Absolver developer Sloclap has announced the launch of the game’s 1.29 content update. The update has a distinct winter theme complete with new winter outfits and PvP maps. Some crucial bug fixes and balancing tweaks also round out the update’s additions.
Absolver 1.29 Winter Update
According to Sloclap’s announcement post, the 1.29 winter update is already available for Absolver’s PC and PS4 versions. As of this writing, the update should also be available for Absolver’s recently launched Xbox One version. Sloclap says it had to delay the update’s Xbox One launch since Microsoft had to verify its integrity first.
The major highlights of the 1.29 winter update are as follows (text courtesy of Sloclap):
- Four new winter equipment sets available in the Essence Shop: Guide Lieutenant, Mountain Warrior, Uring Idolator, and Uring Heathen.
- Two “snow” versions of maps (Birdhouse, and Shipyard)
- Gameplay balancing and bug-fixing
- Other bug fixes and optimizations
As for the gameplay balancing, Sloclap specifically addressed one of Absolver’s more controversial subjects: manual dodging. Here’s Sloclap’s full statement on the issue:
“We have been reading a lot of complaints on manual dodging since the Downfall update. Pretty much everybody has different opinions as to which combat style is the best, which attacks should be nerfed to the ground and which ones are totally useless, but one thing everyone seems to agree on was that manual dodging had become overpowered since Downfall, that it was a sort of free “get out of jail” card that didn’t require much skill, and made combat less interesting overall.
We therefore focused on improving this for the winter update, in two ways: by fixing a bug we identified which made the issue worse, and by changing some gameplay parameters around manual dodging.”
Specifically, Sloclap fixed a bug which sometimes caused dodging to grant four invincibility frames rather than the intended two frames. Side dodges have also had their iframes reduced from two to one. Lastly, dodge distance and in-combat walking speed have both been decreased. With these changes, abuse of the dodging system should be less prevalent.
Absolver’s winter update is the game’s first major update since last year’s Downfall expansion. Sadly, fans who are holding out hope for a bo staff-themed update will have a long wait ahead of them.