The Game Changer - Update Preview news - Eden Rising

Hi Wardens!

With our final round of 'groundwork' improvements and bug fixes (v0.2.3) due to hit steam next week (more details to come!), which will further improve combat, smooth out some important bugs and lay final groundwork for the next patch.

We thought now was the perfect time to share the goodies we have been working on behind the scenes for a future update. Eden is going to be getting some big improvements and we are excited to give the community a first look!

Creatures and Combat

The monsters found in Eden were never intended to be mindless hack-and-slash enemies. They are dangerous native creatures with their own strengths and weaknesses. It’s our goal to make monsters feel much more challenging, diverse and most of all, FUN to fight.



As such, all monsters in the game are getting a massive overhaul. More animations, more behaviors, and more abilities and attacks will make fighting creatures feel like a much more engaging and challenging experience both in and outside of sieges! Expect more dangerous rampaging attacks, flailing tentacles, deadly areas of effect, damage/weakness types, and windows of opportunity to jump in and take them down.

In conjunction with these changes the balance of enemies you’ll see in the game will have a complete overhaul, making progression feel smoother and more natural, as well as provide a greater diversity of monsters overall with different strengths and weaknesses to exploit and overcome.



In the next patch we'll be adding the first of several enemies that are so tough your blows will bounce off, inflicting very little damage. You'll be able to make use of a new system that will allow for directional attacks, meaning dodging behind a monster and jumping in for a back-stab attack to a vulnerable weak spot will yield effective results. As part of this feature we’ll also have a hard-lock system, so you can focus on a single target, maneuver around them and watch for a perfect opportunity to strike! No more accidentally overshooting or sliding past an enemy during a combo!

Massive Siege Overhaul

To coincide with the balance and behavior changes for monsters all the sieges in the game will be getting a full overhaul as well. In addition to a full balance pass there are several features and improvements that will totally change the way sieges work in the game.

Monster aggro has been given a fundamental change in sieges. Monsters will now pursue their path to the Crucible unless they are actively engaged in combat from the player or hit by a tower. This means monsters will no longer mob aggro the player if approached, they will only respond if directly attacked otherwise continuing their path towards the center of the camp. This change will make sieges feel much more like traditional tower defense and make tower placement and effective use much more important!



As a result of these aggro changes this means that monsters can spawn in greater numbers, and aesthetically in more randomized formations, rather than the single file lines that you currently see! Towers will play a bigger, more active role in your defense, with several new towers in development to add to your arsenal!

Upgrades Galore!

The way you gain tech in the game is also being changed, adding a system of purchasing the tech you and your tribe want, there will also be a system for upgrading your Crucible to grant the tribe various bonuses during sieges.

There is a wide variety of weapons in Eden, and even more coming. To give players a better understanding of their options and the strengths and weaknesses of each we are adding a weapon tree UI that will demonstrate the different branching paths each weapon can take.

User Interface Overhaul

In addition to new UI interfaces for new features, the main UI will be having a full overhaul in a slick and clean to use style!

New Starting Area



To top off all these massive changes to the game Eden will be getting an all new starting experience, complete with its own Crucible challenges and island to explore. Combined with the recently implemented opening cinematic, the new player experience is intended to give players a better introduction to the world, their goals and the flow of combat and sieges before venturing out into the open world.

-----

This is only a high level of the changes that are currently being worked on, the full patch notes will be posted closer to the date of release. We are confident that what is coming for Eden is a total game changer and will really address all the concerns and feedback we have received so far!

Because this major update makes such significant changes to the core of the game, expect that servers will need to be reset to enjoy them. While we understand that it might be frustrating, this is Early Access and we promise the new experience of Eden will be even better, and very different! We will of course give notice to the community before these changes are intended to go live.

We hope you are excited about what’s around the corner for Eden, the feedback and support we have received has been invaluable in helping move forward and make Eden Rising the best it can be.