How to Play Guild Wars 2 on Steam with an ArenaNet Account

Any MMOs that have been released in the last 20 years most likely has its own launcher. Used primarily to help off load some of the base download size by having players install a launcher in order to download the game. Guild Wars 2 was no different for the longest time. As more and more MMOs have been introduced to Steam’s ever growing library of games, developers over at ArenaNet decided it was time to bring the game to Steam. Launching on the platform in August of 2022, many players downloaded the game after not having played for a while and noticed something strange.

Their original ArenaNet account was not tied to their Steam and thus, they would have to start all over with brand new characters. This has frustrated many people, as they search for solutions to this dilemma. Let’s pull back the curtains and figure out how to play Guild Wars 2 on Steam with an ArenaNet account.

How to play Guild Wars 2 on Steam with an ArenaNet Account

When players first download Guild Wars 2 on Steam, they’re going to be confused when they load up the game and aren’t prompted to sign in to their ArenaNet account. This is because of the fact that the game is tied to your Steam account and not your normal Guild Wars 2 account. If you’ve been playing the game prior to the Steam release and want to make sure all your gear and goodies are still there after the fact. There’s a few things you’ll need to do before starting up the game.

Related: Does Guild Wars 2 Have Controller Support? How to Connect Controller

Once the game is installed, right click on the game, and select properties. Under the general properties you should see an area labeled ‘Launch Options‘. In the launch options, type “-provider Portal” and when you start up the game, it will now redirect you to the ArenaNet launcher. Allowing any players who previously had accounts to play on those same accounts on Steam. It is unsure whether or not you can link your ArenaNet account to your Steam account. So make sure you are logged into the right account before starting up the game.

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