The Basics:
Platform: PC
Developer: Arenanet
Price: $49.99
ESRB rating: T (Teen)

Summary: Parents need to know that GUILD WARS: FACTIONS is a role-playing game that has players constantly battling it out with enemy creatures and other human players. The violence is pretty constant, but it is bloodless. A big advantage of this game over many other online role-playing games is that it does not charge a monthly fee and tends to be more accommodating to players who want to play for short periods of time. Parents should also be aware that Guild Wars is played exclusively in an online mode and that we do not recommend online play for anyone under 12.

Families who do purchase this game may want to discuss the future of online-only games. Do you feel that online games are going to the main way games are played in the future? If so, how do you feel about it? What advantages and disadvantages are there to online-only games? Are there any additional dangers?

Further Breakdown:

Overall rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Best for ages: 13+
Playability: Medium. Adding, communicating and grouping with friends is difficult.
Graphics: High. Impressive landscapes, buildings etc. with quick load times.
Reading Level: Medium
KidScore Rating

Ages 3-7: Red
Ages 8-12: Red
Ages 13-17: Yellow
Violence Amount: Yellow
Fear: Green
Illegal/harmful: Yellow
Language: Green
Nudity: Yellow
Sex: Green

Review:
GUILD WARS: FACTIONS is the sequel to the original Guild Wars game. As in the first game, Guild Wars offers a huge online world to explore, filled with mythical beasts, massive mountains and cities teaming with other players. Most of this fictitious world is a battleground, sometimes against enemy creatures, but often against other online players.

Factions takes the concept of guilds even further than the first game, as guilds can form alliances while battling it out for prestige and prizes. Joining a guild can offer players a number of advantages, including a ready group of other players to embark on quests with and compete in tournaments.

Guild Wars: Factions offers two main modes of play. A role-playing mode lets players develop a character through quests and battles, similar to many other role-playing games.

Rather than focusing on character development, player vs. player (PvP) mode starts players off at the highest level (20) with decent weapons and skills. Although players perform some quests, most of the gameplay takes the form of battles familiar to those found in first-person-shooter style games such as capture the flag etc. This mode of play forces players to depend more on strategy and teamwork rather than superior weapons and armor to defeat a rival guild or an opposing team of players.

Several big pluses exist for Guild Wars vs. other MMORPGs like World of Warcraft. The biggest is that the game does not have a monthly fee. Once the game is purchased, online play is free.

Another strong point is the easy navigation the game offers. Rather than spending vast amounts of time simply running from one battle or quest area to the next, players can simply click on the map and be instantly transported to a nearby city.

Although guilds are a big part of the game, it is possible to play much of the game solo. This, along with fee-free play and the easy navigation can lead to less pressure to play for more time than intended. The game also alerts players when they have been playing for an hour, two hours and so on.

The game isn't perfect though. For a game that focuses entirely on multi-player gameplay, the process to form parties is not very convenient. When navigating to a city, players often lose the other players they were playing with, and it can be difficult to get them back in the same group. Some places in the game force players to play with random teams, instead of with known friends.

Naturally, violence is plentiful, but the battles are blood and gore free. Parents are likely to be more concerned with the potential offensive language or topics that could appear while chatting with other players rather than the content of the game.

Overall Guild Wars: Factions is a fun and cheaper alternative to games like World of Warcraft and Dungeons and Dragons Online.