The monthly dev blogs about Dauntless’ planned summer 2024 overhaul to the multiplayer hunting RPG’s mechanics continue, as October’s blog talks all about changes to buffs that try and make things easier to read and utilize in buildcraft.
In short, individualized buffs are now being condensed into six primary categories: might, critical, speed, vitality, defense, and endurance. These simplified categories will hold hands with HUD updates that focus on making sure players can see what kind of buff is engaged and how many stacks of it are active, as well as updates to perk descriptions that more clearly explain what benefits they provide. These changes also affect gameplay balance, making it easier for Phoenix Labs to balance the game and allowing the studio to make Behemoth fights more interesting by doing things like adding specific debuffs.
As usual, the dev blog was followed up with an AMA about the buff system tweaks, which answers some pretty granular questions about the buff system’s effects on buildcraft, min-maxing, and thoughts on the general meta. These questions can get pretty deep in the weeds as a result, but for those who are curious, there are some stat-focused insights to be had.
In addition to the buff changes, the October dev blog also cconfirmed that following “passionate” feedback from the fans, Phoenix Labs will ensure that the return of targeted hunts will not completely negate the open-world Hunting Grounds feature; instead, the systems will be designed to co-exist. The studio’s line of thinking right now is to adding a progression where targeted pursuits unlock free hunts in the Hunting Grounds while making sure pursuits function as individual skill tests that let players progress through the game based on their own ability.
