Guild Wars Factions (PC Games, 2006)

This is the first Guild Wars game I ever played even though it's the second release in the series. It can be played as a stand-alone game; the other two expansions are not required, although if you want to be able to explore the whole Guild Wars world you need all three. The game is very detailed and is a lot of fun. There are many, many hours of gameplay here and it's a lot of fun to interact with other players from around the world. It's a very challenging game as well, particularly in the combat system. It takes some time to get used to, but it's very satisfying to find a set of skills for your character which work well together. If you buy this game, I highly recommend that you visit the Guild Wars website and look under the Community section for links to fansites... there's a site called Guildwiki that is invaluable for any player, particularly a beginner. You can find out anything you need to know about playing the game from this site. Oh, yeah, and the best thing about this game is that there is no monthly charge to play it like with other online games. Once you buy the game, it's absolutely free to play from then on. I love the game and recommend it to anyone who likes a good fantasy role-playing experience.