A few weeks ago we were wondering what had happened to Dual Universe, the PvP-focused sci-fi sandbox that appeared to have fallen silent on major updates since February’s Update 1.3. It looks as if Novaquark has awakened once more as the studio has shared details for its next major update in a livestream summary.
The upcoming Update 1.4 will feature the introduction of PvE missions, which promise to bring fights against NPCs that utilize familiar PvP mechanics. These instanced missions will be available in multiple difficulty levels ranging from very easy to very hard, with lower-difficulty missions tuned for solo players and higher difficulties requiring coordinated teams of players. Missions will require custom-built ships to fall within certain parameters based on mission difficulty, and victory will award quanta, while penalties for failure are yet to be determined though the overall goal is not to be too punishing.
For those who still like PvPing in DU, the update will also bring “significant” changes, such as adjustments to hit and miss calculations, changes to weapon stats, the removal of debuffs from weapon variants, and a buff for stasis weapons. Novaquark is also promising to investigate lag in PvP.
Finally, Update 1.4 is bringing back the planets Sicari and Sinnen, each with new new features and locations; making updates to the game’s Lua script, adding new alien core units that will grant access to all types of plasma; and introducing full joystick support. A timeline for Update 1.4’s release isn’t available, but we can indeed confirm that it is coming.
