If you took part in the popular Wintersday Festival this year in Guild Wars, you may have been less than impressed with some festival glitches, which affected quests, the final events, and getting that all important festival hat.

The problems have not gone un-noticed, and the Guild Wars team over at ArenaNet have decided the best way to address the issues is to run through the fun of the Wintersday Festival a second time.

Wintersday comes twice this year! Due to Grentchy technical issues with the Festival Hat distribution during the Wintersday finale earlier this month, we’re hosting a special encore festival, complete with all the Wintersday activities you love!

This second special Wintersday event will run from 8am GMT on Friday, January 29th until 8pm GMT on Sunday, February 7th. Everyone will get a chance to grab a Wintersday Festival Hat, and if you miss out (again) there are special Festival Hat collectors in the major cities who will be happy to exchange your Candy Cane Shards for some stylish Guild Wars head gear.

I missed this before Christmas, but MMORPG.com have an interview with Guild Wars 2 Lead Designer Eric Flannum, World Designer and Writer Ree Soesbee, and Environment Art Lead Dave Beetlestone.

The interview sheds some more light on the social classes available to the five playable races, as well as shedding more light on the back story and the links between the races.

Of most interest though is the hint from Eric Flannum that we should be seeing some more Guild Wars content that will link the current campaigns to Guild Wars 2:

We’ve already seen some things in Guild Wars 1 that lead into the second game. As we get closer to launch, I think we’ll definitely see more things both in Guild Wars 1 and outside of it that hint at things to come.

You can find the full Guild Wars 2 interview here.

Wintersday kicks off today in Guild Wars, with the usual games, prizes, and special events. Along with the usual festive quests and Wintersday games, some new features are available this year.

Characters now have costume slots, and costumes can be purchased from both the Guild Wars In-Game Store and the NCSoft Store. Additionally, costumes now no longer replace your armour slots:

Costume slots have been added to the character portrait. Now, you can wear costumes over your armor, meaning you can look fabulous in your Dwayna costume or festival hat without sacrificing protection!

You can also follow ArenaNet’s Guild Wars team on Facebook and Twitter, and during Wintersday they will be handing out special prizes via these social networks – have a look at http://eu.guildwars.com/news/article/wintersday_gifts_for_friends_and_followers/ for more details.

A happy Wintersday to all Guild Wars players!