Free to play Monster Hunter-esque action RPG Dauntless attracted its fair bit of skepticism when Phoenix Labs announced it would be shifting to the Epic Games Store on PC. While speaking to GameSpot at PAX East 2019, studio co-founder and VP Robin Mayne explained the reason behind the move. Allowing players across numerous platforms, including the upcoming Xbox One and PS4 versions, to play together was apparently the main focus.
“One of the things that we’re passionate about at Phoenix Labs – and was a part of our vision even before we had chosen to build Dauntless – was finding a way to allow players to play together,” said Mayne. “And so a part of our strategy for Dauntless has been worldwide servers so you can play with anyone wherever they are.”
That vision for “one Dauntless” lined up pretty well with Epic Games, whose engine the game runs on. “And then as we thought about our platform expansion, it was really important for us to fulfill our vision of one Dauntless, which is the ability to play with your friends no matter what platform they are on and no matter where they are.
“So working with Epic on the Unreal Engine and getting to chat with them about their vision for players as well, we realized it was a really big alignment with our vision for one Dauntless and being able to have people play together, and the ability to come to the Epic Games Store, plus Xbox and PlayStation, and be able to do cross-play so that everyone can play together.”
Phoenix Labs is looking to fully support cross-play and cross-progression for players right from the console versions’ launch. This means that PC players can immediately hop in with their friends on Xbox One and PS4 and starting playing. “So you have your account that you play on, and you can play with anyone regardless of what platforms they are on. The launch this summer focuses on Epic Games Store, Xbox, and PlayStation. We have Switch in the works as well, and plans for mobile along the way.”
Dauntless is currently in open beta for PC. Its launch on the Epic Games Store, PS4, and Xbox One was delayed to allow for more polish and features. Stay tuned for more details on the game in the coming weeks and months.