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Set VCRs to record: Guild Wars 2 Season Two: The Gates of Maguuma trailered, out July 1

The Gates of Maguuma: airships are sort of asking for it.

The leaves on Guild Wars’ Living World might have yellowed in the months since the destruction of Lion’s Arch and the downfall of Scarlet Briar, but ArenaNet have filled up the watering can and then some.

The first episode of Guild Wars 2’s second season goes live next week – and it looks like we’re going to need a bigger pot.

The story that’ll last us several updates is triggered by a distinctly Columbian catastrophe. Watch:

The Episode 1 update will turn up in Tyria this time next week, on July 1. Rumours that its villain will be named Mr Maguu remain unconfirmed at this time.

There’s no rush to play through this first episode before the next update trundles into view: simply log in while Episode 1 is ongoing and its quests will be jotted down in your journal – ready to play at a time of your convenience.

Any Season 2 episodes you miss entirely will be accessible afterwards for a small fee. ArenaNet plan to make all future Living World storylines playable at a later date, like interactive HBO boxsets.

“The Living World exists to drive the story of Guild Wars 2 forward and create a sense of speculation, wonder, and intrigue around the world of Tyria and its characters,” explained Guild Wars chief Colin Johanson a few weeks ago.

“We want to create the feeling that anything in Tyria can change and get players looking forward to what might happen next. A natural system that provides story and context for these changes makes sense when we regularly expand the experiences in our game.”

Sadly, though, the cataclysmic events of Season 1 will remain only in the memories of those who witnessed them. What were your highlights?