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Guild Wars
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<p><i>Guild Wars</i> is an <a href="/facts/Online_role-playing_game/o4sTj5vl">online role-playing game</a> franchise developed by <a href="/facts/ArenaNet/AnQghuta">ArenaNet</a> and published by <a href="/facts/NCSoft/rRxVja0A">NCSoft</a>. The games were critically well received and won many editor's choice awards, as well as awards such as "<a href="/facts/D.I.C.E._Award_for_Role-Playing_Game_of_the_Year/PQeF664m">Massively Multiplayer/Persistent World Game of the Year</a>" by the <a href="/facts/Academy_of_Interactive_Arts_%2526_Sciences/lKYgW59L">Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences</a>, as well as Best Value, Best <a href="/facts/Massively_Multiplayer_Online_Role-Playing_Game/s6NMD8fC">Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game</a> (MMORPG), and Best Game. <i>Guild Wars</i> was noted for being the "first major <a href="/facts/Massively_multiplayer_online_game/b1e4hutw">MMO</a> to adopt a business model not based on monthly <a href="/facts/Subscription_business_model/CNForGLH">subscription fees</a>", its <a href="/facts/Instance_dungeon/Ut73cLAX">instanced</a> approach to gameplay, and the quality of the graphics and play for computers with low specifications. In April 2009, NCSoft announced that 6 million units of games in the <i>Guild Wars</i> series had been sold. The sequel and fourth major entry into the series, <i><a href="/facts/Guild_Wars_2/CNzaE1Jb">Guild Wars 2</a></i>, was announced in March 2007 and released on August 28, 2012. It features updated graphics and gameplay mechanics, and continues the original <i>Guild Wars</i> tradition of no subscription fees. The <i>Guild Wars</i> series had sold 11.5 million copies by August 2015 </p>