I think their main goal in GW2 was to build a "true" MMO instead of GW1's instanced gameplay. I think GW1's build system just wouldn't work very well with that

I think their main goal in GW2 was to build a "true" MMO instead of GW1's instanced gameplay. I think GW1's build system just wouldn't work very well with that design. It would be difficult to balance world content for groups ranging from 1 to 8 people - many GW1 classes would also have a hard time soloing without picking very specific secondary classes and builds. So I can see why they went down the route they did. I agree it's a bit of a shame though. Would kill for a GW1 re-release with some updated graphics and QoL improvements.