On 19 April the first episode of Living World Season 1, “Flame and Frost,” will return to Guild Wars 2 as playable content for the first time since the initial release in 2013! As we mentioned in last month’s Studio Update blog, Living World Season 1 episodes will be free additions to the core game and available to all players, permanently.

As originally released, Living World Season 1 wasn’t designed to fit within the Story Journal, so we’ve restructured the content to feel more natural alongside our modern content. These old instances didn’t need to be played in a specific order, so we wanted to make sure that Season 1 felt playable in a more linear fashion. We’ve also made small, impactful adjustments to make the story feel complete and fleshed out given these changes. Our standard of storytelling has evolved over the last ten years, so we’ve taken this opportunity to edit some of the older text and add some additional lore books in Episode 1 to meet our current standards and characterization.

Strike Mission: Aetherblade Hideout Challenge Mode

The 19 April update will also contain the first Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons™ Challenge Mode Strike Mission. Challenge Mode is a deadlier take on existing Strike Missions, featuring more complex mechanics for coordinated and well-prepared groups. We’ll continue releasing Challenge Mode versions of the other Guild Wars 2: End of Dragons Strike Missions in the following weeks.