That's right, we've got another title update for Sunbreak. As usual, I'm playing more of the game again, so let's talk about what they added this time. WHAT'S NEW:
New Monsters (sort of) We get three variants of existing monsters this time around, with two fitting the Risen category introduced in the last update.
Of course, we get some new armor sets for each of these monsters. Chaotic Gore's armor is the standout for me, as it introduces a couple of armor skills that rival even Dereliction in terms of risk/reward. I don't typically use armor skills that provide attack boosts in exchange for health penalties, but I feel compelled to try these ones just to experience the nightmare of having to navigate an entire hunt without ever getting hit. The new armor skills in the Risen sets are more niche, but are interesting nonetheless. Risen Kushala's new armor skill is a fascinating comfort skill I want to try and fit into some of my builds, while the one for Risen Teostra plays around with a unique status condition that I need to experiment with. The only new weapons are from Chaotic Gore, and they introduce a unique gimmick. Chaotic Gore weapons have both a negative affinity and positive affinity value, so there's a chance to get both crits or reduced damage when using them. What makes these weapons special is if you overcome the Frenzy virus, the negative affinity value flips to positive, adding a higher overall crit chance to the weapon. I found this super intriguing and immediately started grinding for the weapon, as well as quickly put together a Bloodlust armor set that inflicts the Frenzy virus on me. So far, it's been a fun alternative to my old Dragonheart build, though Bloodlust draining my HP over time obviously makes things riskier. Anomaly Investigations This time around, we get Afflicted versions of extremely dangerous monsters. These include Furious Rajang, Scorned Magnamalo, Gold Rathian, Silver Rathalos, Flaming Espinas, and Seething Bazelgeuse. All these variants were already Elder Dragon-level in terms of difficulty, so making them Afflicted just makes them nightmare incarnate. As expected, these guys give you new drops, which goes along with Qurious Crafting for weapons expanding once more. Qurious Crafting for armor pieces actually gets an update this time, adding specific augment rolls for different purposes. You use one of the options if you just want defense boosts, while the other is more interesting as it focuses more on adding new armor skills (and that includes even previously armor-exclusive skills). Unfortunately, I've found grinding out investigations to get close to the level cap to be a chore, so I was dreading working towards getting to all this new shit. Mercifully, one of the changes in this patch is higher Anomaly Research XP growth. The grind still hurts, but it's not as bad as before. New Decorations Unsurprisingly, we get new decorations, both for previously unavailable skills (most notably Kushala Blessing and Teostra Blessing) and Lv. 4 versions of already existing decorations (like Redirection). There are some really notable additions as well, like decorations for game-changing skills like Sneak Attack or Element Exploit. Builds have definitely become a bit more flexible with this one. New Melding Type The melding pot adds a new melding type that allows you to fish for talismans with specific skills. This already exists, technically, but now you're guaranteed the skills you're looking for. This is amazingly convenient and has made streamlining my builds so much easier. Followers Join Normal Quests The biggest gameplay change allows you to take the followers (previously restricted to the Follower Quests/Support Survets) to nearly all Master Rank Quests, as well as Anomaly Investigations. I love this addition, as now you can break the monotony of solo grinding by taking some of your favorite characters along with you to help. This should be a mainstay feature in future titles, I feel. VERDICT: Again, we got a standard title update here, with some new, tough fights that I enjoyed overall, as well as interesting new weapons and armor skills to mess with. I was also quite intrigued by the new additions for souping up your build (the remixed armor augments and new talisman melding method), and I enjoyed the ability to bring followers to normal quests (it really adds to the solo experience). I'm content with what we got here, but I'm most intrigued for the next update, because that's apparently going to introduce an actual unique monster instead of just another variant. - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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