South Korea’s Pearl Abyss has unveiled Black Desert Online‘s Land of the Morning Light Expansion, which debuts on June 14.
The major expansion for the PC has been in the works for a long time, and it features a variety of gameplay and environmental changes to the core game, which is one of the most successful massively multiplayer online role-playing games.
The Black Desert intellectual property has more than 50 million players across the world on PC, mobile, and console.
The basic gameplay revolves around beating monstrous bosses. Players can set the difficulty of the boss, and it will based on the storylines they choose in the hub, called Dalbeol Village, said Jae-Hee Kim, Black Desert executive producer, in a developer commentary video.
Black Desert Online’s latest expansion takes players on a perilous journey through the mythical Land of the Morning Light, which is haunted by a giant tiger called Sangoon. Along the way, adventurers will become embroiled in a crisis engulfing the continent, falsely accused of wrongdoing and forced to prove their innocence. After defeating powerful foes, they will discover the true evil lurking in the shadows.
Players can explore breathtaking landscapes filled to the brim with life, marvel at intricate architecture inspired by the Joseon period characteristic for medieval Korea, and experience thrilling combat with unique boss monsters that resemble villains and characters from traditional Korean folklore and myth.
Dolswe, a new trusty companion, will join adventurers on this exciting journey and offer advice and assistance along the way.
The land itself is filled with mysteries and creatures inspired by Korean folktales and legend. The expansion has a new progression method. It has a non-linear questline, featuring eight unique stories (15 chapters) where players are able to choose the order they want to complete each quest.
Better storytelling
And players can select Land of the Morning Light as their starting point in the game. Kim said the cutscenes and storytelling are better, helping to convey a more emotional story for the players. The expansion features more than 100 minutes of fully rendered cutscenes with 5,000-plus lines of voiceacting, providing an immersive storyline that reads like a novel. Completed quests will be stored in theStorybook, in which players will be able to revisit the endings at any time.
Players can engage in a Boss Blitz with eight different bosses, each one starting with a series of missions and connected storylines leading up to a boss fight where players compete with each other for the high score.
There’s a new ship, the Panokseon, a boat customizable with special gear and crew members, making it aversatile option for various naval content in Black Desert Online. The game also has revamped lifeskill activities, or newly added mini-games can reduce the required time for various lifeskill activities and provide an opportunity to acquire a rare item that grants a special buff.
There’s new housing and furniture: Two Korean-style residences and traditional furniture for player housing. And there’s a top-tier gear addition, called Dahn’s Gloves, which can be crafted with materials found in the new region and can be specialized in damage reduction or evasion.
The Land of the Morning Light moves away from repetitive grinding in the usual monster zones and invites players to challenge a variety of fearsome bosses with unique mechanics that can be defeated on various difficulty levels.
Sun-Hong Kim, environment design team lead, said in the video that the team was inspired by the art of a German missionary who captured the scenery of the Land of the Morning Light more than 100 years ago. They based some of the art on the natural beauty of Geogeum Island in Jeollanam-do’s Goheung County. They also drew inspiration from the bamboo forest of Damyang.
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