Lost Ark, fresh off a region merger in Europe, has shared a peek at next week’s September update. On the way are several new raids and features, in addition to fast-progression servers and features intended to make Lost Ark easier to jump into for the first time or to return.
The teams at both Smilegate RPG and Amazon Games have been working together to reduce some of the obstacles and complications in terms of progression in order to make Lost Ark a bit easier to start in, but also to keep playing longer term. The steep progression curve was a turnoff to some and they've been gradually trying to adjust progression to enable more players to be able to enjoy the journey. In addition to trying to get some players that left back.
“We recognize that the game encountered many challenges at launch, with a steep progression curve, bots, and stability issues. We’ve made serious strides in addressing these and feel confident that we’re in a good place to bring players back,” the announcement says.
The update will be out on September 13th, and one of the helpful features is the introduction of Jump-Start servers. There will be one of these in each region, with their own PVE matchmaking, party finder, and auction houses. PvP matchmaking and rank are region-wide. Jump-Start servers will also have their own special events, including Story Express, Powerpasses and a Mokoko Express event.
If you roll a character on one of these servers, which will be mostly isolated from all of the other servers, you can take advantage of faster vertical and horizontal progression, honing materials, card packs, and other helpful incentives. There will also be a special South Vern pass that will let you immediately get one character to item level 1415. What else you can expect is a special gift when you log in for the first time, 200% XP games, a special exchange shop, and much more.
As happens with many fresh start type servers, the team will keep an eye on, populations and progression, with an eventual plan to connect these servers back into their regions within about 6 months.
The new September trailer also teases some of what we can expect with the update, closing on a roaring dinosaur and a tease for Primal Island.
