Battleborn's Newest Update Makes Balance Changes, Tweaks Heroes
Gearbox Software has released a new update for its multiplayer shooter, Battleborn. In addition to introducing new content in the form of a character, skins, taunts, and Hero Keys, the update also makes some changes to the gameplay.
Among these are tweaks to Incursion events that give both teams a better chance of recovering from the initial loss of the a sentry. There are also numerous changes to various characters in the game, take a look below for the full patch notes.
New Content
- New Character
- New Skins and Taunts
- Hero Keys have been added
Mode & Map Changes:
We made a few changes to Incursion to prevent teams from snowballing to victory after defeating the first sentry. Now both teams get equal opportunities of lane pushing power at select times during the match. In addition, we added some extra power to the Thralls so that they help expedite team pushes.
Incursion
- Empowered Minion Waves no longer spawn for a team after killing the enemy's first Sentry. They now spawn for both teams every fourth minion wave.
Incursion Thralls
- All Thralls, when captured, no longer target enemy players
- All Thralls no longer flinch when hit in the legs by players or minions
- All Thralls no longer get knocked off the map
- Thrall Crushers
- Now only attacks minions directly
- No longer charges
- New Skill: Has an area attack that destroys minions instantly and knocks up players (Usable once every 7 seconds)
- Thrall Guards
- Now only attacks minions directly
- New Skill: Targets a sentry with a mortar that deals heavy damage to the Sentry (Usable once every 10 seconds)
Overgrowth:
- Modified the sniper nests to prevent players from engaging the first sentry from across the map.
- Shepherds spawn every fourth wave instead of after the first Sentry is destroyed.
- Various level geometry changes to reduce collision issues.
- Fixed a rare issue with the central Thrall mercenaries not pushing.
Echelon:
- Shepherds spawn every fourth wave instead of after the first Sentry is destroyed.
- Various level geometry changes to reduce collision issues.
Characters
Ambra:
Ambra’s Extinction Event provided unnecessary crowd control due to the large area of effect. We removed the slowing effect to allow for better counter-play options around her ultimate.
- Ambra’s Extinction Event skill no longer slows enemies.
- Fixed an issue that allowed Ambra’s Scorching Strikes to deal extra damage.
- Fixed an issue that prevented stealthed targets from being revealed when Ambra’s level 6 Left Helix Augment, Agile Anomaly and level 2 Right Helix Augment, Solar Burst were active.
Boldur
- Fixed an issue with the description of Boldur’s Legendary gear.
El Dragon:
- Fixed an issue that allowed players to move bosses using El Dragon’s level 8 Mutation, Unbelievable.
Deande:
- Added a short cooldown to Deande’s Drop Kick to fix unintended vertical maneuverability.
Galilea:
Galilea’s desecrate was never intended to constantly apply crowd control or debuffs on enemies throughout the duration. We changed the augmentations to only apply the effects at the cast of the skill. This change now requires Galilea players to use Desecrate more effectively and allow some counter-play if players find themselves falling into the Desecrate. In addition, we made some fixes to her melee attack so Galilea is now moving like all other melee when attacking.
- Galilea’s level 1 Right Helix Augment, Calamitynow only wounds players when Desecrate is initially activated.
- Galilea’s level 4 Mutation, Bleak Quiet now only silences players when Desecrateis initially activated.
- Galilea’s level 8 Right Helix Augment, The Black Wind Howls now only increases her movement speed when Desecrateis initially activated.
- Galilea can no longer attack while sprinting.
- Fixed an issue that prevented Corruptionfrom damaging enemies affected by Galilea’s Desecrate after selecting her level 1 Right Helix Augment, Calamity.
Kleese:
- Fixed an issue that allowed Kleese’s Energy Rifts to replenish Sentry shields in Incursion.
- Changed Kleese’s HUD to use a jump meter instead of an ammo counter.
