Note: Originally published at 6:00 a.m. Pacific Time (UTC-7) on August 22, 2023.
Hey, everyone,
It’s a big day for Guild Wars 2 and ArenaNet—we get to open the portal to Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure™ and share the newest chapter in Tyria’s journey with you. When the expansion launches in just a few hours, you’ll begin the first major Guild Wars 2 story in which Tyria is not overshadowed by the threat of the Elder Dragons. You’ll catch up with old friends, make new ones, and together you’ll put your strength to the test against the invading Kryptis forces from the Mists. You’ll master new build combinations with the weapon access opened up by Weaponmaster Training and the relic system. You’ll soar in the skies above Tyria in two new zones that emphasize aerial exploration, with a streamlined method to acquire the skyscale mount and new Flight Training Masteries. You’ll fight alongside fellow players in the open world and in two new Strike Missions. And you’ll find new events, rewards, and challenges as you go about your adventures.
We’re so, so happy to be able to share this with you. In addition to taking the story of Tyria in a fresh direction, Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure represents a new model of expansion content delivery for us. The story that launches today will continue over the next three major releases (roughly one major release per quarter), joined by system updates, additional rewards, new weapon proficiencies, new instanced combat encounters, and more. This new model is meant to ensure that the next major story and content update is never more than a few months away and that the game is supported with a regular cadence of content. We’ve already started applying lessons from the development of Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure to our fifth expansion, which we expect to be released next year.
Below is a high-level view of what’s going live today and our plans for what’s coming out over the next several months.
| Live Now | Update 1 | Update 2 | Update 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Story | Launch Story Arc | Story Continues | Story Continues | Story Concludes |
| Maps | Skywatch Archipelago, Amnytas, Outpost: Wizard’s Tower |
Final Map Introduced | Final Map Extended | Final Map Completed |
| Instanced Combat | Strike: Cosmic Observatory, Strike: Temple of Febe |
1 Strike Mission Challenge Mode | 1 Strike Mission Challenge Mode | Fractal with Challenge Mode |
| Weapon | Weaponmaster Training | New Weapon Proficiency for Each Profession | Masteries | Heart of the Obscure Research, Flight Training, Astral Ward |
New Mastery Line | Mastery Updates | Mastery Updates |
| Wizard’s Vault | Wizard’s Vault Introduced | Wizard’s Vault Seasonal Refresh | Wizard’s Vault Seasonal Refresh | Wizard’s Vault Seasonal Refresh |
| Armor | Rift Hunter Armor, Astral Ward Armor |
Additional Armor Set | Obsidian Legendary Armor Tier 1 | Obsidian Legendary Armor Tier 2 |
| Relics | 40 Core Relics, 12 Secrets of the Obscure-Exclusive Relics |
Additional Expansion Relics | Legendary Relic | Additional Expansion Relics |
| Rift Hunting | Available in Secrets of the Obscure Maps and a Rotation of 12 Existing Maps | Mastery Unlocks Access to Convergences (a public or squad group instance) with Legendary Enemies, Existing Maps Added to Rotation |
New Legendary Enemies, Existing Maps Added to Rotation |
New Legendary Enemies, Existing Maps Added to Rotation |
We’ll be talking about the content in each release as it draws nearer.
Celebrating 11 Years of Guild Wars 2
The launch of Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure very nearly coincides with the game’s eleventh anniversary on August 28. We’re deeply grateful for the journey that has unfolded over the last eleven years—a journey that’s only been possible because of the Guild Wars 2 community and one that we’re excited to continue together. We’ll be commemorating the anniversary in the game with birthday presents (distributed according to character age, although some characters will receive birthday presents significantly earlier than August 28 thanks to the launch head-start weekend, leap years, and chronomancy) and Black Lion Trading Company sales.
We’ll also be celebrating the game and expansion with our fans on September 1 at Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle, WA. You can learn more about that event here. This is a free, ticketed event—if tickets are all gone by the time you’re reading this, you can still show up for our standby line on the evening of the event.
As a last piece of celebratory news, we recently announced a new line of Guild Wars 2 merchandise, including the Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure Collectible Bundle. The bundle features the Shadow of Nayos Statue, made in the image of a member of Kryptis royalty who looms large in the events awaiting you in the expansion story. Take a tour of the current lineup, and be sure to check back for more items coming soon.
Summer/Fall Roadmap Updates
In addition to all of the content going live today, this quarter will also include a skills and balance update, the Halloween festival, a WvW update, and the return of bonus events similar to those we ran in the wake of Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons™. That’ll keep us busy through the end of October. Not long after that the next batch of Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure content will drop, bringing with it a new map, a new season of Wizard’s Vault rewards, and more. We’re also planning to run a new weapon proficiency beta-event before the end of this year—we’ll share more information about that when it’s ready.
Thank you for being with us on this journey for eleven incredible years and taking the time to read all about what’s coming next. We wish you many joyful moments exploring Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure, and please let us know what you think. Happy adventuring!