With the arrival of the Flashpoint Update, Embark Studios is rolling out several additions meant to keep the community even more engaged.
The update adds a new Arc enemy, two new weapons, and a new type of map condition called Arc Operations, and all of it goes live today. Arc Operations are new map modifiers, and the first one, Close Scrutiny, seems designed to encourage more PvP action. When Close Scrutiny is active on a map, less loot is available in that zone, but somewhere in the area a new kind of machine – the Assessor – is hidden. It is not directly hostile, but it is guarded by a small Arc fleet whose members are determined to protect both the machine and the treasure stored inside it.
If we take down the surrounding Arcs and any hostile raiders, we can haul a bag full of high-level loot back to Speranza. The fact that raiders who simply want to grab something and get out with a quick return to Speranza will find less loot, combined with the increased Arc presence around the Assessors, suggests that Close Scrutiny is meant to create more chaotic and more intense matches. It will be interesting to see whether that really becomes the outcome, or whether players keep teaming up against the Arcs and repeatedly running Close Scrutiny in order to farm the best Assessor loot as often as they can.
A new Arc enemy is also arriving in the form of the Vaporizer. This flying menace comes equipped with laser attacks that can vaporize us if we end up in its sights. To deal with Vaporizers and the rest of the Arc enemies – which are already irritating and deadly enough to fight – Embark is also adding two new weapons and a new item. The new weapons are the Canto, a medium-ammo SMG that works best up close, and the Dolabra, a new energy blaster that can really hammer Arcs into the ground, especially at close range. If you want to find the blueprint for the Dolabra, the place to go is the Close Scrutiny Arc Operation, where the odds of finding it are highest.
The new item is the Surge Coil, essentially a deployable electric mine that gives both enemy raiders and Arcs a nasty “shock” if they wander into range. Shredders are now appearing outside the Stella Montis area as well, and there is also a new project – High Gain Antenna – in which players gather resources to build antennas so Shani and Celeste can get a better look at what is happening on Arc Topside. Our loyal rooster Scrappy can now bring back a new kind of loot, and crafting gear has also become simpler thanks to fresh crafting changes, letting players replace missing parts without having to dig through a mountain of menus.
Of course, there are new cosmetic items to buy too, and the full patch notes – with all of the smaller changes included – are also going live today alongside the update.
Source: WCCFTech, Embark Studios