- Fixed an issue that allowed Kleese’s Shock Taser to target stealthed enemies.
- Fixed an issue with Kleese’s Energy Rift damage when both level 4 Left Helix Augment, Rift Network and level 6 Left Helix Augment, Bulk Savings are active.
- Fixed an issue that increased the cast range of Kleese’s Energy Riftsand Black Hole.
Marquis:
- Fixed an issue with Marquis’s level 2 Mutation, Eyes Everywhere.
- Fixed an issue where Marquis’s ultimate Bindleblast damage was not tracked properly after taking level 10 Right Helix Augment, exe.
Miko:
- Fixed an issue that prevented Miko’s Fungus Among Us from displaying the mushroom’s trajectory when primed.
Shayne and Aurox:
- Fixed a rare issue that allowed Shayne and Aurox to gain permanent health regeneration with their level 7 Left Helix Augment, Alone Time
- Fixed an issue that allowed Shayne and Aurox to use Tag Teamthrough friendly base barriers.
- Fixed an issue that allowed some projectiles to pass through Aurox.
Non-Player Characters:
- Fixed an issue where minions could become very difficult to kill after being affected by certain healing sources.
Gear:
- Character Legendary gear no longer uses randomized values.
- Fixed an issue that prevented players from acquiring the “Medical Nano-Colony” Legendary gear.
- Fixed an issue with the “Sentinel Reset Switch” Legendary gear.
Quality of Life
- Added “Faction”, “Character Rank”, “Lore Challenge Completion” and “Unlock” sorting for Battleborn in the Command menu.
- Fixed a “Player Initialization Failed” error when users first attempt to sign in.
- Fixed a rare issue that prevented players from controlling their characters if they were modifying their key bindings when starting a boss encounter. (PC)
- Fixed a rare issue that resulted in black flickering on the main menu. (XB1)
- Fixed an issue where an incorrect skin would appear for the second split screen user in the post-match screen.
Match Making
- Fixed an issue with matchmaking hosts that should reduce the number of connection failures. (XB1)
- Various improvements have been made to reduce the number of matchmaking failures. (PS4)
Audio
- Added unique sounds for attacking Immune and Overshielded
- Fixed an issue that allowed critical hit sounds to play against shielded players.
- Fixed an issue that occasionally prevented music from playing in Incursion.
- Various audio mix changes.
Localization
- Various localization bug fixes.
Battleborn is off to an "encouraging" start, according to 2K Games parent company Take-Two Interactive. However, it is too soon to say if the game will enjoy a similar sales curve as Borderlands, CEO Strauss Zelnick said on an earnings call recently.
Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford said in February that Battleborn represents the developer's "biggest investment" ever. At the time, Pitchford added that when other similar-looking games like Overwatch and LawBreakers started showing up, Gearbox knew it was onto something.
"First, there's some competition, which is a fun challenge," he said. "But also, wow, those guys are really smart, too and they think there's something here. Maybe we're not crazy after all; maybe there's a customer for this game."
The first Borderlands sold 2 million copies in its first two months back in 2009, and went on to sell 7 or 8 million copies in its lifetime, according to creative director Randy Varnell. Multiple sequels were released, and Borderlands is now one of 2K's biggest properties.
A third mainline game is now in development. Battleborn's upcoming DLC will include Easter eggs that reference the game.
'Overwatch' Game Developers Find Creativity in Diversity
Top 10 UK Sales: Uncharted 4 Has Strongest Debut in Series History
Naughty Dog's Uncharted 4: A Thief's End debuts at No.1 on the UK sales chart for the week ending May 16 and, according to UK Sales monitor Chart-Track, has had "by far the most successful launch in the series."
Uncharted 4's debut week sales beat Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception's by 66 percent. Bethesda's Doom, the only other new title in the top, arrives at No.2, selling 67 percent more in its first week than Doom 3, the last mainline entry in the series.
