"It seems we've missed the mark": As their Steam review score drops to 14%, Dauntless devs wade into feedback after a disastrous update that gutted progress

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Dauntless is having a very bad week

Dauntless
(Image credit: Phoenix Labs)

The free-to-play creature-killing game Dauntless pleasantly operated like a simplified Monster Hunter game for years, but the game's Steam debut came with a massive update that, according to players, efficiently destroyed the peace. Developer Phoenix Labs addresses some of its unpopular gameplay changes in a recent letter to the community.

Most disturbingly to dedicated fans, Dauntless' Awakening update resets player progress. Phoenix notes that there are "a few areas where it seems we’ve missed the mark." 

For one thing, "most returning players will have started off with no Chain Blades, Strikers, or Repeaters," Phoenix explains. "Having to invest precious [level-up currency] Aetherite into a weapon you don’t really want to play with just to get to one you want to because it used to be your main, does not feel good. We're sorry that this has created the impression that these classes are only accessible through Weapon Tokens," a currency attained through a new, loathed battle pass system.

"As with any major update, we have some reported issues to address in future patches," Phoenix continues. "Despite the best efforts of all our internal teams and external supporters, things are less polished than we’d like them to be." 

But, despite Phoenix's admirable admittance of guilt, disgruntled players are impatient for the developer's teary-eyed listening and learning process to wrap up. 

"This game is simply not fun," says one recent negative Steam review. "It has zero charm and no real personality. The economy is insane. No reason to play this, stay away." So much for diplomacy!

Studio behind action RPG Dauntless and farming RPG Fae Farm sees major layoffs, "about 140" devs cut and 3-year game "abruptly canceled" mere weeks before reveal.

Ashley Bardhan
Ashley Bardhan
Senior Writer

Ashley is a Senior Writer at GamesRadar+. She's been a staff writer at Kotaku and Inverse, too, and she's written freelance pieces about horror and women in games for sites like Rolling Stone, Vulture, IGN, and Polygon. When she's not covering gaming news, she's usually working on expanding her doll collection while watching Saw movies one through 11.