Update 6.4.0
Chaos Refined, Carnage Redefined
This week’s update is all about controlled chaos. Tuning weapons for precision, flipping the switch on full-blown gameshow madness, and suiting up in some of our most stylish sets yet.
Gameplay-wise, we’re making targeted balance changes to two of the Arena’s most talked-about weapons. The CB-01 Repeater gets a boost to its environmental damage, making it far better at dealing with deployables and ziplines, while the Minigun receives a notable accuracy upgrade when focus-firing. We’re not touching the spin-up mechanic just yet, but it’s something we’re actively evaluating as the season progresses.
Week 2 of Bunny Bash is also live now, with a new circuit of event contracts for you to complete for some amazing rewards!
World Tour: Protocol Overdrive (Sponsored by ENGIMO)
ENGIMO is redefining chaos - again.
In Protocol Overdrive, gameshow events don’t just show up once per match - they hit back-to-back, dropping contestants into a relentless gauntlet of environmental hazards and alien mayhem.
Expect short moments of calm between bursts of absolute madness, with Meteor Showers and Alien Invasions shaking up the mid-game and forcing players to adapt on the fly. There’s barely time to breathe before the next disaster hits.
Arenas in rotation:
- SYS$HORIZON[/*]
- Bernal[/*]
- Kyoto[/*]
- Las Vegas Stadium[/*]
[previewyoutube=4zDpui1wW2M;full][/previewyoutube]
Over in the store, we’ve got a wild lineup of new cosmetics ready to drop:
Night Munchies Set
“Carrots optional, casualties guaranteed.”
Suit up in the Predator Payload outfit, complete with Assault Rabbit headgear and glowing Warren Glare eyes. Fluffy on the outside, ruthless on the inside.
Arena Vision Set
“For contestants who see every angle in THE FINALS.”
Featuring the Sappy Ending skin for the Cerberus, Sledgehammer, and SR-84. Because every story should end with a bang.
Opulent Heavy Bundle
"Devastating luxury, tailored for destruction."
Dominate the battlefield with Skullbound Oblivion skins for the Shak-50, Flamethrower, and M60 - dark, ominous, and absurdly stylish.
[previewyoutube=73-UHJnEJnU;full][/previewyoutube]
Now, let’s check out the balance changes (with dev notes) in detail:
Balance Changes
Weapons
CB-01 Repeater
- li>Increased environmental damage from 8 to 18[/*]
Dev Note: With the previous environmental damage value the Repeater had a tough time destroying ziplines. This change should help to address that.
M134 Minigun
- Decreased bullet dispersion when standing still and ‘focus firing’ (secondary fire) by approximately 10%, making the weapon more accurate[/*]
- Decreased bullet dispersion when moving and focus firing by approximately 10%, making the weapon more accurate[/*]
Dev Note: We really like that the spin-up time of the Minigun encourages players to adopt a different style of play to other weapons when using it, such as making use of various shields to protect while spinning up, or using Proximity Sensors to provide an early warning that gives time to spin-up. Because of this, despite some feedback that the Minigun is a little underpowered, we’re reluctant to address that by reducing the spin-up time and making the gun more responsive, as this risks it simply turning into another LMG. Instead, we’re making an adjustment to the weapon’s accuracy to make it slightly more effective at range. Performance wise, our data is showing the Minigun performing somewhere in the middle of the pack, so we’re reasonably happy with how it’s behaving.
We do feel that ‘juggling’ and maintaining the spin-up state while moving is a little too easy right now, so it is our intent to review that and potentially change it later this season, as we do really want using the Minigun to commit players to being prepared in how they play, but it’s likely that if that change does go ahead, it will come with some other tweaks to offset that change. We’ll see exactly where we go with that as the season goes on.
