Guild Wars 2 redefines massively multiplayer online roleplaying games with visceral, action-oriented combat; a gorgeous, living world full of constantly evolving dynamic events; customizable personal storylines that are unique to each player; intense Player vs. Player combat between small teams or massive armies; and most importantly, a shared online world where players work together as allies instead of as rivals — all with no monthly subscription fee.

The worldwide sale offering unprecedented prices on the award-winning MMO launches today and runs through April 13, with a 50 percent discount on both Digital Heroic and Digital Deluxe editions in all territories where the game is available. Guild Wars 2 is a subscription-free MMO where players have enjoyed a constant stream of new content. Since launching in August 2012, the game has seen two dozen major releases expanding on its living world with new storylines and adding numerous features to the game, all of it free of charge to players. Later this month, Guild Wars 2 will be getting one of its biggest updates yet with the “April 2014 Feature Pack,” the first release focused entirely on enhancing features and game play systems.

As part of the buildup to the April 2014 Feature Pack’s release, ArenaNet has been releasing details about each new feature coming to the game, such as a new Wardrobe System, new PvP reward tracks, trait changes, social play improvements and other enhancements.  

The megaserver makes nearly everything easier when it comes to playing with friends and guild mates, eliminating the need to separate players into different copies of the same map based on the world they selected on character creation.

In the Feature Pack blog, ArenaNet game director Colin Johanson and server programmer Samuel Loretan write that with the megaserver system, “[Players] will simply arrive in a map and be assigned to the version of that map that makes the most sense,” adding, “This new system takes your party, guild, language, home world, and other factors into account to match you to a version of the map you're entering. This will increase the odds that you'll see the same people more often and play with people of similar interests.”

While players will see the megaserver deliver immediate improvements to the way they play Guild Wars 2 with their friends, some of the most exciting changes are on the horizon as the system expands. ArenaNet has released a second megaserver blog detailing how the system will eventually affect guilds, even making the dream of ‘one guild’ a reality.

“With the new megaserver system, you’ll find it infinitely easier to play with all of your guild mates—and better yet, someday you’ll simply have one guild,” writes Johanson. “Because worlds no longer separate players, we’ll eventually make sure that guilds are no longer separated either, that every guild member will be contributing to and benefitting from the same unified guild chapter.”

The megaserver’s launch with the “April 2014 Feature Pack” activates the system for level 1-15 maps, main cities and the PvP lobby. It will then be activated across the rest of the game with additional updates coming later this year.

For new players, there has never been a better time to join Guild Wars 2. Players can get access at the unprecedented discount of 50% off, and get all of the content ArenaNet has planned for 2014 and beyond without ever paying a subscription fee. The offer applies only to the Digital Heroic Edition, now available for $24.99 (€ 19.99 / £ 17.49), and the Digital Deluxe Edition, now available for $34.99 (€ 29.99 / £ 24.99), when purchased through the official Guild Wars 2 online store from April 3 at 12pm Pacific Time through April 13 at 11:59pm Pacific Time.