Cicadas. The scent of cherry blossoms. A soft “thunk” from bamboo pipes and the swishing noise of water. Soft words broken by shouts of concentration from a nearby dojo. These are all the images that should fill your mind when you enter Ardoris in Shroud of the Avatar, but the scene in release 37 wasn’t quite there yet. So the next update goes back and adds in further polish with new assets and a better design to really immerse players in the eastern atmosphere, including a tai chi practice yard, paper lanterns, and better architectural flourishes.
The latest dispatch on the game’s progress also shows off the new obsidian bundles available in the game’s store for players who like that architectural style as well as a tour of a player-run town. You can check out some screenshots of the revised Ardoris as well as the upcoming Blood Bay just below; the former lacks the noises of open PvP rampaging up and down the coastline, but if you want to make clanging noises with your mouth while you look at them, we won’t stop you.
