Kakao Games and Pearl Abyss have announced some fun new details about Black Desert Online. The massively popular buy-to-play MMO has gone through a huge number of changes over the years. The addition of so many different BDO expansions and content patches has completely morphed the game, although some players continue to argue over whether this is good or bad. Though this ongoing debate has not stopped the developers from pushing more content, and in essence, getting back to what makes Black Desert Online memorable.
So what is it that makes Black Desert Online so good? Many will immediately jump the visceral and often beautiful combat. And it seems that Kakao Games and Pearl Abyss agree. The new Succession Skills systems are designed to give each of the 16 core classes and entirely new set of options, with an aim to get players back into what made the game fun. When players hit level 56, they now have a choice.
The choice of jumping between Succession Skills and the older Awakening system is up to each player. but BDO will offer some bonuses to those that choose the new route. Going the Succession Skill path will unlock powerful new abilities that replace your existing skill suite, offering much more potent combat choices in comparison to default weapon abilities.
This rollout will happen over the next few months, with the Warrior and Ranger will receive their Succession skills on Dec. 4, with more classes to follow soon after. Initially, the Succession Skill will focus on the Longsword and Shield for the Warrior, and the Bow and Dagger for the Ranger.
Jaehee Kim, Executive Producer from Black Desert Online developer Pearl Abyss spoke about the design philosophy behind the new skill system, highlighting the need for a new set of choices for the classes which have only grown in power as time has gone on. BDO has 16 different classes as a base, with dozens of options unlocked by the high-level Awakening system, so players are sort of spoiled for choice. Problem is, some skills just didn’t feel powerful enough to see much use. Kakao and Pearl Abyss have designed these new skills to be the defacto baseline for the new classes going forward.
According to Kim, “Many adventurers experience a radical change in the gameplay of their character when they ‘Awaken’ it after reaching level 56. The efficiency and strength of Awakening skills overshadow existing skills, so many players utilize much less of their Main Weapon skills.” This echoes the reason why Succession Skills needed to happen, because players felt railroaded into certain choices, and play style variety suffered.
The developer are also pushing out a new event involving hunting down a ‘Mysterious Knight’. Completing this quest will give players a special boost to their Skill EXP, massively increasing forward progress in preparation for the launch of the new Succession Skills.
