Semi-final battle in the MMORPG Showdown 2 series. 

The Match-Up

This was the match that almost happened in the finals last year, but World of Warcraft barely beat Eve Online in the semi-finals after a recount in voting. Guild Wars then went on to beat World of Warcraft in the final match last year and has dominated every match so far this year. Eve Online stood the best chance of providing stiff competition to Guild Wars since both games have been listed very high on GameOgre's Top MMORPG List and both usually receive good reviews from Review Members. Very few major MMOs are able to maintain a review score of 8/10 or more, but both Guild Wars and Eve Online are currently accomplishing that feat. Other than being two of the best MMORPGs today though, Guild Wars and Eve Online have very little in common with each other. Guild Wars is a fantasy MMO that is very easy-to-learn and does not charge a monthly subscription. Eve Online is a sci-fi MMO with a rather steep learning curve and does charge a monthly fee. In other words, Guild Wars focuses more on casual gamers while Eve Online focuses more on hardcore players. Thus, the casual gamers get a victory here as Guild Wars took an early lead and never trailed. Eve Online managed to stage a comeback during the weekend to make it the best test for Guild Wars in this tournament, but it was not nearly enough for the win. Guild Wars will now face Lord of the Rings Online in the championship match and has to be considered the favorite to win-it-all again.  

Tale of the Tape

Guild Wars

• Free game play after buying the game.
• Winner of the first MMORPG Showdown.
• GameOgre.com's Online Game of the Year for 2006.
• Primarily instanced content.
• Two successful expansion/sequels.
• Strong PvP focus.
• Henchmen and Hero systems enables more solo play.
• Level cap is 20.
• Finally had a regular expansion and will have a sequel.

Versus 

Eve Online

• Offers a 14 day free trial.

• A long-time resident of GameOgre's Top 10 MMORPG List.

• Recently released its Exodus expansion.

• Players control corporations.

• One of the best economies in an MMO.

Select Comments For Guild Wars (Edited for Presentation)

Rating: 10
Author: ds5o5
Comment: Guild Wars is probably one of the best games I have ever played. That includes both MMORPGs and single player games.

• Community:(10/10) The GW community is, in my opinion, nearly flawless. Yes, you can and will encounter the occasional jerk that bugs you to join his group, but this happens in all games. The community is actually what drives the game because of its big focus on groups and PvP.
• Combat(PvE):(10/10) To be successful in combat in GW actually does require skill. You have to have a thorough understanding of your skills and what they do. If you don't, you can kiss your chances of survival goodbye. The PvE combat has a diverse array of enemies to fight, from lowly Devourers to Ettons and Necrid Horsemen.
• Combat(PvP):(10/10) PvP is really the life blood of GW. From Guild vs Guild combat to alliance battles and team fights, PvP is great. PvP combat in GW is intense and fun, not to mention how rapid-fire it is, taking the need for skill to reach the next level.

There are alot of things I haven't touched on like how the areas are only for you and your group and the loot being auto assigned prevents kill and loot stealing. The level cap of 20 is actually where the fun begins as it allows you to access the mainstream PvP battles. If you have the Eye of the North expansion then being level 20 also opens up a massive new area. Of course one of the best things is that it's free to play so people like me arent restricted to the realm of mediocre MMORPG's. Overall: Guild Wars owns.

Rating: 9
Author: Miclee
Comment: Fun, fun, fun, fun! You can go train whenever you want and there's no kill stealing because of the instances. It also has many add-ons with the 3 campaigns and 1 expansion pack. Fun, fun PvP. You are also able to solo, but still need teamwork with your henchies/heroes. The level cap of 20 makes it so nobody grinds at all. It also is getting a sequel. Final score: 8.9/10

Rating: 10
Author: gwraistlin
Comment: Guild Wars is one of the best MMORPGs you'll find and no doubt the best bargain. People need to understand that the game only begins at level 20. The focus of the game is not to just get levels and better equipment like it is in WOW and other P2P games. Its about developing better strategies, skill combos, and team work. The community is much more mature than most other games and there are no hackers to speak of.

Select Comments for Eve Online (Edited for Presentation)

Rating: 10
Author: Serazahr
Comment: Although in comparison to Guild Wars it is relatively expensive, it is worth the money. The economy is (nearly) completely player run and the world seems infinite. You can play any sort of game style, from a fast hit&run rouge over a large asteroid miner to a military general. This is different to Guild Wars where you can change your tactic inside matches, but you can never really change your place in the world. Also I see the amount of time involved as a moderate problem, but to get the obsidian armor from the Fissure of Woe you need thousands of hours without just buying platinum online. In Eve you have some kind of ongoing ascension, while you reach level 20 too soon in Guild Wars and the PvP doesn't really feel there is such an ascension unless you are extremely successful.

Rating: 10
Author: chopster
Comment: Great game for PvP and someone with a brain! The espionage and economy (E&E if you will) are the best.

Rating: 0
Author: Charger Xd
Comment: Extremely boring, I played it using the trial and paid for one month. It was really boring.

The Voting

Guild Wars received a total score of 7.25

Eve Online received a total score of 4.66

The Result

Guild Wars Wins!