Warhammer 40k Darktide is all about blasting your way through the Chaos hordes, so the prospect of it getting too much might seem a little odd. However, as developer Fatshark explains, a gradual ramping up of player power over the years, alongside increases to enemy density to act as a counterweight, have escalated the industrial FPS game to near-breaking point. Taking performance and stability into account, along with the overall readability of combat, it’s pulling back slightly on the “most extreme” scenarios.
A new Warhammer 40k Darktide update is incoming, bearing a selection of balance changes that the team has been cooking up for some time. “Balancing the gameplay experience is important to us,” Fatshark writes, “and we have been following the discussions around this topic.” While there will be other adjustments to look forward to in the full patch notes, this particular see-saw between player and enemy power is an important enough change that the team wanted to discuss it separately.
“Over time, as we’ve expanded and improved weapons, talents, and introduced new classes, the overall player power has increased,” Fatshark explains. “To maintain the intended difficulty, we have increased the enemy density and spawn rates of elites, and while this has kept the game intense, it has also introduced new challenges for us.”
To start with, such busy action sequences can be detrimental to the game’s performance. Additionally, reliance on an increased number of strong elite enemies can limit the range of effective player builds. “It’s important to us that you can use your favorite loadouts in as many scenarios as possible,” the team notes.
“Our long-term goal is to bring these elements back into better alignment,” Fatshark continues. “We want to preserve the intensity of the combat, while making it more stable, more readable, and more supportive of different builds and loadouts. This means toning down the most extreme of enemy scenarios, while also addressing a small number of player power outliers that have been shaping our encounter design.”
Particular focus is being placed on carapace armored enemies, and Ogryn Crushers in particular. Their spawn rate across the game is being dropped by approximately 30%. In addition to this, an additional 15% reduction for Ogryn Crushers, Bulwarks, and Reapers will be applied in the Havoc mode. “These enemies (and the tools used to counter them) have become a central part of the current meta.”
In addition to this, the ‘Rotten Armor’ modifier in Havoc will now use infested rather than carapace armor, enabling a greater diversity of weapons to be used. Fatshark says, “As we lower how frequently these threats appear, we’re also adjusting the most dominant anti-carapace options.”
On the class balance side, you can expect a slower replenish timer on the Veteran’s Krak Grenades (Frag and Smoke remain unchanged). For the newest addition, Hive Scum, the max charges of the Boom Bringer and Chem Grenade have both been lowered by one, and the Chem Toxin’s damage-over-time has been nerfed. The direct hit of the Shiv’s weapon special has been increased slightly, “to weigh up for any missed breakpoints.”
Elsewhere, Fatshark is looking at a range of balance adjustments on weapons and blessings. It notes that the trio of Uncanny Strike, Opportunist, and Bladed Momentum “provided a relatively easy way to gain a large amount of Rending, which could then be applied to any outgoing damage from the player.” Uncanny Strike will now apply Brittleness to the target instead, while the Rending buff from the latter two has been changed to only affect your melee attacks.
Psyker Blaze Force Swords and Veteran Sapper Shovels both get buffs to counteract the Uncanny Strike change. Duelling Swords will also feel the effects, but Fatshark decided that their heavy attacks ‘still remained an outlier in effectiveness,” so it has slightly lowered the weakspot and crit scaling they can gain from Finesse. Finally, the Psyker’s Soulblaze has been made a touch stronger, and both it and burn will now be more effective against carapace armor, with an additional boost to the Inferno Force Staff.
This new Darktide patch is set to land in the coming week. Fatshark calls it “the first step of many to improve both gameplay balance and technical performance.” One such target for another day is Ogryn Bulwarks, for example. It says, “In future patches, we will continue refining enemy compositions, adjusting outlier weapons, and improving those that have been falling behind. Darktide is at its best when combat feels intense, responsive, and fair.”
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