With Visions of Eternity, Guild Wars 2 releases its 6th expansion. Like Janthir Wilds, the expansion before this one, this release is smaller in size (and also in price). But is it worth playing for new, returning, or current players? As a current player? Absolutely. For new players, it might be. Let’s dig into the review.
The Story continues…
Let’s start with the story. After all, this is the gateway into the new content once you pick up the expansion.
The story takes you to the Isle of Castora, an island that wasn’t part of the Guild Wars 2 lore before. Usually, the next visited area has some connection to the original Guild Wars or Guild Wars 2. A new blank sheet is nice to work with, and it shows.
The main plot, as seen in the Visions of Eternity trailer, is that the Inquest make their return. The Inquest are the evil scientists , mainly Asura , who are usually up to no good. We haven’t seen them for a couple of years, and it seems they’ve spent that time planning something in Castora.
The story starts off with some great in-game cinematics and even a creative sequence where you save your boat from sinking.
It immediately sets a different tone, not just “go from A to B and fight a boss,” but something with a bit more personality.
But don’t expect major new mechanics to be introduced. The story follows a similar structure with similar mechanics as other expansions and Living World episodes. It introduces a new plot with existing characters to build upon for future Living World releases.
What is nice, is that new masteries, like the upgraded Skimmer mount, are introduced through the story. This was also the case in previous expansions. What I usually don’t like are the disruptions in the story’s pace. After completing a story instance, you’re often prompted to complete events to progress. You have to help the locals in order to move forward and, depending on how fast you are, this can take up to 30 to 45 minutes. This usually feels, to me personally, like it drags out the story. Luckily, in Visions of Eternity, this is not the case.
You do have to explore the map and look for specific NPCs or objects, but you don’t have to complete a certain number of events to progress. I like that. I can do the story whenever I please, and I don’t need to scavenge for events in order to continue.
Overall review of the story: pretty good. I liked it, it’s better than Janthir Wilds. And it has some unexpected moments too. For now, let’s move on to the new content and new areas the game has to offer.
New Content & Maps
Out of the box, the expansion comes with two new maps: Shipwreck Strand and Starlit Weald. Two more maps are coming with seasonal updates in 2026, along with new story chapters and other Living World updates, all free upon release.
Shipwreck Strand is your first stop in Castora, a beachy zone filled with shipwrecks and plenty of events around them. Deeper inland you’ll find caves, trees, and vibrant nature. It’s a nice, relaxing area to explore.
The second map, Starlit Weald, is much more gloomy. It has a sinister and mysterious vibe to it. It starts with a couple of small settlements, but once you head deeper into the zone, the trees become denser and you’re essentially exploring a jungle. All the way at the end, you’ll find mysterious runes belonging to the Seers from hundreds of years ago.
Both of these maps reuse the renown heart system introduced in Janthir Wilds. These areas have hearts as we know them in Guild Wars 2, basically the game’s quests. But the Janthir Wilds expansion introduced repeatable hearts, which can be done daily. Completing them multiple times grants better rewards.
The hearts are fun, but nothing too groundbreaking. It’s more of what we’ve seen: defeat enemies, help locals gather food, and various other small tasks.
Next to that, there are plenty of collections, points of interest, vistas, and hero challenges.
Speaking of Hero Challenges, what I do like, especially when we get into Elite Specializations later in this video, is that you keep repeating these hearts on different characters. You’re there to unlock your new elite specialization and do the hero challenges, and while you’re at it, you might as well redo that heart or participate in another event. Doing this across multiple characters actually makes the map feel more fresh each time you visit.
Both maps also have a timed meta event with decent rewards for collections and to slot into your world boss schedule.
All in all, two nice maps.
There are some things, however, that I don’t really like. What I’ve never been a fan of are the layered and cave systems in Guild Wars 2. This really started with Tangled Depths in 2015 with Heart of Thorns , they always feel like a maze to navigate. Eventually you learn them, but to me personally, they’re still not enjoyable.
Starlit Weald doesn’t really suffer from this, but Shipwreck Strand has an underwater maze where you can discover caves tied to an achievement. That’s fun! But in some cases, you need to go there for a specific Hero Challenge to unlock your new Elite Specialization. Then it becomes kind of tedious.
Also, when you’re done exploring Shipwreck Strand and you want to move over to Starlit Weald, it might take you a bit on your first, second, or even third attempt to find the portal. For me, those mazes and caves should be more optional , not something you must navigate through.
But hey, that’s my personal take.
The new Skimmer!
What was a great and much-needed improvement was the Skimmer upgrade.
The Skimmer was one of the first mounts you could obtain, but it lacked practical use outside of water. In Visions of Eternity, the Skimmer gets an upgrade through the story. Instead of just a single skill that heals and dismounts you, the Skimmer now gets two new skills and improvements to its existing skillset.
Your first skill, Barrel Roll, which heals and deals damage, now no longer dismounts you. This makes it far more effective if you want to keep healing and supporting allies. Slipstream Boost significantly increases your movement speed, and Water Jets allows you to deal mounted healing and damage. On top of that, your Skimmer can now hover longer and higher, and it has a handy detection skill that allows you to search for hidden treasures.
A very welcome change to the Skimmer if you ask me. These abilities are unlocked through the story and through masteries.
Masteries: A Refreshing Update or More of the Same?
