Guild Wars 3 will launch with four playable species — and ArenaNet is already planning more

ArenaNet published a new developer blog this week laying out its approach to playable species in Guild Wars 3, confirming four at launch and signaling that more could follow after release.

Humans and Asura return from previous games, while the Kodan — bear-people who have been a fan favourite for years — will be playable for the first time in Guild Wars 3. The fourth species hasn't been revealed yet. ArenaNet says more details on each playable species will start rolling out next week. Crucially, a section of the blog titled "designing for future flexibility" states outright that the game is being built to support additional playable species down the line. The only hard limit is technical: species with extreme body silhouettes that can't share the existing character systems are off the table. The blog specifically names the Forgotten — four-armed, serpentine beings — as an example of what won't work.

For Guild Wars veterans, this matters a lot. Guild Wars 2 launched in 2012 with five races and never added another. The Charr — a militaristic, feline species central to both Guild Wars 1 and Guild Wars 2 — were notably absent from the Guild Wars 3 announcement trailer, and parts of the community reacted strongly to that. The flexibility promise suggests fan favourites like the Charr could eventually make it in, even if they're not there at launch. ArenaNet also confirmed that species choice will be purely cosmetic, with no gameplay advantages attached — it's about player expression, not power.

Speculation in the community is already running hot, with players debating which species from across the Guild Wars universe have the best shot at making the cut. The next few weeks of species reveals should give a clearer picture of what ArenaNet's new MMO looks like at launch.