GuildWars.com news/Archives/200601

The following lists the January 2006 news from the official GuildWars.com site.

January 31st, 2006

 * Guild of the Week #34

Dark Angels of Rising Chaos is a large global guild with an eclectic member base, including parents and their children, grandparents, college students, and others from around the world. Find out more about DaRc, and read a bit of their guild lore, in this week's Guild of the Week article.

January 26th, 2006

 * Guild Wars Welcomes Japan

We are pleased to announce the opening of Guild Wars in Japan. The game has been in testing for a few months now and at 7:00 p.m. Pacific Time (Noon Tokyo Time) the servers will open and players from Japan will be playing the official retail release version of Guild Wars. Youkoso!

January 24th, 2006

 * Contest Finalists to be Announced

The wealth of excellent entries in the Guild Wars Design-A-Weapon Contest has been sorted, and the first and second rounds of judging have taken place. From nearly a thousand entries, we are down to the final 50. We will announce the winners, and show the winning concept designs, next week.


 * Guild of the Week #33

A German guild steps into the spotlight this week, as our Guild of the Week features the Milites Mortis Elite. This guild, a Tomb of Primeval Kings specialist, prides itself on designing its own builds. Find out more here.

January 23rd, 2006

 * Fun Event Ongoing

With the Guild Wars Ladder reset last week, we kicked off a special ladder event. The event will end at 8:00 p.m. GMT on February 28, 2006, and the top Guild Wars Ladder team will be recognized with a special in-game reward. The official 2007 World Championship seasons will start on March 1, 2006. We'll have full tournament rules prior to the start of the season.


 * GWWC Final Brackets Set

The brackets for the final games of the Guild Wars World Championship have been set. The action will start on February 17th, and culminate in the final match for the crown of Guild Wars World Champion on February 18th. Find out who's facing whom on the chart below.

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 * Guild Wars Factions Screenshots

We're pleased to present our first official website release of Guild Wars Factions screenshots. In today's images, you will see lovely vistas and intense combat scenes from within Cantha, the continent that awaits you in Factions. Enjoy the screenshots, and look for more each week as the launch date approaches!


 * Factions Event a Big Success

The Guild Wars Team wants to thank the hundreds of thousands of gamers who joined us this past weekend for our Guild Wars Factions Global Free-For-All PvP Weekend Event. We hope that you had a good time getting familiar with the Battle Isles, and that you enjoyed the sneak peek at Guild Wars Factions, which will be released in Spring 2006. We look forward to seeing you at our next event!

January 20th, 2006

 * Global Event Begins

Today marks the opening of the Guild Wars Factions Global Free-For-All PvP Weekend Event. Starting in the early morning hours, we saw a growing influx of players who have been exploring the new Battle Isles, experimenting with the two new professions, and enjoying the exciting new explorable area that has been formed from the ruins of the Tomb of the Primeval Kings. We hope you'll join us this weekend!

January 18th, 2006

 * Wintersday Memories

With a fond look back at our recent holiday event, and as a foreshadowing of many more in-game events to come with Guild Wars Factions, we are pleased to offer you this year's Wintersday Memories movie, on this link.


 * Guild Wars: Game of the Year

Play Magazine's February issue contains their "2005 Year in Review" feature. We're delighted to report that Guild Wars has been awarded PC Game of the Year, Best Action RPG. and Best Graphics – Artistic. In addition, Guild Wars received an honorable mention for Best Original Score. Play's February issue is in subscribers' hands now, and will be on shelves in a week or two.

January 17th, 2006

 * Guild of the Week #32

Fallen Angels, a guild consisting mainly of North American players, started with Tomb of the Primeval Kings and moved to Guild-versus-Guild. Read about them in this weeks Guild of the Week, posted here.

January 16th, 2006

 * Ladder Reset; New Event to be Announced

With the reset of the Guild Wars ladder at 3pm PST (11 pm GMT) today, rated competition is back! We are starting a fun ladder event with the reset. So, play, win, and check back Monday for more information on this new ladder event!


