FATE-like events of varying difficulties that pop up constantly.

Gross... FATEs? Those are SO boring...

So, in GW2 they are a lot more enjoyable and varied. There are dynamic events which are all marked on the map with orange circles. Unlike FFXIV, GW2 events don't feel copy-pasted and add a lot of flair to the environment they take place in... these events can even unlock certain areas of the map that are otherwise inaccessible!

Okay that's kinda cool but it doesn't matter because nobody will be there to do those events...

Maps are very frequently inhabited by veterans and new players alike. The bigger ones that require a lot of planning and coordination even have guilds that run events and help new players through them.

Yeah but all of the veterans are just gonna one-shot everything right? Or are events LVL-synced like FATEs?

In GW2, the entire zone is level synced. If a zone is a level 30-40 zone, everyone in the zone gets scaled down to that level.

What incentive to veteran players have to come to older and lower level zones??

According to Xmasreturns,
"As someone who's played the game for a while, this is something that isn't easy to explain to someone who's new... Since GW2 doesn't have traditional quests (outside of the story campaign), the game has evolved over time to use the achievements system to also handle "quests" that happen on your own terms. Basically anything that has a list of requirements uses the achievements system and, oftentimes, individual requirements will send you back to old zones for some reason or another."

Does GW2 have jumping puzzles like in the Gold Saucer, Kugane Castle, etc?

Yes!! And they have even more! GW2 has a variety of different types of jumping puzzles strewn about through the world and are usually very seamlessly integrated into the environment. Quite a few of these puzzles have vistas at the top of them.

Can I mount to traverse the world faster?

Yes and to add on to that, GW2 has unique mount types that all control differently with their own unique strengths and weaknesses. Take a look at this video for a good overview on the different mounts!

Woah wtf mounts are cool and play different?!

YEAH I KNOW RIGHT???? Look at these super skilled beetle mount & griffon mount drivers!

Main Story

How is the Guild Wars 2 story compared to FFXIV?

As someone that just finished the first 2 Living World stories and am now working my way through the first expansion Heart of Thorns, my opinion is that it is good but not in the same way as FFXIV.
In Guild Wars 2, you are just an average adventurer with no innate powers (we are not the Warrior of Light). A big emphasis is placed on world-building and setting development throughout the main story; with additional character development and world lore coming from optional side-content. The lore is definitely there and fleshed out if you want it, but the game doesn't shove it down your throat or use it as a way to block progression in the same way as FFXIV does.
I personally prefer the FFXIV story as a whole, especially when it comes to emotional impact, but I do think GW2 really shines with it's world-building throughout its story which gives different zones and areas more life than I have ever seen in FFXIV.

Raids / Dungeons

This section is a Work in Progress as I have not done enough of this type of content in Guild Wars 2 yet...
I have been told that FFXIV does "instanced content" a lot better than Guild Wars 2.

But here is my understanding of the different types of instanced PvE content in GW2:

• Dungeons: 5-man, fills in gaps of personal story in Base/Core GW2 (only 8 of them in total).
  
• Fractals: 5-man, runs parallel to story content, and has a tiered difficulty system with more mechanics.
  
• Strikes: 10-man, has some ties-in to story content, and are mostly boss fights but have a wide range of difficulty.
• Raids: 10-man, runes parallel to story content, and are boss fights + area/setting building and are in a similar range of difficulty.

For Dungeon equivalents from FFXIV, GW2 has dungeons but these are mostly for the base story so there are only 8 of them total. The main small-scale PvE content in GW2 actually comes from content called Fractals of the Mists which doesn't really have an equivalent in FFXIV.
For bigger scale content similar to raiding in FFXIV, GW2 employs Raids and Strike Missions, with the latter being closer to what FFXIV players are used to with a single boss with multiple phases. Raids however, are closer to what you'd expect from Alliance Raids in FFXIV.

Until I get a chance to write up a comparison, I highly recommend reading the Wiki pages and maybe looking up a video or two.

Social Aspects

How active is shout/map chat? Are there any "main" hubs that people hang out in like Limsa Lominsa?

Map and shout chat is pretty active; especially when there is some sort of big event going on in that map. A lot of the hub areas tend to have active chats as well.

Is there a Free Company system in this game?

Yep! You can join "Guilds" in this game and you can join multiple guilds on your account. Like Free Companies, by joining a guild that has certain things leveled you can gain access to things like increased movement speed, experience gain, easy bank access, etc. in the Guild Hall

Guild Hall? What is that?

Per the Wiki page on Guild Halls, "Guild halls are areas for guilds to play, battle, socialize, and progress together. Once owned, they can be quickly accessed from anywhere in the game via the guild panel."
Compared to the Free Company housing we get in FFXIV, Guild Halls are MASSIVE. Some people even turn their Guild Halls into roller beetle race tracks as an example.

