The original Guild Wars is getting new paid content for the first time in almost two decades. ArenaNet has announced Guild Wars Afterlife, a DLC for Guild Wars Reforged that launches on January 13, 2027 on PC (through the ArenaNet client and Steam), the Apple App Store and Google Play. Prepurchase is open now at a discounted $23.99 / €23.99, and that price includes a bonus costume. At launch the price goes up to $29.99 / €29.99.
The first Guild Wars DLC in almost 20 years
The last big addition to the 2005 game was Eye of the North, back in 2007. After that, Guild Wars spent years in maintenance mode while ArenaNet's attention went to Guild Wars 2. That changed with Guild Wars Reforged. ArenaNet built it with partner studio 2weeks, and it gave the 21-year-old game regular content updates, a new dungeon and, earlier this year, its first release on phones. That was also the first mobile launch in ArenaNet's history.
Afterlife is the next step. ArenaNet calls it the first new DLC for Guild Wars in almost 20 years, and says outright that it exists because of the community's support for Reforged. It is not a standalone purchase: you need Guild Wars Reforged to play it.
Xotecha and the Order of the Moonless Night
Afterlife's story takes your characters to Xotecha, an island deep in the Mists, the realm of spirits in Guild Wars lore. Xotecha is home to the Order of the Moonless Night, who guard a place called the Unformed: a jungle of shared dreams where memories take physical shape. The Order guides lost spirits there to make peace with the tragedies and regrets of their lives. A spirit that stays in its pain for too long turns into a Nightmare, a creature made of pure rage.
The trouble is that far too many lost souls are now arriving in the Unformed, and a mysterious cult has started meddling in the afterlife. The Order is short-handed and missing one of its elders, so it asks you for help before the Nightmares overrun it. ArenaNet names the antagonists as the Cult of Odran and lists Ancient Golems among the new enemies and allies.
A roguelike-style dungeon with skill drafting
The biggest change is structural. Instead of a new campaign map to explore once, Afterlife is built around an ever-changing dungeon. Each time you enter the Unformed, you pick a starting loadout and then face a lineup of maps, encounters and bosses that changes from run to run.
The most interesting part is the new skill-drafting system. Guild Wars has always been defined by its eight-slot skill bar and by mixing a primary and secondary profession. In Afterlife you build a fresh skill bar as each run goes on, choosing new abilities along the way, and the offered skills are not limited to your two professions. That means any character can end a run with a toolkit that isn't normally possible in the base game.
Progress carries over in two ways. Completing runs unlocks rewards that strengthen future trips into the Unformed, plus permanent rewards you can use outside Xotecha. The story also unfolds a piece at a time with each run instead of in one straight line.
Bring your friends, or bring henchmen
You can do runs with other players or, true to Guild Wars tradition, fill out the party with henchmen. You don't need a full group, which matters for a game whose population has always been spread across many time zones.
Platforms, price and what you get now
Afterlife launches on January 13, 2027 on every platform Guild Wars Reforged supports: PC, Steam, the Apple App Store and Google Play. Owners on Steam Deck and phones get it at the same time as desktop players. The prepurchase price is $23.99 / €23.99, which ArenaNet notes may vary by platform and region. Prepurchasing unlocks the ancestral-themed Vestments of the Order costume right away. From launch day, the DLC costs $29.99 / €29.99.
One other date matters to longtime players: ArenaNet has already said it will end support for Windows 7, 8 and 8.1 in Guild Wars Reforged and Guild Wars 2 on November 18, 2026. Anyone still on one of those versions will need Windows 10 or 11 well before Afterlife arrives.
