The time has come!
We're happy to finally announce that the Combat Arena Beta is available to download! We know it's been a long time, and as always, thank you so much for your patience as we've navigated unexpected delays and roadblocks. We're so excited for you to try it out!
The Beta is accessible to those who own the Challenger package or higher, from either the Kickstarter campaign or Skymill store. It can also be purchased on Steam for $45 (the Steam price is intended to keep pricing fair for Kickstarter backers).
If you've already redeemed an Alpha key in Steam, you should have access to Beta just through updating the game in your library and launching. If you have not redeemed any keys:
- Log in to the Skymill website using the email tied to your pledge https://www.skymillstudios.com/user-account
- If your pledge email is not one of the three login partners, log in with a partner and then link the correct email in Preferences under Account Linking
- Go to your Account Inventory. Find the "Closed-Beta Combat Arena Key" item and click "Redeem" and then "Show".
- Go to Steam. Hover over "Games" in the top bar, then click "redeem a product code". You can now put in the key shown in your account inventory and add the game to your Steam library.
- Note that the Steam listing for the game might still appear as "Combat Arena Alpha", but it will change soon when Steam gets a chance to fix it. It's a cosmetic issue only.
If your account inventory is empty, ensure you're logging in with/linking the correct email. If you paid with PayPal, the email might be the one tied to your PayPal account. If none of this works, you can email us at [email protected], make a support ticket in the Discord server, or send a message on Kickstarter. You can also contact us if you have issues redeeming the key.
While you're in your account inventory, we recommend also making sure your desired final game copy is selected!
While the Beta isn't available on Switch, Switch backers are still able to redeem their Beta code on PC while still keeping their future access to Switch.
Now, what's changed in the combat arena? For those who aren't familiar, the Beta was initially intended to be pure combat arenas like the Alpha, but we've decided to add a small amount of singleplayer content!
We don’t want to spoil it for you, but here are some general major things to note/changes compared to Alpha:
- You can explore a small amount of the overworld and experience a variety of things, including bonding with and training Kinfolk.
- There are no longer any preset Kinfolk or items to use in PvP. You have to catch and train your team yourself, and find or buy items for them to hold!
- You cannot play a PvP match until you finish the intro fight with the Guild Officer at camp.
- There is one additional PvP arena, making the total six. We had initially planned to release with two more arenas, but we had to delay this due to technical difficulties. The other arena will be added in an upcoming patch!
- There are two additional Kinfolk, making the total twelve.
- The level cap is 30. For PvP, all Kinfolk are equalized at level 50.
- We’ve added a new singleplayer game mode, which we’ve been referring to as Red Letter Mode.
- You’ll have to find out how to access it in the game!
- Most importantly, permadeath is on! Be careful while exploring, because if your Kinfolk's flame burns out, it's gone forever. (Permadeath does not occur in PvP).
We’ll put out a list of patch notes on our website at a later time. We wanted to focus on getting the update out ASAP first!
Searching for a Public PvP match will match you with people who are also searching Public. However, if you're very interested in PvP, we recommend joining our Discord server and making use of our looking-for-game channels. We also have dedicated channels for feedback and bug reports. You're welcome to give feedback here as well, but we recommend reporting bugs on Discord so you can see if someone else has already reported it first!
As well, we're now running an advanced testing group! This is a group of volunteers who are given early access to potential Beta updates and test it for bugs before we do a public release. To join, all you have to do is make several high quality bug reports on our Discord server, and you will be approached. Note that the ATG group requires the signing of a non-disclosure-agreement.
We hope you have fun in the Beta! We look forward to hearing your feedback, and thank you in advance for your bug reports! Please message us with any feedback, questions, or concerns.