New Features Coming In The Dauntless Reforged Update

A brand new update to Dauntless, called Dauntless Reforged, is coming on Dec. 3. The update serves to improve upon the key elements of developer Phoenix Lab's free-to-play co-op beast-hunting game. A small collection of new features and tools, including a new progression system, will be available as a free addition to Dauntless.

These changes were detailed in a lengthy post from Phoenix Labs' Jarrett Poole on the PlayStation Blog. According to Poole, Dauntless Reforged will introduce a hunt type called Hunting Grounds, which is meant to be repeatable and replayable. Eighteen new islands can be explored as players search for signs of life and treasures. The hunts will be filled with Behemoths and players must kill them in order to collect everything. Dauntless Reforged also adds a handy glider, so players no longer have to travel on foot during hunts.

Another major change with Dauntless Reforged is the Slayer's Path system. Players will be able to make choices as they level up in order to focus on specific aspects, like potions, ranged skills, or crafting. According to the PlayStation Blog post, armor and weapons will now run on a tier system rather than incremental upgrades. Once a weapon skill reaches the maximum level 20, it can be reforged, which will set the level back at one. However, players earn an aetherheart that can be used to power surge any piece of gear or weapon. Finally, a Cold Front Hunt Pass will launch alongside Dauntless Reforged, a battle pass with two tracks and Frostwarden-themed items.

Dauntless first launched in May 2019 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and the Epic Games Store after a one-year Open Beta period. The game takes place in the Shattered Isles, a land taken over by massive beasts of all kinds known as Behemoths. To mark the end of the Open Beta period, Dauntless launched alongside a Season 5 Hunt Pass called Hidden Blades.

Last December, Phoenix Labs released a Nintendo Switch version of Dauntless, along with full cross-platform support so that players could maintain game progression no matter the platform. The new console version also came with cross-play support so users could still play together, even if they were all on separate platforms. Yet another expansion, Stormchasers, was released alongside the Switch launch, including new gameplay features and a seasonal challenge called Escalation.

Dauntless is constantly evolving to give its monster hunters new ways to play, and Reforged is just the latest example of Phoenix Labs' efforts to increase the game's life span. There are likely still plenty of changes coming up, even after this week's major update.