Moonbreaker has recieved its first major content update today, and with it, all microtransactions have been removed from the game as Unknown Worlds works to overhaul the title’s Early Access business model. That’s right–Boosters, Pulsars, and Blanks are no more.
When Moonbreaker was first announced at Gamescom 2022, players had their curiosity piqued. The turn-based strategy game was said to be set in an original universe created by famed fantasy and sci-fi author Brandon Sanderson, best known for The Stormlight Archive and Mistborn series. The title, described by developer Unknown Worlds as a “digital miniatures game,” was a strange entry for the company–after all, most associate Unknown Worlds with the open-world horror survival game Subnautica and its sequel.
Upon its release in early access, players were instantly angered and concerned by Moonbreaker‘s loot boxes, with many gamers saying that their inclusion completely ruined the experience. This was a sad thing, as the fast-paced tactical gameplay has been very well recieved otherwise.
Going forward, Pulsars, the game’s hard currency, will no longer be available to purchase or exchange for in-game items during Moonbreaker‘s early access period. Booster Boxes are also a thing of the past, and Units will be unlocked automatically. This also goes for all Units added each Season. Blanks and Merits are no longer in-game currencies and will be replaced with Sparks, which can only be used to upgrade a Unit’s Rarity. This is entirely cosmetic.
Those who have purchased anything from the in-game store will be refunded via Steam, as the store has been removed. Season Track progression has also been sped up, with plenty of new cosmetic rewards on the way.
“It is important to us, especially during Early Access, to build an amazing game alongside our community and focus on making Moonbreaker as fun as possible,” the post reads. “Early Access is a time for us to experiment and improve the game, and the monetization in its current form was affecting that goal. So we’re removing it to focus on making the best game that we can, before we leave Early Access.”
The first major patch is titled ‘Zax’s Story,’ and along with this major overhaul to the early access system, gameplay changes have also been introduced.
In an August interview, Unknown Worlds co-founder Charlie Cleveland discussed the ambitious future of Moonbreaker.
“From day one, we wanted to make a game that was going to last a generation. We wanted to do like a Magic, or Yu-Gi-Oh!, or Pokemon. We don’t want to do a sequel; we want to do a live service game that’s just going to go. There is no end date; it’s going to be years. We have stories for years. We have cultures for years. We have everything we need to set this up for decades.”
Moonbreaker was released in early access on September 29, 2022 for PC. The game is a turn-based strategy title in which players commandeer a captain and their squad to defeat the enemy. Each character has their own unique abilities, and given that the game was heavily inspired by tabletop games, players can paint their digital figures.
