Not only an open beta but content updates as well
While at PAX East 2018, I had the chance to catch up with several members of the Phoenix Labs team. During that time we talked about many things, including Dauntless co-existing with Monster Hunter: World, as well as what is planned for Dauntless. It was a really enlightening conversation, one that really helped me understand where the team was going with the game. I’m sure that anyone that’s following the game will be pissed with their plans. However, one piece of information I was asked to not share just yet, that is until today. Dauntless will leave the closed beta status and an open beta will be released as of May 24, 2018.
“Dauntless is more than four years in the making, and we can’t wait for everyone to join us in the Shattered Isles, team up with friends, take on Behemoths, craft epic gear and bring the world to life,” said Jesse Houston, CEO and co-founder of Phoenix Labs. “As we close in on our next phase of this adventure, we thank our passionate community that has been with us from day one, providing feedback and helping craft the experience into what it is today. It has been an honor to create Dauntless together with you!”
The Dauntless Open Beta marks the next phase in an ongoing 4+ year journey of development, feedback, and iteration including a deep, community-driven Closed Beta, which has been available since September 2017. Focused on making great gaming experiences for gamers to share together, Phoenix Labs has worked closely with the community to sharpen vital aspects of the Dauntless experience and drive the vision for the game forward. The Open Beta also marks the end of the Dauntless Founder’s Program, an opportunity for Slayers to receive exclusive Founder’s rewards and early access to the game. More than 75,000 Slayers have taken part in the Founders Program contributing to the early development of Dauntless.
Let’s talk about what this means. This new open beta will also serve as a soft-launch for the game. Everyone will now be able to play the game or still purchase the founder packs to get bonuses that do not affect the gameplay. If you ever wanted to try out Dauntless but didn’t want to throw down any money, your chance to check it out is coming.
Now, let’s talk about what’s changed. Upon seeing the game in action at PAX East 2018, I noticed that the IQ had been bumped up. This was confirmed by Nick Clifford, Phoenix Labs marketing manager. There’s more foliage on the ground, the animations are more fluid and there’s more going on in the background. We also talked briefly about two things that I know fans of the game were curious about; more locations and ranged weapons.
While the warpike was the first attempt at a ranged weapon Dauntless, Nick goes on to mention that they are working on a purely ranged weapon. This would be the 6th weapon in the game and Phoenix Labs is sure that fans will enough it. They worked hard on this new weapon and didn’t want to rush it or disappoint. I have no idea what it is as the didn’t want to spoil it. There’s a possibility that it will be introduced when the open beta starts.
Better controller support is also being worked on, and they mentioned that the build at PAX East was a step towards the right direction. I still had to use the mouse for certain things, so it’s still a WIP. Another priority is getting more voice-overs for the game and expanding the single-player experience. We also discussed the lack of locations, which was always something that bothered me. This was also confirmed that we’ll see more locations than what has currently been available. Seems this was a concern for them as well. Lastly, the city hub has been updated and more fleshed out. And we’ll also see more events like dailies and weekly events. To keep things interesting, yet we didn’t talk about what plans they have for this. I’m sure this is still being worked on and we’ll know more about it in the future.
So there we have it. An open beta, a new weapon, visual upgrades, events and more locations coming to Dauntless. I’m pretty excited, how about you? Let us know in the comments below.
For more information on Dauntless, check out https://playdauntless.com/community and the Dauntless roadmap here.