Does GW2 have personal player housing?

Yep! Everyone gets a house as of Janthir Wilds! The housing editor is closer to something you'd find in MakePlace rather than what is in current FFXIV. And by that, I mean it's a lot easier to work with without having to employ glitches to make something look nice.

Does GW2 have an active chill social scene like FFXIV? Do they house things like nightclubs and other hangout events?

Not sure!! But I think a lot of guilds host a variety of different events and I'm sure Roleplaying Guilds might hold some stuff that you're used to.

Is there an active roleplay community in GW2?

From my limited research, it seems so? Here is a list of active Roleplaying Guilds according to users. In addition to that link, it seems like the addon "WARP" can be used to find RP communities and as a tool for Roleplaying in general.

How about the (E)xtreme (R)aid (P)rogression type of roleplay?

I honestly have no clue... But it's probably fairly small compared to FFXIV given how much smaller the GW2 RP community seems to be compared to FFXIV in addition to the fact that there isn't robust character modding like in FFXIV.

Glamour / Fashion

How do I apply glamour to my character in this game?

GW2 has a wardrobe unlock system where, after unlocking a skin through some method, you have that skin unlocked across every single one of your characters and can apply it to any piece of gear as long as it is the same type (Light, Medium, or Heavy). Applying glamour in GW2 can be done from anywhere in the world.
Instead of "glamour prisms," GW2 uses "Transmutation Charges" which can be gathered in a variety of ways including WvW/PvP tracks, map completion, statuettes, cash shop, etc. Applying a glamour on one armor piece consumes 1 transmutation charge (similar to glamour prisms).

How does the dye system compare to FFXIV?

GW2 has up to 4 dye channels for each piece of gear (excluding weapons which cannot be dyed).
Applying dyes to gear can be done from the dye menu in the Hero window and is done for free. It does not require a pot of dye in your inventory nor does it cost a transmutation charge.
Because you do not require pots of dye, you will acquire dye through various means throughout the game. Once you identify/use an acquired dye, you permanently have that dye color unlocked and can use it on any piece of gear across any character on your account.

I can't dye weapons?? That's kinda lame...

Yeah I agree! But it offers a way to design around weapons you really like.

One thing of note compared to FFXIV however, is that A LOT of the effects on gear are actually dyable. Do you like the pyre gloves but wish they were a really cool golden flame instead? You can totally do that!

Can *insert race here* wear hats?

Yes. Every race in the game can wear hats.

Is there race and job specific gear?

There is a handful of gear that is race specific but otherwise there is no profession(job)-locked gear. Instead gear and skins are locked per armor class (Light, Medium, or Heavy) or are universal.

What's the difference between Outfits and Skins?

Outfits are preset designs applied to your entire gearset; similar to items like Cid's Attire from FFXIV. Skins are for each individual gear slot.

I don't like the race I chose... Can I fantasia/race-change into a different one?

Unfortunately no. Due to the way the main story was written to have different paths per race, this is not possible. Thankfully, the game itself is extremely "alt friendly" so feel free to make a new character and experiment with new professions and experience the differences in story.

PvP

This section is currently a Work in Progress....
Unfortunately I have not spent too much time in this mode yet to compare it to FFXIV.
It does have "World vs World" which is a persistent and mass-scale version similar-ish to Frontlines as well as a "small-scale" team based PvP mode similar to The Feast (discontinued) called "Structured PvP". ArenaNet is also working on a new PvP game mode that is closer to Crystalline Conflict called Push.

The "levels of toxicity" throughout the PvP community seems to be hit or miss; with structured PvP having more "toxic" players due to the high skill floor of the mode and World vs. World being more welcoming to newer players to the mode.

Developers of Guild Wars 2

How active are the developers in the community? Do they respond to and acknowledge feedback from forums and other forms of social media?

For the most part, they don't acknowledge the feedback directly in forums and stuff; I think that might be a part of their media training though because some developers in the past were harassed.

Over the years, have they seemingly listened to player feedback to change things for the better? Or have they directly addressed criticisms to changes they made?

Yes, though it usually comes later on as part of scheduled updates. Some examples that come to mind are a whole bunch of QoL things

How do the developers keep players in the loop for changes they are making and the reasoning behind those changes?

Preview streams and patch notes, mostly. Design intent for a lot of stuff is a little light, but I think it's just because they're a small team so they chose not to spend the time on that

Do the GW2 developers host anything similar to Live Letters?

ArenaNet doesn't really do anything close to that level of production, but in the newer release model we have been getting stuff like this

How big is the GW2 development team and how much monetary/general support do they get from NCSoft?

I think it's around 200 people? Looking at Wikipedia, ArenaNet had 322 employees as of 2023.
But that's gonna involve a lot more than people who work directly on the game.
_{Thanks for answering these questions Xmasreturns}