Greetings, Rovers!
It has been a while since the previous Wuthering Waves beta test.
First and foremost, we would like to express our gratitude to each and every one of you who have been following and supporting the development of Wuthering Waves. During this interlude, our team has made extensive changes, adjustments, and optimizations to the game contents based on feedback and suggestions we received from you. Before you embark on the next round of testing, we would like to share with you a summary of our development process over the past 10 months, and also a few "sneak peeks" of some new content that will be featured in the second closed beta test.
Story Revision
Stories are a crucial part of a world as expansive as Wuthering Waves and have been our priority in the list changes. During this period, we performed a thorough overhaul of the in-game stories, removed settings that were deemed unsatisfactory, and made adjustments to character designs accordingly. With the above changes, necessary modifications also needed to be made to the overall story flow, animations, voice-overs, and other resources.
In this iteration of the test, we have implemented the [Skip] function, which aims to improve the players' overall speed and pacing when experiencing some story missions. In addition, the inclusion of Resonator story missions for Jiyan and Lingyang will help players fully experience the charm of these Resonators, in conjunction with supporting game modes to gain a grasp of a more immersive gaming experience.
Improvements to Combat
The combat system from the previous beta was well-received by the community. Using it as the foundation, we have made optimizations to the overall combat loop experience centered around the "Intro Skill - Outro Skill." Detailed adjustments were made to aspects such as — character skill effects, general combat mechanics, screen shaking, camera lock-on, etc. Echo skills were also further improved, giving them smoother performances, and Echo skills boasting special utilities will also serve as countermeasures during necessary combat situations.
Three new Resonators, Jianxin, Lingyang, and Calcharo, have been introduced into the game for players to experience, along with three Bosses, Impermanence Heron, Mech Abomination, and Tempest Mephis, plus a new phase for Scar.
While reducing the complexity for players to gain the know-how of the in-game combat system, we also added high-difficulty elites and the "Tactical Hologram: Calamity" game modes placed around various areas of the map, which greatly reward players that are seeking for challenges.
Our goal is for players, regardless of skill level or appeal for action games, to become engaged as quickly as possible, and fully experience the smooth and satisfying combat Wuthering Waves has to offer.
Graphics Quality Improvements
The adjustments to the in-game visuals introduce a more comfortable and polished appearance. Internally, the team implemented a more detailed atmosphere tier system to address the player feedback of visual fatigue experienced from the previous test. Thus, focused optimizations were put into place to model renderings, shapes, special effects, clothing designs, etc. based on characters' appearances.
During this test, players will have the opportunity to witness and be immersed in weather phenomena like the Etheric Sea, Celestial Anomaly, and Retroact Rain, unique to the world of Wuthering Waves. In specific areas, distinctively designed sceneries have been placed by combining our concept designs, hoping to bring players a different experience.
Optimizations to Echoes and New In-Game Events
Compared to the previous test, we included a dedicated tutorial guide for the Echo system, while also lowering the difficulty of discovering and obtaining Echoes. After obtaining an Echo for the first time, the chances of reobtaining it in the same Tacet Field will be increased the more you challenge it. The current Echo kit adopts a tag-based system, which makes for versatile combinations and strategies based on the circumstances. Players will now also have the opportunity to encounter and collect "Illusive Echoes" (final name may vary in-game). These Echoes possess special appearances and features, but we won't spoil them just yet!
Last but not least, for the first time, limited-time in-game events such as the "Depths of Illusive Realm" and "Overdash Club" track challenge will also be available for experiencing in this test.
As the game is currently in its development phase, some of the content players experience are still work-in-progress builds, which may lead to unpleasant gaming experiences — Players will find some voice-over content for the characters and storylines absent within the game, but rest assured, these contents are undergoing rigorous development as we perform further improvements to the game. Players participating in the beta test from mobile devices may experience increased power consumption, overheating, and other issues for certain devices. Cross-platform performance, various UI interfaces, in-game text localizations, and existing voice-overs will also undergo further optimizations down the line. We wish to extend our appreciation for the understanding and support you have given us thus far.
We are deeply aware that the game still has many shortcomings, and your feedback and suggestions propel us to strive towards the goal of presenting a game "enjoyed by all Rovers", as we will continue to carry out new features and enhancements to the game. Stay tuned to future Developer's Messages on further updates and improvements to Wuthering Waves.
Thank you for being part of the Wuthering Waves community, and we hope to see you soon in the upcoming closed beta test!
Wuthering Waves Team
