To say Naraka: Bladepoint's beta was a success may feel like a bit of an understatement. It pulled serious numbers, much more than some perhaps expected, hitting 140K+ peak players and cracking the top 5 games on Steam. Perhaps most importantly, it did all of this is one of the most congested gaming markets today: battle royales.
It would seem that battle royales are everywhere. While Fortnite, Apex Legends, and Call of Duty: Warzone dominate the market today, there have been plenty of more releases to occupy players' time. PUBG kicked off this resurgence, with everything from indie games to titans like Battlefield opting for this genre, though many seemingly crash and burn.
As such, those numbers for Naraka: Bladepoint are all the more impressive as a Nioh-like, melee-focused battle royale complete with character abilities is stepping into a high competition area. How that translates to release remains to be seen, but it's also possible that, prior to its summer 2021 release, another beta hits.
Game ZXC spent some time with Naraka: Bladepoint over the weekend (read our impressions here), and afterward, we spoke with Marketing Manager Raylan Kwan about the game. Our conversation drifted more toward what fans can expect from the launch of Naraka: Bladepoint, but Kwan did have some words for those who played this beta: "I would like to say I appreciate the players that have joined our beta." Yet, for those who did not, Kwan also had some encouraging words:
You can join the next beta, which will also be coming soon, I think.
Right now, Naraka: Bladepoint is set to release in Summer 2021. Taking that literally means after June 20, though this could likely mean any time between June and September. As such, it only makes sense that there would be another beta, and it would likely be as beneficial for the game as it would be for players. All battle royale games need to be tweaked as metas arise, as some characters or weapons become over or underpowered, and data from the recent beta may indicate that. It would be interesting as well if more content made its way into it, but that too remains to be seen.
Obviously, it would be good for players too, especially for those who are heavily invested already. It stands to reason that those who checked it out originally may have recommended it to a friend who couldn't play, so yet another beta could get even more eyes on it. Regardless, whether it happens soon or even at all, it seems Naraka: Bladepoint is off to a great start.
Naraka: Bladepoint releases Summer 2021 for PC.