The time has come to gather your team: Dauntless enters Open Beta May 24

Dang, y’all.  Dauntless looks cool.

Developed by Phoenix Labs, a studio comprised of veteran game designers from BioWare, EA, Capcom, and Riot Games, Dauntless is preparing to shed its Closed Beta cocoon and burst forth as an Open Beta butterfly (just roll with the metaphor). Dauntless has been in Closed Beta since September 2017, with players opting in by purchasing a Founders Pack (this is still an option until the Open Beta starts). The Open Beta will allow anyone to download and play the game for free.

Dauntless is a multi-player action RPG, with players teaming up on the Shattered Isles to conquer Behemoths, giant monsters attempting to drain the life force from the world. Defeating Behemoths grants players sweet loots, which can be taken to the frontier city of Ramsgate to craft new gear. The gameplay loop sounds an awful lot like Monster Hunter, which isn’t a bad thing. Dauntless might be dropping at just the right time to take advantage of the recent wave of goodwill for the monster hunting genre (it is a genre, right?) following the release of Monster Hunter World.

With a sweet visual style that is reminiscent of Blizzard games and Fortnite, Dauntless looks like a very high-end experience in the free-to-play space. Combined with a promise that there will be no loot crates, no pay-to-win dynamics, and plenty of sweet cosmetic stuff to buy in the cash store, the pull of Dauntless looks like it might be a force to be reckoned with. After over 4 years of development, it seems like Phoenix Labs is about to drop a very finely tuned and polished product into beta.

I will definitely be checking out Dauntless when it enters Open Beta. I’m calling it right now, Dauntless is going to be a big deal. I am already making plans to bolster my janky PC so I can be part of the conversation when it drops.