With the launch of Heart of Thorns on it’s way October 23, Guild Wars 2’s first expansion will see lots of newcomers to the series. To bring the game to a wider audience, Guild Wars 2 has prepared a treat. In order to keep the game simple to join, they’ve removed any fees for the current game, and asks only that you buy the expansion when you’re ready. Guild Wars 2 operates on a clean Buy to Play principal, you pay once and it’s yours. No monthly renewal, you own it. If you’re interested in Guild Wars 2, it’s easy to sign up. Just make an account and you’re ready to download and enjoy. Of course in doing this, they’ve also taken measures to ensure no one will take advantage of the ability to make abusive accounts, and that’s where the catch lies. As soon as you buy the full version, which in this case is the upcoming expansion, all following restrictions are lifted:

• Fewer character and bag slots
• Map chat disabled
• Can only start a new conversation once per 30 seconds
• Cannot mail gold or items, trade gold for gems, or access guild vaults
• Locked to starting zone until Lv 10
• LFG locked till Lv 30
• World vs World locked till Lv 60

You can read the full news release on their news page and we’ll all try to make the best of this shift of how things are run. We’ll see in the future just how smooth this will all pan out, I’m hoping for the best.