Dauntless is a pretty good game that resembles titles like Monster Hunter, where players fight together to defeat monstrous creatures. While Dauntless has an incredibly fluid combat system and fearsome bosses with unique attack patterns, developer Pheonix Labs felt the game needed an overhaul to its character progression system and overall gameplay loop. Dauntless Reforged is the game's largest content update since its release in May 2019, and it turns a great game into a fantastic experience.
There are loads of changes that are included in the Dauntless Reforged update, and Screen Rant was able to play through a preview demonstration showing off what they bring to Dauntless. The main focuses of the update are character progression, environmental reworks, and hunt overhauls. Dauntless pre-Reforged consisted of players entering what the game called hunts over and over again with little exploration intended between these sessions. These hunts were linear missions where players would group up with a squad of four players to hunt down a single behemoth. Once the hunt was completed, the players would warp back to the main village area where they could load up another hunt.
Reforged expands on hunts by introducing hunting grounds. There are 18 hunting grounds in total; 17 pre-existing maps that have been reworked to encourage explorations, and one new map built from scratch. Players will now join their squad in freely adventuring around these environments hunting down creatures. In contrast to pre-update Dauntless, players can spend an infinite amount of time inside these environments and can hop from island to island without visiting the main village. This also allows players to hunt as many behemoths as they please without fear of being forced to leave the island.
Not all 18 environments will be accessible at the beginning of the update, as players will unlock new islands as they progress their character's Slayer's Path. Slayer's Path is the new progression system introduced in the Dauntless Reforged update. This system is a series of tiers and branching upgrades that players can unlock using Merits and Rams. This system has been implemented to make character progression feel more natural, and it gives players agency over what aspects of their character they want to focus on enhancing. Each tier, which Dauntless refers to as Milestones, will unlock new islands for the player to explore.
These massive changes allow players more freedom when it comes to finding a way to play Dauntless that best first their playstyle, but some core aspects haven't changed. Players will still have to hunt down specific behemoths in order to farm materials for quests or crafting, but the way in which they do so is more open. Players also don't have to sit through multiple loading screens to fight a single behemoth. Instead, players can spend hours on an island to farm materials before ever encountering a loading screen.
It's one thing to give players access to these islands, and another to make them actually inviting. Before the update, islands could feel linear as if to railroad the player to a specific location. Now they are open with multiple spawn locations where different behemoths can be found patrolling an area. To help players enjoy exploration, Dauntless Reforged introduces the glider which can be deployed on islands to soar across the sky. In addition to behemoths, Reforged introduces aggressive fauna such as elemental snails or warthogs which don't put up much of a fight but make each island feel a little more lively and diverse. Island Events are also new to Dauntless which are more powerful behemoths that spawn every 15 minutes but require a lot more skill to take down.
While Dauntless was already an enjoyable experience, Reforged makes Dauntless a lot more fun than its previous incarnation. Dauntless Reforged drastically expands the world of the Shattered Isles and focuses on improving the player experience. If interested parties have been leery to try another free-to-play action RPG, Dauntless pairs intense kaiju fights with beautiful scenery that meets curiosity with challenge, and the Reforged update does a lot to build upon its core fundamentals.
Dauntless Reforged will be available on December 3rd for PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.