2K's Battleborn, developed by Borderlands studio Gearbox, dropped out of the top 10 in its second week on sale, going from No.1 to No.12.
You can see the full top ten in below. This table does not include digital sales data, and thus should not be considered representative of all UK game sales.
Top 10 UK Sales Chart: Battleborn Debuts at No.1
Gearbox Software's Battleborn debuts at No.1 on the UK sales chart for the week ending May 7. According to sales monitor Chart-Track, it is the first game to do so from publisher Take-Two since GTA V over a year ago.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 maintains its position at No.2, ahead of Ratchet & Clank, which was last week's top performer. Grand Theft Auto 5 moves up four positions to No.4, and is followed by Tom Clancy's The Division.
You can see the full top ten in the list below. This table does not include digital sales data, and thus should not be considered representative of all UK game sales.
Download Battleborn Beta Now For Free : Battleborn Open Beta – Everything You Need to Know
To get yourself ready for the Battleborn Open Beta, wrap your mind around what’s at stake. Set in the distant future, you’re fighting to save the last star in the universe. You have 25 heroes – each with wildly different personalities, powers, and play styles – at your disposal as you dip into the action-packed Story Mode or go 5 v 5 in Competitive Multiplayer matches. Experience the natural progression of the game as you rank up and unlock new heroes, skins, taunts, Helix mutations, and more during the Battleborn Open Beta.
Contents
Gameplay
Battleborn is a first-person shooter with multiplayer online battle arena elements, in which players engage in combat through a first-person perspective. Unlike other first-person shooters, the quests and game modes of the game were designed to feature a format and structure similar to a multiplayer online battle arena game.[1] The game will also feature a leveling system, which resets when a match begins. Players start with the same basic level, and they can unlock new skills and abilities during a match. When players gain enough skill points and are allowed to level up, they can select one of up to three choices to pick per level through each characters' unique Helix Tree.[2]The game will feature 25 playable characters upon release, with each having different abilities and weapons.[3] For example, Rath is a melee-based character who is equipped with a katana,[4] while Thorn is a long-ranged character, whose primary weapon is a bow.[5] Characters of supporting role, such as Miko, who specializes in healing other characters of the same team, will also be playable.[6] Each character also has their own "ultimate ability". In addition to melee and ranged combat, characters can also cast magic and area-of-effect attacks.[7] Characters controlled by artificial intelligence in multiplayer will also be featured in the game.[8] Players can also switch to third-person perspective to activate special abilities.[2]
A campaign mode, which can be played solo or co-operatively with four other players, will also be included in the game.[9] The game will feature an interconnected world and an objective-driven narrative.[7] Three modes also playable upon launch include: Meltdown, an Arena mode; Incursion, which tasks players to destroy enemies' base; and Devastation, which tasks players to capture bases.[10]
It was confirmed that the game requires a persistent Internet connection to play due to the game's progression and saving systems.[11]
Setting
The game is set in a space fantasy setting, in which every species fled to a star known as Solus after a disastrous event destroyed most other planets and stars in the universe. These species are divided into different factions upon their arrivals, and eventually they united and cooperate with each other by sending out the best fighters, who are labelled as battleborn, to fight against Varelsi, the origin of the catastrophe.[9]Development
Battleborn was announced by Gearbox Software and 2K Games and revealed by Game Informer on July 8, 2014. It will be the first original game developed by Gearbox Software since the release of Borderlands in 2009, and is also claimed to be "the most ambitious video game that Gearbox has ever created." and a "genre-fused" video game by Gearbox Software's president, Randy Pitchford.[12][13] Several gameplay elements from Furious 4, another project from Gearbox which was cancelled in July 2015, were transferred to the game.[14] A closed technical test for this game, which allows Gearbox to test the multiplayer servers and alter the balance between characters, was held on October 29, 2015.