Guild Wars 2: Retribution update brings Flame and Frost to an end, adds custom PvP arenas

ArenaNet are teasing the finale to Guild Wars 2's four-part Flame and Frost update series. Retribution will close out the "Living Story" that was started back in January, with a quest to assault an experimental weapons facility and defeat the Molten Alliance. It's certainly a tonal shift after the happy pixel clouds and bright platforming of the MMO's last update .

"With custom arenas, you can make your own place to play, you can organize private tournaments with friends, and you can challenge other teams to scrimmage," writes ArenaNet server programmer Steve Bikun. Matches will be customisable through a number of rules, including team size, point and time limits, respawn type and balance.

Custom arena makers will also be able to toggle Spectator Mode on or off, allowing other players to watch these battles. According to programmer Evan Lesh, "Spectator mode is a great way for new PvP players to learn from more experienced players, and it will allow expert players to watch each other in order to refine their skill. It will also be an amazing tool for shoutcasting games between high-level teams."

Other Retribution additions include new Guild Missions, new WvW abilities, and guild siege weapons for WvW. Flame on Frost: Retribution is out April 30th. You can see the full patch run-down here .

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.