I almost forgot about Masteries when creating this video. So yeah, Masteries are used to upgrade your Skimmer. As with all Guild Wars 2 expansions, to level masteries you have to look for mastery points across the map or through achievements, level your character again, and spend mastery points.
Next to the Skimmer masteries, we also have the Castoran Survivalist and the Wild Castoran Magic mastery tracks.
Castoran Survivalist gives you simple utilities to make your time in Castora more pleasant , more survivability and more materials from gathering.
Wild Castoran Magic, on the other hand, gives you the ability to look for hidden mirror challenges and find hidden treasures. It’s a fun little journey where you explore the world to discover mirrors and rewards.
The new masteries are fun, but they feel a bit less impactful than things like Fishing, Jade Bots, or Homesteads. Still, it’s too early to judge, more content drops in 2026, so these tracks might evolve into something more meaningful.
Your new Tropical Homestead
To conclude this section, your Homestead has also been improved. You now have access to a Castora-themed Homestead map for free. Without much thought, I swapped to the new Castora layout. It’s more vibrant, and materials are placed more conveniently than in the Janthir Wilds homestead. But hey, that all comes down to personal preference.
All in all, a ton of new features. Although some are minor, they are definitely worth it for dedicated Guild Wars 2 players.
The long awaited Visions of Eternity Elite Specializations
A big selling point of the expansion are the Elite Specializations.
After being absent for the last couple of expansions, every profession now gets another Elite Specialization, a new trait line that gives your character a completely new set of abilities and new ways to play.
I made a separate video for each one of them, so go check those out if you haven’t already.
I’ve played them all, and each one is quite unique, enhancing the playstyle of its profession. Before launch, they made some much-needed changes to the Elite Specializations, rebalancing them since some were underpowered and didn’t feel great to play. Luckily, the major concepts of the Elite Specializations remained unchanged.
I’ve been playing Evoker a lot, the new Elite Specialization for the Elementalist, and I quite like it. I can see it working with a lot of builds, but I do tend to switch back to the older Elite Specializations like Catalyst from End of Dragons or Tempest from Heart of Thorns. It might just be habit for now.
Lore-wise, I like how they referenced the original Guild Wars with the Paragon and Ritualist, both playable professions from the first game. And the Troubadour has some fun nods to Guild Wars 2 characters as well. And don’t forget the Conduit, which is largely based on Razah , a mysterious figure from the original game.
The new Elite Specializations also came with a nice side effect: I actually had to use my alts again. Characters that have been parked in the raid or PvP lobby for years made their reappearance.
It also combines nicely with achievements. For example, I could redo hearts while also getting hero points for my alts. This makes replaying content way more enjoyable.
Overall though, this new set of Elite Specs doesn’t fully click with me yet.In past expansions, elite specs filled clear gaps, like Specter turning Thief into a real support.
With Visions of Eternity, those gaps were already mostly filled, so these new specs feel more like alternatives than must-haves.
Another thing to consider when introducing new Elite Specializations is the difficulty curve for new and casual players. I’ve been here since day one, and I grew into each Elite Specialization over time. New players get introduced to 9 different classes and a total of 27 Elite Specializations. And if those players plan to buy an expansion, which one do they pick? As a veteran player, I like mixing up playstyles, but I’m not sure if adding more Elite Specializations is the best step forward.
All in all, Elite Specializations in this expansion are somewhat refreshing, but to me, not game-changing. And I’m not just talking about DPS. Do we need more in future expansions? I don’t know. What do you think?
End-game & Long-term Content
Let’s have a look at endgame content…
Well, that’s going to be a short one.
There is no endgame content yet.
As with these newer, smaller expansions, some content is released in parts. There will be two new Raid encounters in 2026, along with a new Fractal and Convergence. So in terms of endgame, that’s definitely a nice addition.
And to be fair, I’m perfectly fine with not having everything on day one. I already have trouble keeping up with a fulltime job and a social life , let alone an entire new expansion.
This way of releasing avoids content droughts, but also allows more casual players to catch up with the story and play at their own pace, without feeling pressured to rush to the endgame content.
For longevity, this makes expansions last longer. Yes, you won’t be playing for days on end at release, but you’ll get more enjoyment out of it over the rest of the year.
As far as we can judge now, the expansion looks good and there’s a lot to see, do and collect.
Should you buy Visions of Eternity?
So, if we take all of this together… should you buy Visions of Eternity?
If you’re a veteran player, or someone already playing Guild Wars 2, then yes, it’s definitely worth buying. It has a lot to enhance your current gameplay experience: skins, new story, achievements, mounts, endgame content… everything existing players need.
And if we compare it to the other smaller expansion, Janthir Wilds, I personally prefer Visions of Eternity. You get new Elite Specializations, and the overall setting appeals more to me. Nonetheless, Janthir Wilds is still a must-have too. You can check my video about that.
However, if you just started playing Guild Wars 2 or are planning to start, I’d recommend going with the older expansions first. They are larger, offer more content for a reduced price, and are now bundled together. They ease you into systems like Masteries that existing players have known for years.
If you do plan to get an expansion, consider using one of my Guild Wars 2 Expansions links, you support me and the channel without paying a cent extra.
I’m looking forward to 2026 and everything Guild Wars 2: Visions of Eternity will bring. Stay tuned to this website and our YouTube channel to see all it has to offer!
