Live service games must always be innovating. They need to keep players interested, excited, and on their toes. Guild Wars 2: Visions of Eternity is trying to do just that by introducing nine new elite specializations to its classes. Developer ArenaNet announced the Mesmer, Ranger, and Guardian specializations last week, and now we've got our first look at the Antiquary, Ritualist, and Paragon. However, the Antiquary in particular is gathering attention online—and not for the right reasons.
The Ritualist is fairly straightforward, transforming the classic Guild Wars archetype to work in Guild Wars 2. The Paragon is really shouty. That's basically a warrior's whole thing, but this supporter particularly enjoys emptying their lungs.
If Guild Wars 2 was hoping that Visions of Eternity would cement it as one of the best free Steam games, however, the Antiquary is doing the opposite of that. The character design is clearly apeing Indiana Jones, but he also has a guitar. Why? Who knows.
The icon for the specialization is just as confusing: playing cards, for some reason. I suspect we'll learn more about that aspect of the class in Friday's livestream, but it seems odd not to mention what could be a fundamental part of the Antiquary's kit with the announcement.
This master thief has a loyal skritt assistant to help him plunder other players' riches, but fans aren't impressed. "Its animations look like a parody," one YouTube commenter writes. They also mention that, as a Thief player, this specialization has left them "heartbroken."
Other players have been quick to label the Antiquary as "fake" and "an April Fool's joke" three months too late. Hopefully the full reveal of the class abilities will go some way to making up for the disappointing animations and incohesive design choices.
As one of the best MMOs on PC, players have high expectations for Guild Wars 2. But if you fancy a change, you can try one of the other best fantasy games to tide you over in the meantime.
You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We've also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers.