Indie game studio Bazooka Tango has announced a new playtest phase for its anticipated digital battle card game Shardbound. With this latest development Bazooka Tango wants to continue the momentum from the success of the previous community playtests.
Developed in collaboration with Immutable Games, a pioneer in Web3 gaming, “Ascent to the Shards” will host 2,000 participants on a first-come, first-served basis. The playtest phase runs from February 21 to March 1 and is open to all players who register on the official website.
Improved strategic card battles
Bazooka Tango has invested a significant $5 million into the launch of Shardbound, with a focus on improving the game’s strategic card battles. The studio took feedback from previous playtests into account and refined Shardbound’s gameplay and progression systems. With ‘Ascent to the Shards’ Bazooka Tango wants to further improve the game based on player feedback.
Bo Daly, the co-founder of Bazooka Tango, shared insights on the progress and plans for Shardbound in an announcement, saying: “Last year’s playtests allowed us to gather valuable feedback to incorporate into the next version of the game, and to huge interest from new and existing players – almost doubling our pre-registration list by adding 50,000 new registrations. He continued by saying: “2023 was about building on the foundation and foundations of the game. 2024 is about delivering an innovative experience and introducing fans to the new Shardbound ecosystem.”
At launch, Shardbound plans to integrate cutting-edge blockchain technology using Immutable zkEVM, powered by Polygon.
Expanding the lore
“Ascent to the Shards” also introduces a new opponent, Venerator Wynn, who will challenge the game’s main characters, Petra and Sabine, in their journey to power. This playtest phase will expand the knowledge of the game and give players a deeper insight into the world of Shardbound.
In addition to refining the gameplay, “Ascent to the Shards” introduces new features such as a free battle pass, quests, updated leveling for spells and equipment, new cards, art and starter decks. These additions aim to provide players with a more immersive and enjoyable gaming experience. The studio is also keen to receive feedback from players during the playtest phase.
Attracting content creators
Bazooka Tango has also announced that a new group of content creators will be joining ‘Ascent to the Shards’. This comes after the success of their previous Shardbound Creator campaign, which received positive reviews from notable names in gaming. Finally, with over 85,000 pre-registrations for the game, Shardbound has already generated significant interest and even earned a nomination for the Most Anticipated Game of 2024 at the GAM3 Awards.