[15] A beta for the game was released on April 8, 2016. It came to the PS4 first before other platforms.[16] Battleborn's PC open beta began on April 13, 2016 and lasted until April 18, 2016. Players were able to participate in both story mode and two competitive multiplayer modes: Incursion and Meltdown.[17] More than 2 million players participated in the beta.[18] The game was set to be released worldwide for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One on February 9, 2016,[19] but was later delayed to May 3, 2016.[20]The game's graphics are inspired by computer-generated imagery like the movies produced by Pixar, as well as Anime, the animations developed in Japan. When creating the game's 2D graphics, the team hired Michel Gagné, a Canadian cartoonist, to work on the 2D effects of the game's maps and characters' abilities. The team also drew inspirations from a variety of fighting games, multiplayer online battle arena games, role-playing games and toys from the 1980s.[21]
In addition to the standard version, players can purchase the Digital Deluxe Edition, which includes the game's Season Pass and cosmetic items. Five additional characters are set to be released for the game upon release for free, and 5 different paid packs, which includes additional story content, are also scheduled to be released after the game's launch.[22]
Reception
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Destructoid awarded it a score of 6 out of 10, saying that the game is "Slightly above average or simply inoffensive. Fans of the genre should enjoy this game, but a fair few will be left unfulfilled."[23]
GameSpot awarded it a score of 7 out of 10, saying "With so many moving parts that never quite gel, I found plenty of things to love but just as much to feel confused by and ambivalent about."[25]
IGN awarded it a score of 7.1 out of 10, saying "Battleborn's fun heroes and leveling will keep you hooked despite a lack of content."[26]
Hardcore Gamer awarded it a score of 4.5 out of 5, saying "Battleborn has done what I would have previously thought was impossible: it has kept me interested in its multiplayer. I typically grow bored with adversarial multiplayer after about an hour or two, yet I have spent so much time with this title already and want to keep going."[27]
PlayStation LifeStyle awarded it a score of 8 out of 10, saying "If Borderlands and the MOBA genre could have a baby, I imagine it would look something like Battleborn. Gearbox Software’s signature style shines here, even if the humor falls flat most of the time"[28]
A tremendous band of badass heroes fight to protect the universe’s very last star from a mysterious evil in this next-gen shooter by the creators of Borderlands. To defend it, you’ll need to utilize every type of character and weapon you’ve ever imagined -- from cyborg hawkmen to samurai vampires to mini-gun wielding man-mountains. Slash and parry, run and gun, cast and dash, or simply obliterate foes all while building and growing your personal team of heroes. Choose your hero and fight alone or co-operatively alongside friends in story missions, or battle against them in fast-paced competitive multiplayer matches.
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Unite to save the last starBattleborn's Story Mode is a narrative experience that can be played entirely singleplayer, and is even better when it's played cooperatively with friends both splitscreen and online. |
Let your inner badass out to playBattleborn's accelerated character growth system allows players to level-up a character from 1 to 10 and fully experience each hero's unique weapons and powers in a single story mission or multiplayer match. |
Choose your hero and fight alone or cooperativelyBattleborn's team-based competitive multiplayer action can be experienced by up to 10 players online in 5v5 matches, and includes three distinct multiplayer modes. |
Battleborn Open Beta Infographic
Battleborn Open Beta Infographic
First off, we want to extend a huge THANK YOU to the over 2 Million badasses who played the Battleborn Open Beta! You freakin’ rock!
While you were busy slicing and dicing, running and gunning, and even clotheslining your way through two Story Mode episodes, two Competitive Multiplayer Modes, and taking Battleborn’s 25 unique heroes for a test drive; the Devs here at Gearbox were crunching the numbers to find out exactly how many times you cut short Geoff’s… er, Arachnis’ reign as Spider King.In addition, we challenged to collectively meet three lofty goals which you badasses blew out of the water! In only five days, the Battleborn community completed:
- 1.1 Million Competitive Multiplayer matches
- 1.4 Million Story Mode episodes
- 27 Billion Shards collected
