The fantasy MMORPG WildStar will go live on June 3. For a few days now, the barriers that Carbine has put up around the game have broken, and new information about gameplay is continuously leaking.
Today we will take a look at the raids on Nexus and introduce you to the first raid boss, a particularly slimy fellow who is just waiting to spit out your loot!
Two Raids at Release: Both with a One-Week Lockout
The raids in WildStar are robust, challenging, and innovative. This is already clear two months before release. Two full raid instances are planned for launch. The Gen Archives are designed for 20 players and will take between three and five hours to complete without wipes (which will surely be a hopeless endeavor in the first weeks). Players will encounter six bosses, ten mini-bosses, and five events.
Datascape, the second raid in the package, will ideally take between four and six hours and require 40 players. The raid will be populated by six bosses, sixteen mini-bosses, and two events.
[quote_box_right]The endgame of WildStar is not just about raiding, as players have plenty to do even without it. Cortyn, for example, has spent over 100 hours setting up her house.[/quote_box_right]
Both raids have a one-week lockout, just like in World of Warcraft. This means: each boss can only be defeated once per week. And, as you can see, there are plenty of bosses.
It is the return to large, demanding raid instances that ambitious PVE players can sink their teeth into for months.
As a special twist, the raids are designed so that no raid week is the same as another. With variable paths through the instances and altered boss arrangements, the raid experience will remain fresh.
Raid Mechanics: The Interrupt
In gameplay mechanics, there are two fundamental differences compared to World of Warcraft. While in WoW almost all raid bosses are immune to crowd control abilities, this will be different in WildStar. The bosses have a cushion against crowd control that decreases with each absorbed interrupt, but quickly replenishes. When it reaches zero, the boss can be prevented from using an ability.
It will therefore be necessary to coordinate the various abilities and use them within a narrow time window to stun the boss.
[pull_quote_center]No longer is only the tank responsible for the precious interrupt, while the rest of the raid group stares at the damage or heal meter.[/pull_quote_center]
Players can also test this mechanic in 5-man instances or against larger zone bosses – of which there are plenty, of course. There, the bosses have a buffer of around “2”, meaning a 5-man group must stun them three times before they actually stop and refrain from using their apocalypse ability.
Raid Mechanics: The Telegraphed
Another prominent feature of WildStar is the pronounced telegraph system, which could quickly cause chaos. Fortunately, in the raid, you only see your own telegraphs and those of the boss. This keeps the fights manageable.
Have you read my beta preview? WildStar: World of Warcraft 2.0
As can be seen in the video below, this is indeed not a problem, but provides a structured component to the fight. It will not be possible, as in raids of other games, to suddenly drop dead because one was just hit by an invisible ability. The radius of the boss’s abilities is always clear.
The First Boss in Action: Experiment X-89
To give you a front-row view of what a boss fight ultimately looks like, we will attach a clip from the beta at the end of the post. Here, you will fight the first boss of the 20-man raid, Experiment X-89.
The boss fight takes place on a mesh of platforms. Colleague “Too-Many-Space-Gnarghs-for-Breakfast” regularly bestows two debuffs to selected players that must be responded to immediately.
With the “small bomb”, a player runs to an outer platform, drops it there, and continues to participate in the fight. The bomb detonates after a while, blowing up the platform and reducing the available area. If the player forgets to drop the bomb, or even overlooks the debuff, they will surely drag some comrades into the ground and create an ugly island formation on the platforms.
The second debuff, the “large bomb”, pulls down five platforms into the abyss when it detonates uncontrollably. The player must bravely jump off the platforms with this debuff! The bomb then ignites on the way down and catapults the bungee jumper back up. In the air, the player must use a movement ability or double jump to avoid a hard landing.
[pull_quote_center]Experiment X-89 is therefore a classic attention check for all participants.[/pull_quote_center]
What is also positively noteworthy: At the beginning of the YouTube video, it is stated that the raid is “legit” and massive – the raids of WildStar are not a mere token event, but a raid experience that stands up to the discerning eye. The trash packs present every group with an appropriate challenge and the bosses are variably designed.
And what is most important: The raids are really fun!
Today at 3 PM, another round of beta has started. If you haven’t gotten a key for the closed beta yet, but have become curious through our reports: If you pre-order on Amazon or on the official site, you will gain access to the remaining four beta weekends.
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