Skip To...
Whenever I think I have seen everything Enshrouded has cooked, Keen Games arrives with another massive update that adds a new biome, improves many existing mechanics, and makes me restart my world again. I’m not complaining, though. Naturally, Enshrouded: Wake of the Water has done it again because it does more than just add the most realistic and beautiful water I’ve seen in a survival game. It also adds my favorite biome to date, the highly requested revamp to combat and itemization, and many other things that will make the game feel fresh as we head toward the launch of 1.0.
Let it Flow
I was fortunate enough to try Wake of the Water before its official release, and in the words of my favorite demon hunter in MMO history: you are not prepared.
In all seriousness, however, we already know a bit about what’s coming with Update 7, mainly voxel water, which, believe it or not, is the greatest we’ve seen in any other survival game.
For the preview, Keen Games provided me with a save file that put me right into the game’s new biome to test out many of the mechanics. I’ll go over most of them here without spoiling all the surprises for the Flameborn that will dive into them on November 10.
First, the new biome. While many of us remember the enormous mountains of Souls of the Frozen Frontier, instead of going high once more, we are now going underwater and into a thick jungle full of dangers in this water biome. As soon as I loaded the save file, I was dropped into an area with all the new crafting stations, including a coffee brewing machine and other contraptions that required water. I didn’t spend a lot of time here because, contrary to those expert builders out there, I’m more of an adventurer. Or, well, that’s the excuse I tell myself because I am terrible at building things. In any case, I ran into the jungle without a care in the world, and my jaw dropped after a few steps.
This new biome embraces the whole water exploration concept, but it also has some Uncharted and Indiana Jones feel to it. There are a lot of ruins of an ancient civilization invaded by humans that you can explore. I encountered temples full of underwater chambers and a few rooms rigged with traps that almost ended my adventure. I’ve always praised how immersive the world of Enshrouded is, but this biome is on a whole different level. The thick jungle hides a lot of lizard-like enemies with challenging mechanics, and the temples are just as dangerous as the foes you’ll be facing outside of them.
Yet, overworld exploration isn’t the only new thing, as Wake of the Water also brings underwater exploration. As long as you find a body of water that lets you dive, you can start scouring the depths for treasure or materials that you’ll use with some of the new additions of this update. There are also items that make underwater exploration easier, such as an item that lets you collect certain ingredients and some diving helmets that extend your diving time.
If you prefer going down the creative path and focusing on base-building, Wake of the Water also offers many things for players who like pushing the game’s building mechanics to new heights. As I said before, I’m not the greatest builder, but I still tried my best to create a proper base with some water. I flooded it in seconds. But there are things to prevent this from happening, especially if you’re someone who is still doing the usual 4×4 houses and not the huge castles other talented community members are showing off.
You can create waterfalls within your base, then let the water run to interact with certain building parts. There are even options now to let you modify how much a tree will grow, and water also plays a huge part in bringing life to your base. If your base starts to flood, however, there are dozens of new items that let you drain some of that water to prevent it from creating waterfalls in your bedroom.
The work Keen Games put into making water so dynamic and interactable in Wake of the Water is amazing, and one that really feels like a game-changer. Plus, you’ll be able to use some of these new items as soon as you spawn, which leads me to my next point: the new-player experience.
A Fresh Start
Whenever a new update launches, I leave my original world untouched and then start a new one to see how the new-player experience feels. Among all the major updates, this one overhauls most aspects of the early game for players. For starters, those following the mage archetype now have access to spells as soon as they grab their first materials.
Itemization has also been improved, with many weapons getting stat buffs and all of them getting better durability. I also noticed how I was finding better weapons in chests early during my adventure. Furthermore, it was easier for me to lean toward a class fantasy in my new world, as all weapons seem to cater more now to a specific playstyle, which is the overhaul the combat of Enshrouded needed.
Speaking of weapons, the greatsword is finally here, and it is as destructive and heavy as you can imagine. I tried this one mostly in the save Keen Games gave me, and I was able to slice the new lizard enemies with just a few hits. Since it is a slow-hitting weapon that doesn’t let you use a shield or a bunch of protective items, you’ll have to plan your build first if you want to make this your main armament. And while I usually go for dagger or sword and shield, the greatsword is an excellent addition to the many weapons we have in the game.
While you can enjoy everything in Wake of the Water in your existing world, I recommend you try to start anew just to see how better the new-player progression is. I really felt as if class fantasy was stronger with the weapon updates and the addition of the Fire Bolt spell at early levels, so that opens up a lot of character-building options for other Flameborn. But if you don’t want to say goodbye to the world you’ve spent hundreds of hours in, then you can just keep going there, as several new features will keep you occupied for dozens of hours.
An Update Flooded With Great Things
Ultimately, Wake of the Water is the perfect excuse to return to your world, start a new one, or begin your adventure as a Flameborn for the first time. The new biome is bigger and more intricate than anything we’ve seen so far. Its new progression systems lean a bit more toward class fantasy and let players enjoy a smoother time during the early levels. But overall, this update shows once again that Enshrouded is the survival game that keeps on giving, and one that still puts Keen Games at the top of the list when it comes to high-quality early access updates.
