In the months since the release ofDeathloop, Arkane Studios' first-person shooter has confidently held its place in the conversation surrounding 2021’s best games of the year. That it kept its positive momentum post-launch despite no real live-service components or post-release content is a testament toDeathloop’s unique offerings. That doesn’t mean that Arkane is done withDeathloop, however. As evidence of that, Arkane has now released a significant update forDeathloopthat may even persuade some players to return for an extra loop.
The newDeathloopupdate, available now on bothPC and PlayStation 5, focuses heavily on the game’s NPC artificial intelligence.Deathloopplayers may recall that the game’s AI isn’t particularly clever, which can be a boon when players want to flex their supernatural abilities but ultimately harms the strategic depth of the game. In the new update, AI has been improved to react more often when they’re in danger, attack the player where previously they might get confused, and many other small foxes to “reactions, pathing, and placement.”
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A variety of improvements have also been changed toDeathloop’s Invasion feature, wherein Julianna will invade the player’s game and try to trip up their efforts. The biggest change is that the antenna Colt has to hack in order to escape will take longer to complete. Several changes have also been made to deal with AFK situations, including the tunnel doors opening if Colt lingers too long.
Dozens of other changes have been made toDeathloopacross multiple areas of the game, including stability issues, graphics and audio problems, user interface bugs, and gameplay errors. For example, some players were using turrets to break the game a bit. Turrets could be used to clip through walls or could be stacked in one place to set incredibly dangerous traps. Also, some players may have noticed2-Bit’s interactionsbeing a big wonky (more than usual), which Arkane has now fixed.
TheDeathlooppatchdoesn’t ultimately add any major features, rebalance the game, or change the way it’s played in any meaningful ways. The AI improvements could make the game more challenging, but only in that it’ll lead players to polish their combat that much more.
What theDeathlooppatch does do is make one of the best games of 2021 that much more polished of an experience. Those planning to pick upDeathloopfor the holiday season will have a better version ofDeathloopto play than they had before. The timing of the patch’s release, days ahead of Black Friday, is certainly timed just for that reason. Now the developers at Arkane can take the holidays easy and cheer for their game during the season’sGame of the Yearcontests.
Deathloopis available now on PC and PS5.