 * Global Free-For-All PvP Weekend

For the latest information about the Guild Wars Factions Global Free-For-All PvP Weekend, be sure to read our Events Section. On the event page, you can get your free access key; be sure to share that key with your friends! You can also learn the dates and times of the event, and get answers to your event-related questions in the FAQ. Find that events page here.

January 11th, 2006

 * Guild Wars Factions Interview

Gamespy has posted an interview covering Guild Wars Factions, the next chapter in the Guild Wars story, which was announced yesterday in an official press release. Find out more about Guild Wars Factions on this link.

January 10th, 2006

 * Guild Wars Factions Announced / PvP Event to Begin January 20th

In celebration of today's announcement of Guild Wars Factions, ArenaNet invites all gamers to participate in a special event next week. The Guild Wars Factions Global Free-for-All PvP Weekend begins on January 20th and runs through January 22nd. Check out the press release for information about Guild Wars Factions, and for information about this exciting upcoming event. All are welcome to join the event! Keys will be distributed on this website and through various partners starting on Friday, January 13th.


 * Guild of the Week #31

After a hiatus for the Wintersday break, the Guild of the Week feature returns with a spotlight on a Turkish guild, Dark Saga. Read about this guild, and meet some of their members, here.

January 9th, 2006

 * Guild Wars Factions Cover Feature

Guild Wars Factions has been chosen as the cover feature for the February issue of Computer Gaming World. The magazine is in subscribers' hands now and will be on U.S. newsstands within a few days. You can see the cover art on this link. Features on Guild Wars Factions will be published in other areas of the world very soon and more information on Guild Wars Factions will be released globally this week.


 * Guild Wars Ladder Reset

After a brief period of closure to focus on the Guild Wars World Championship Regional Playoffs, which conclude on Saturday evening, we will be resetting the Guild Wars Ladder on Monday, January 16, at approximately 3:00 p.m. PST/11:00 p.m. GMT. More GvG news will be forthcoming.

January 6th, 2006

 * GWWC Regional Playoffs Begin

The brackets are set, and the competition begins in earnest this weekend! Matches start this Sunday, and more will take place over the course of the week. You can find a tournament schedule here. Pick your favorites, root for your guild, and get into the action through Observer Mode! You can watch the evolving nature of the standings in the Guild Wars World Championship Regional Playoffs on this page which shows the participating guilds and their bracket positions. We will update the brackets as quickly as possible after each match.


 * Guild Wars Ladder Restarts

With the completion of the Guild Wars World Championship qualifying season, and verification of the participating guilds, we are resetting the Guild Wars Ladder on Monday, January 9, 2006. We will have information on an exciting new ladder event in a very few days.

January 5th, 2006

 * GWWC Regional Ladder Bracket Rules

We've posted information about the Regional Playoffs of the Guild Wars World Championship in the Events Section. You can find the Ladder Bracket Rules on this link. Check back tomorrow for a listing of the participating guilds from each region.

January 4th, 2006

 * New Year's Interview

Elite Fansite Photics.com has published their traditional New Year's interview in Issue No. 25 of their ezine. Find the interview, laced with images from the Wintersday Event, on this link.

January 1st, 2006

 * GWWC Qualifying Season Ends

The period of qualifications for the Guild Wars World Championship has come to an end. As of Midnight Pacific (8:00 a.m. GMT) this morning, the Guild Wars Ladder was locked, and ratings for this pre-championship season are final. These standings determine which guilds will participate in the Regional Playoffs the week of January 7 through 14. Please see the GWWC Page for an addendum that provides submittal information for the required Guild Rosters and the player eligibility documents. And best of luck to our top Guild Wars guilds as you take part in the Regional Playoffs!


 * Happy New Year from the Guild Wars Team

The Guild Wars Team would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to you for having made 2005 such an extraordinary year for all of us. Best wishes for a very happy 2006!