In a space full of live service titles and battle royale games, it is really hard to stand out—especially when your game isn’t free-to-play. Naraka: Bladepoint not only managed to succeed as a premium title but is celebrating its second anniversary by making the title free in an update the developers view as “a dream come true.”
On July 13, Naraka will launch on PlayStation 5 while simultaneously swapping to a free-to-play model on all platforms. This second-anniversary update will also include new content, features, and a new way to challenge yourself in a tighter combat setting.
“It’s like a dream come true. We still remember the thrill, watching our first trailer showcased at the Game Awards in 2019,” 24 Entertainment’s lead producer, Ray Guan, told Dot Esports.
“As of now, we’ve released 10 playable heroes, seven melee weapons, one new map, and several game modes. We now have 20 million players worldwide. It’s all a credit to our very engaged community and fan base across the globe. No way we could have gotten this far and have continued to be inspired to bring fresh content to the game without them.”
Guan and his team are also launching another new mode with this update, called Capture the Spirit Well, amid the huge changes.
This mode will shrink the usual 60-player combat list down to two teams of 12, called “gangs,” that will then fight over areas on the map to capture locations and earn points. It will pair nicely with the new hero, Tessa, who is a 1,000-year-old fox demon known for stealing souls.
There is also a new Dual Halberds weapon, guild system features, and in-game events and rewards for the game’s second anniversary. A special collaboration is also coming based on a famous Chinese painting, Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains.
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With all of this new content, the Naraka team wants to emphasize how far the game has come and their commitment to continue growing with the community.
“I believe, most importantly, our community will grow,” Guan said.
“When we planned for our initial launch on PC, we really didn’t know what to expect in terms of engagement. But the excitement for Naraka and steady growth of players gave us quite a bit of confidence to take the game free-to-play. We are very excited to see Naraka reach an even wider audience and have players download the game to see what it’s all about.”
That focus on growth also comes with the team noting they will be “diligently addressing” areas of concern should this F2P launch see an increase in hackers or any major decline in game quality for its players.
If you already purchased Naraka while it was a premium title, don’t worry. The devs are launching veteran rewards that will give premium players gold compensation equivalent to the edition they purchased—along with other goodies.
