Developer Fatshark is working on a major update for Warhammer 40K: Darktide, overhauling its classes with RPG-style skill trees. Fatshark hopes this new update will address players disappointment with the co-op multiplayer game’s classes.
Released last September, Warhammer 40K: Darktide did not live up to the standards set by the Warhammer: Vermintide games. Earning mixed reviews, its short-lived popularity fell off early in the new year. This led to Fatshark delaying new content and Darktide’s Xbox Series X|S release to focus on addressing player feedback. Much of the input targeted Darktide’s class system, which was much more limited than Vermintide’s.
Warhammer 40K: Darktide classes are getting new skill trees
Fatshark developers spent months overhauling classes and introducing new RPG mechanics. Each class now has a unique skill tree, including various all-new abilities.
“We wanted players to get a bit more agency into the classes, a bit more experimentation, support a lot more different play styles,” Darktide game director Anders De Geer told PC Gamer.
The studio felt it could do much more with the existing classes, and reevaluated what those classes meant.
“We felt like the fantasy of the Ogryn was not done,” said De Geer. “The story of the Psyker was not done. So, we wanted to add more.”
Fatshark focused on the hulking Ogryn and telepathic Psyker in the preview it showed PC gamer. Ogryn players can now choose either a “Big Friendly Rock” or a gigantic grenade as an alternative to standard grenade boxes. The former doesn’t consume ammo, instead having a cooldown period. They can also choose between a taunt or a reload and fire rate buff.
Meanwhile, Darktide’s Psyker is getting a new shield ability. Initially just a disk, players can later upgrade it to a protective dome. Darktide players can also choose the new Smite and Psychic Shard abilities as alternatives to the existing Brain Blast. The former is a straightforward lightning blast, while PC Gamer compared Psychic Shard to Yondu’s whistle-controlled arrow from Guardians of the Galaxy.
All four classes will have three branches to their skill trees. Players will unlock a new skill point every five levels until they hit the cap of 30 points. That’s reportedly more than enough to fill out one branch while having room to experiment with the other two.
The studio wasn’t ready to share the exact release date for this massive update. However, Fatshark says it intends to release it this October, so Warhammer 40K: Darktide fans don’t have too long to wait.
