The long-awaited Gun Raiders Season 2 is here, with desert-themed maps and changes to weapons and gameplay mechanics.
Let’s take a look at the new features that come with Patch 0.7.2.1:
New Dune region hub (Nexus hub is still there)
The new hub area is called Dune. It is a temple with underground areas and a massive outdoor desert area to explore.
I’ll be honest, I feel it’s a bit too big and you’ll spend a lot of time searching for someone to shoot before you see any action. However, from a creative point of view, it looks really nice and there are a few new things to play with (like sitting on top of a cliff with a sniper rifle).
You can also walk/fly directly to the new Temple map from this area.
New Temple map in the Dune region
The Temple map follows the same desert theme as Dune and is used for free-for-all and team deathmatch games. It has indoor and outdoor areas and although it is not as big as the DUne map, it can sometimes be a little difficult to find other players as you meander through the maze of corridors.
New Gauntlets allow you to bullet block and build up combos for double damage
Finally, a new weapon! The Gauntlets are giant metal gloves that you can use as a shield as well as to punch your opponents. Getting a hit can be a bit tricky but they do decent damage.
New Battle Pass with 100 tiers of new loot. Buy Battle Pass for 10% bonus XP
As with all new seasons, everyone’s level is reset and a new Battle Pass becomes available – this enables you to unlock prizes at every level instead of every 5 levels.
New Community Skins
And, of course, new community skins are available.
New Shotgun Alt Fire – Shoots all 4 shots in 1 big shot
I’ve been a bit critical of the shotgun in recent months but this new alternate fire looks like it could be fun. You only get one shot before you have to reload but it does a whopping 300 damage! A direct hit is going to be an instakill!
New Minigun Alt Fire – Heavy rounds shoot slower with high damage
Similarly, the minigun receives an alternate fire option that does more damage than the standard fire. However, this is at the expense of the minigun’s rate of fire, so it’s basically stronger but slower shots.
Katana spirit mode healing increase
Switching to Spirit Mode with the Katana now gives additional healing. Not being much of a Katana-user, I’m not sure how much of an improvement this is.
Knife movement speed increase
When armed with the knife, you now move at a slightly quicker pace.
Seamless level loading between Dune and Temple
As mentioned previously, you can now travel directly between the Dune and Temple maps without having to wait for a load screen.
Show/Exclude Hub maps filter from browse games
Just an additional filter on the games browser screen.
Spectating mode
You can now watch games without becoming involve in the action
Audio spatialization and music volume options
Additional audio options – I’m not a fan of the audio specialization because it makes players that are further away too quiet to hear.
Summary
The new Gaunlets and alternative fire for the shotgun and minigun look interesting and the new maps are ripe for exploration. However, the maps do seem to be a bit big, making it difficult to locate (and attack) other players.
Thankfully the old maps are still available and I’ve been finding myself going back to Nexus very often. Maybe it’s just because that’s what I’m used to but I can’t say I’m a massive fan of the new maps.