Digital miniatures tabletop game Moonbreaker has just received its first content update, and with it, Moonbreaker leaves all its in-game monetisation behind. Developer Unknown Worlds Entertainment, the studio behind Subnautica, said that the in-game store and monetisation model were negatively affecting its goal of “making Moonbreaker as fun as possible.”
In practical terms, that means the in-game store is now disabled, and that Moonbreaker’s premium currency, Pulsars, are no longer available. All units are unlocked automatically, and Unknown Worlds says units added in future seasons will similarly be automatically unlocked. This of course means that there’s no longer any need for booster boxes, and thus, those have been removed as well.
Unknown Worlds is also refunding any Pulsar purchases made since the beginning of Moonbreaker’s Early Access period – the studio says those funds were transferred directly to players’ Steam wallets within a few hours of the latest patch going live.
Moonbreaker founder’s packs will remain in players’ Steam inventories, with the Pulsars included in the pack replaced with exclusive skins for Zax and Slopper. However, Unknown Worlds says it will refund those packs if players aren’t happy with the change. Those players have until December 6, 2022 to refund the packs.
Previously, Unknown Worlds backed off of its system of charging Pulsars to play Moonbreaker’s boss rush mode, Cargo Run.
With patch 1.1, the ‘merits’ and ‘blanks’ currencies have been replaced with sparks, and these can be used to purchase upgrades to units’ rarity, which Unknown Worlds explains is purely a cosmetic enhancement.
You should also see faster season track progression and some new rewards added to the season as well.
The patch makes some major changes to the game’s rules, too. There’s no more reinforcement mechanic, or ‘drawing’ throughout each match. Crew rosters have been reduced from 10 to eight, and you’ll start each game with your whole crew.
These are some fairly fundamental changes to how Moonbreaker plays, so be sure to read the full patch notes over on the official site. The update also includes a new game map, Cholek, and the studio has released the second episode of its lore-filled podcast, Moonbreaker: Tales from the Reaches. It’s fun to listen to while you use the in-game miniatures painting suite.