A short-bodied raccoon called Jimothy has taken over the internet, and Guild Wars 2 is happy to add him to the annals of MMO history.
On July 14, a video of a raccoon with short-spine syndrome running in a Seattle park went viral. The curious-looking critter captured the hearts and minds of internauts everywhere. Raking up to 8 million views on Instagram, it has become ubiquitous with modern-era internet culture, much like Harambe (RIP) once was. While Guild Wars 2 could be easily accused of capitalizing on the craze of Jimothy, the truth is that they have a special connection with him. The person who originally recorded the viral video was the spouse of an ArenaNet dev. It will now arrive to the MMO starting August 11.
In a LinkedIn post, the official account of ArenaNet went on to say a few words about the momentous occasion. “Listening to players and celebrating the moments that bring communities together is part of what makes developing games special. Bringing a little piece of Jimothy into Tyria felt like a fitting way to honor a story that connected so many people. Starting Aug. 11, track him down in Guild Wars 2 to unlock a Jimothy mini of your own.”
Reminding players of respecting nature if seeing the famous animal in the wild, they reiterated to keep their distance. “While we love Jimothy’s real-world origin story, we’d also like to remind everyone that wildlife is best appreciated from a safe and respectful distance. If you’re looking to get up close to Jimothy, the in-game version is definitely the safer option.”
One of the most enduring MMOs of all time, Guild Wars 2 was released in 2012 and to this day boasts a healthy amount of monthly players. With no subscription fees to speak of, Guild Wars 2 is a free-to-play online fantasy adventure that still releases new expansions to this day. It can be played on PC here.
