Shadow Arena sounds interesting at first. It’s a new game by developers Pearl Abyss, makers of the MMORPG Black Desert. It’s their take on the battle arena genre, and depending on who you are, this might pique your interest or made you checked out immediately.
I played the Shadow Arena Closed Beta, the first hour from a completely new player perspective who never touched Black Desert. Then played it again after spending 20 hours or so in Black Desert proper. Shadow Arena brought some new, neat ideas to the battle royale table.
But is that enough to interest other players outside of Black Desert veterans?
Black Desert Battle Royale? Not Quite
First, let’s address this one thing. Shadow Arena is based in the Black Desert universe. So if you played the MMO, a lot of themes and game assets will look familiar.
But it’s not exactly Black Desert’s battle royale mode. The combat system does not feature the option to use button combinations instead of the hotkey for skill uses. So you’re limited to the hotkey skills, only four, outside of your three main attack buttons (left-click, right-click, F key- though the latter two also have cooldowns).
The playable characters may be based off the classes in the MMO, but now with more limited moveset and different balance changes. Some characters are also new. While it’s not as combo-focused- the skills all have cooldown and there are no button combos for them, it’s still fast-paced. “Action battle royale”, as Pearl Abyss describes the game, is still true.
This is to say, no, you don’t have a big advantage if you’re familiar with Black Desert before jumping into Shadow Arena. Though the more useful skillset here is your familiarity with PVP modes in general and MOBAs.
Wait, MOBAs?
Shadow Arena translates a lot of Black Desert’s core gameplay into a 15-minute or so battle royale match. And it ended up being closer to a MOBA. Instead of just rummaging for scattered loot around the map, you need also need to take out enemy mobs so that they drop better gear and also skill books. Gear is streamlined, you’ll only have to worry about the rarity colour. Sometimes loot drops just straight-up increase your attack power (AP) and defence power (DP) numbers. What loot rarity you have, and AP and DP number are all clearly displayed. You also need to unlock the four hotkey skills by finding skill books dropped by mobs. And like MOBAs, it can be upgraded too.
While they are treasure chests of loot to be collected, fighting mobs is the faster way to gear up. Plus, it gives you the time to actually do something- no cowardly play and slowly looting will carry you to a win in Shadow Arena.
Some Neat Ideas For Battle Royale
Here are some cool ideas Shadow Arena is doing with battle royales.
Instead of having a waiting map and then load the game map once waiting is over, a match of Shadow Arena begins with waiting in the middle of the main map, where ruined pillars form a circle. It’s a place to test out your moves, and even spar with other players while waiting for the match.
The match starts with everyone turning into a black spirit that shoots to the sky, dropping wherever the camera is pointing to. It makes a lot of sense to have the waiting area be just part of the game from the get-go. Everything is nice and loaded.
The other cool thing? a grace period of 4 minutes. During this time, you can respawn should you die. So everyone is guaranteed at least 4 minutes of playtime of the usual 15-minute-ish matches. Unless there are connection issues. The game pace is fast, but is forgiving enough to let you build momentum.
The mobs also added even more MOBA-ish comparisons to Shadow Arena. In several intervals, there is a more powerful enemy appearing on the map, whoever gets the kill gets immense power should they able to pull it off- summon a huge golem for a limited time. Farming for better loot does have big rewards.
Halfway through the close beta, Pearl Abyss added a feature where you get to see a screenshot of your kills after a match ends (or when you end up dead yourself). A little bit of flourish is welcomed.
Current Concerns
However, this doesn’t mean it’s all roses from here. The first few days of the beta was absolute misery for me. I picked the sorceress lady, who might have some flashy moves, but her kit is severely underpowered.
Compared to big dude with the greatsword that can crowd-control you into a one-touch kill, and Badal the Golden whose kit is essentially lifted out of Street Fighter, sorceress lady is weak. I picked up Black Desert after those bad matches and levelled up a Sorceress myself. And man, she’s more interesting (and forgiving) there than in Shadow Arena.
Balance issues are a major problem, essentially. Though the games I played near the end of the beta are more bearable. Can’t say whether it’s the drop-off of skilled players (I’m in the low 6000s according to the ranking), balance changes being made already or me just being more familiar with these sort of games, I can’t say.
But there are more pressing matters. Shadow Arena has a progression system that can make you theoretically stronger even before a match starts. In a match, you can find gear locked in treasure chests (as in the icon is a treasure chest) which you can carry to the next game. And also you can seal one item after each match.
You can opt to bring one item to the next match. These can range from one meagre HP potion or an orange-colour rarity weapon. To be fair, you still need to fulfil a certain condition (like kill enough mobs) before the gear is equippable. But there’s potentially a way to monetise this, which is concerning. What if people just buy their way to guarantee they can start with at least an orange-tier gear, which is a one-time boost?
There is also a skill enhancement system that gives a percentage bonus to a character’s skill. I can’t say if these have any affects on my play experience, but the inclusion of it does not instil confidence.
Closing Thoughts
Shadow Arena sounds promising like a battle royale game. Pearl Abyss has translated an MMORPG into battle royale form with brilliant new systems is commendable. It’s not “just another one of those” battle royale games.
Current game balance issues and the system where you can carry forward loot are something the team needs to look a bit. And I worry if the inherent skill requirement, or the imbalance of the characters at this state, may turn off most players.
For MMO players who love PVP and, to some extent, MOBA fans, Shadow Arena is something you might love. Fans of battle royale in general, or casual players who are intrigued by it, at the current state maybe it’s a bit hard to recommend just yet.
Shadow Arena will be coming to PC in the first half of the year, with a console release planned.
Closed Beta key provided by Pearl Abyss