The cooperative action-RPG Dauntless has been officially on the market for nearly 10 months and is about to receive its biggest update since release. MeinMMO author Benedict Grothaus was invited to preview the update and its content and believes: This is going to be great for newcomers.
After several months in beta and early access Dauntless was released on September 26, 2019 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One and in December for Nintendo Switch.
During its development, the free-to-play game has received a multitude of content repeatedly, and now, after release, work is still ongoing on Dauntless. In the context of “Find Your Next Game“, developer Phoenix Labs granted me a small glimpse into the upcoming update.
Together with the developers, I fought through some of the content of “Call of the Void”, which will be released on June 11 for all platforms (though I wasn’t particularly helpful).
“Call of the Void” will be the largest update since the game’s release. It brings both seasonal content and new challenges for veterans, as well as what I find to be extremely helpful improvements for newcomers. Anyone who hasn’t tried Dauntless yet should do so starting June 11.
Through fights against the Behemoths, you gather materials and upgrade your various weapons and armor, create stronger builds, and battle increasingly tougher foes. Dauntless is essentially: “Looting and Leveling – The Game”.
“Call of the Void” hands-on – What the new update offers
For my hands-on session, I spent an hour exploring the new content of “Call of the Void” with Andy Burt and Nick Clifford, two of the developers. Defeating the new escalation took up most of the time.
If you aren’t familiar with it: an escalation is a rogue-like version of the normal hunts for Behemoths. You start the escalation and work your way through various Behemoths one by one, gaining a power-up after each battle to tackle the next. Depending on the equipment and ability of the group, a run takes about 20 minutes, but can last up to an hour.
Andy and Nick guided me through the new “Call of the Void” escalation – there’s no other way to say it, as I kept dying. My skills are just a bit rusty, and the foes are really, really tough, and my excuses used to be better.
During our escalation run, Nick repeatedly explained important details to me. The power-ups that are available after each battle promote teamwork. There are buffs and abilities for the entire group, supportive or strengthening effects, and the opportunity to replenish consumables.
These are also badly needed, at least at our (highest) escalation level. Various affixes strengthen the Behemoths or change how we have to fight them, for example, by introducing smaller enemies.
At one point, we even had to cheat a bit: a certain combination of Behemoths cost the two of them almost 20 minutes in their last run because they are so tough. Since we only had limited time, Andy killed them with an admin command.
At the end of the escalation stands the (quite powerful) new Behemoth Thrax, a kind of purple worm with small legs, who opens portals to the void, lashes about with his entire body, and employs other nasty attacks like purple fire and even more portals.
The fight against Thrax is the highlight of the escalation and definitely only for endgame players. Although I got the best equipment, Thrax knocked me down at least seven times in that one run.
What else is included in the update?
Besides Thrax and the new escalation, there are several new features that are genuinely useful. These include:
- a new Battle Pass, the “Dark Celestial Hunt Pass” with 50 levels and rewards
- UI improvements for better overview in the menu
- more story elements, which accumulate information about Behemoths and characters in a new journal
Additionally, there is an improved tutorial and a training island that you can visit at any time. The latter I probably should have taken longer on before I braved the escalation …
Images of the new update
Along with the demo, we received several images of “Call of the Void” from the developers. Here are some of them in the gallery:
The elite armor of the new season 
The ultra-version of the new armor 
The entrance to the “Umbral Caverns” 
The “Umbral Caverns” 
The “Umbral Eclipse” pack 
The Umbral version of Koshai 
The Umbral version of Nayzaga 
The Umbral version of Drask 
The weapons on the new training island
Why it’s worth (re-)entering now
The new training island is really great. Even for me, as someone who played Dauntless for quite a while (and then paused for a long time), this new feature is extremely useful.
On the island, all weapon categories are available. They are placed on small pedestals, and a selection is enough to equip them. Thus, there’s no need to start a new hunt just to try out a new weapon, and you won’t waste valuable materials on weapons that don’t interest you upon closer inspection.
For testing, there are several training dummies distributed across the island. Additionally, there is a form of tutorial on the screen’s edge. Here, the combos you can execute with the weapon and its special abilities are explained.
Through a checklist, the tutorial automatically checks off once you have correctly used a combo or ability. This way, you can get used to a weapon more quickly and efficiently, without being immediately roasted by a Behemoth during the first test. A fantastic feature for anyone looking to try new weapons or start anew.
YouTuber MontyX, who regularly publishes German content on Dauntless, has presented a build in one of his newer videos that is supposedly suitable for the upcoming escalation. His video showcases Dauntless’s gameplay well. We have embedded it here for you:
Who is the new update interesting for?
Basically, anyone who already plays or has played Dauntless should check out “Call of the Void”. The new content is really fun, and the one hour I played with the developers has even drawn me back in. Since then, I play at least one or two hunts every day to relax.
Anyone who is generally a fan of the Monster Hunter series should also give Dauntless a try. The gameplay is quite similar, and yet Dauntless offers its own story that you can immerse yourself in if you already know everything from Monster Hunter.
Additionally, Dauntless is ideal for anyone who enjoys grinding, crafting, and fighting, as those are pretty much the only and biggest aspects of the game. Dauntless even offers a leaderboard where you can compare your performance with others.
As Dauntless is a cooperative PvE action RPG, it should also attract players looking for casual games to play with friends. It is among the 6 free online co-op games that we recommend for 2020.
What about the future of Dauntless?
First, the big “Call of the Void” update is coming up – we have no information yet about further plans for content in the future. However, Dauntless is expected to be released on mobile devices later in 2020. A date for that is still pending.
Potential: Good
All the new content stands out positively to me, even if Thrax knocked me down several times. When I encounter him in the live game, I will definitely be better prepared, and I am already actively working on improving. I am especially looking forward to the new UI, as I find the current one quite clunky, and to the training island. Perhaps I will finally put down my axe and switch to pistols or fist weapons – as soon as I master them.
However, I must also say that the update will probably not attract anyone who hasn’t had at least some interest before. Those who aren’t generally interested in Monster Hunter and action RPGs in this style will find nothing in “Call of the Void” to entice them.
Benedict Grothaus
Freelance author at MeinMMO
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