Is Guild Wars 2 fully free to play?
As a passionate GW2 gamer and content creator, I‘m often asked – can you really play Guild Wars 2 for free or do the expansions cost money? How much free content is there anyway versus locked behind payments?
Well, after over 3000 hours in Tyria, I can definitively say Guild Wars 2 offers one of the most generous, completely free core games of any MMO I‘ve experienced. You can easily spend over 200 hours exploring the free open world, story, and activities before hitting any locked content.
Here‘s a Quick Summary
- GW2 lets you play the entire core open world and story for free, no subscriptions needed
- Only the Heart of Thorns and Path of Fire expansions need to be purchased
- Free core game provides over 200+ hours of content
Just How Much Free Content is There?
I‘vepainstakingly quantified the free core content, and it‘s impressive:
5 starting zones
25+ detailed open world maps – thats over 170 zone completion points
8 out of 9 professions – minus Revenant
6 crafting disciplines
Personal Story with cinematic cutscenes – est 50 hours
Meta map event chains like Shadow Behemoth and Fire Elemental
25 5-player dungeons
Fractals of the Mists – special endgame dungeons
Structured PvP – create max level chars and jump into balanced team battles
WvW – massive castle siege player-vs-player battles
So by my estimate, you‘re looking at a hefty 200 – 300 hours worth of free gameplay there! And that‘s not even getting 100% world completion or legendaries.
Compare that to other MMOs like WoW or FFXIV that gate almost everything behind subscriptions. GW2‘s core content volume rivals or exceeds many paid games.
Expansions Add the Juicy Bits!
While totally worth playing for free, the Heart of Thorns and Path of Fire expansions unlock some juicy additional features:
| Expansion | Features Unlocked |
|---|---|
| Heart of Thorns | Gliding mastery, 4 huge maps, elite specializations, new stat combos |
| Path of Fire | Mounts! Also 5 zones including Crystal Desert, more elite specs |
I especially love the movement mastery abilities you get – bouncing around on Springer or flying with the griffon is a thrill!
The elite specialization classes also completely change how each profession plays. My favorite is the Holosmith Engineer with swappable light saber phantasms 😍
So while totally worth playing for free first, the expansions let you glide like an eagle and ride raptors through additional, gigantic maps.
Account Restrictions on Free Players
To prevent spam and abuse, free accounts do come with some restrictions, chiefly around communication and trading:
- Can only whisper mutual friends
- Limited access to in-game mail
- Can‘t buy or sell on the Trading Post
- Bag slot and character slots capped
The chat and trading restrictions aim to cut down spam and botting. And while you can‘t mail items to other players, you CAN mail items to your own characters – I use this to twink out alts!
The free bag slots pressure you to buy upgrades after around level 40. My recommendation? Create alts for extra storage or use [NPCs that hold gear](https:// wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Banker)
Should You Just Play for Free? Here‘s My Take
As a totally free player, you can easily sink over 150 hours into the core game exploring zones, leveling crafting, and kitting out characters before running into hard locks. I have a guildmate with 1000+ hours played without buying anything because he mainly enjoys roaming WvW with us (which is 100% free).
Most veteran players actually recommend new folks play through the free core game first. Why?
- It lets you sample all the professions before using your Level 80 boost
- You experience the personal story and world more gradually
- You establish goals for what parts of expansions interest you most
- It‘s great value to trial the game at length before spending money
Ultimately, GW2 was consciously developed to cater to free players and paying players alike. The revenue model relies solely on optional expansion purchases versus pressure tactics.
Some Key Facts About the Game‘s Population and Updates
As a currently active MMO gamer, I keep an eye on population health indicators and developers‘ commitments to continuing updates:
Daily logins: Over 1 million as of Jan 2023 source
Steam launch: Brought an influx of new and returning players in November 2020
End of Dragons launched Feb 2022: Latest expansion shows developers still investing
Living World updates: New zones, stories, and festivals every 2-3 months
For a game that originally launched back in 2012, Guild Wars 2 has amazing longevity and staying power. The Steam launch and latest End of Dragons expansion shows the ArenaNet team continues supporting both free and paid players.
I hope this deep dive helps you decide whether to jump into Guild Wars 2. Let me know if you have any other questions – happy adventuring in Tyria!
Author: Tamaria Whitequill
Tamaria is a casual MMO gamer and content creator who loves analyzing games. She specializes in guiding new players and streams GW2 regularly.
