Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure expansion announced

ArenaNet and NCSoft has announced the fourth expansion for Guild Wars 2, titled Secrets of the Obscure, and it’s coming on August 22nd. The expansion will host a variety of new features, and is set above the surface of Tyria, with the developer saying it delves “into the ancient mysteries around the floating Wizard’s Tower that have intrigued players for over two decades”.

Guild Wars 2: Secrets of the Obscure will cost £21.99, and on launch day there will be new explorable areas, two new strike missions, and new gameplay features, as detailed in the trailer below, and official word from the press release. Future content is also planned to be added for free, which will include another map, a new Fractal of Mists encounter, Strike Mission challenge modes, and new rewards, all coming in the following months and heading into 2024.

The all-new story puts players into the shoes of both erstwhile defender and explorer of the unknown as they race to defend the world from a heretofore unseen threat. The adventure will begin with a climb through the Skywatch Archipelago, the first of two new maps being added to the game on release day. Hanging high in the sky above Tyria, these floating islands are under attack from the Kryptis, a demonic race of malevolent beings streaming through instabilities in the Mists and threatening the fragile peace of the world in the wake of the defeat of the elder dragons. What follows is an epic struggle into the Demon Realm, where the fate of the world rests in the hands of the player and their secretive new allies.

Josh Davis, Guild Wars 2 Game Director said: “Finally revealing the secrets of the Wizard’s Tower has been an idea floating around the studio (pun intended) for many years”. Davis also said “With Secrets of the Obscure, we’re getting a chance to explore Tyria’s lore in a way we never have been able to before. New areas of the world, new characters and enemies, and new twists to the core combat gameplay should excite fans with how they are going to add to the game’s already legendary amount of content”.

Finally, here’s the list of some of the new features:

• Wizard’s Vault: The Wizard’s Vault awards Astral Acclaim for completing daily, weekly, and seasonal achievements across the game. Players can trade Astral Acclaim for unique items like armor pieces, weapon and mount skins, gold, legendary crafting materials, and more.
• Relics: unlocked at level 60, this new equipment slot will now be the home of the wide variety of rune set bonuses previously found on different rune types, allowing for more customization of special effects and more freedom to choose the stat bonuses players want to use on their characters.
• Weaponmaster Training: each of the game’s nine professions will now gain the ability to equip the weapons previously reserved for their elite specialization, unlocking new gameplay and build options for players.

Guild Wars 2 is out now on PC, the fourth expansion is coming on August 22nd.