Earlier this year, MOBA-meets-tower defence hybrid Orcs Must Die! Unchained launched its open beta. Following extensive player feedback, developer Robot Entertainment has now decided to scrap its Siege PvP mode, and will focus its efforts on the game’s Survival mode—something both players and the devs feel better represents the series’ lineage.
In a blog post featured on the Gameforge forums, Mizu explains that the Robot team values community feedback, and that it reads “practically every” Steam review, social media comment and forum post. As such, it's been able to determine Survival mode as the most popular way of playing OMD! Unchained and as the game's Siege PvP is often at odd with the former, they've decided to axe the latter.
“Despite tremendous efforts, Siege PvP mode just hasn’t worked out. As we’ve gone through various iterations on the game mode, we’ve ultimately seen only a small portion of our players actively playing Siege,” says Mizu. “More importantly, people who play Siege matches are less likely to continue playing the game at all after their match.”
Mizu continues, saying this has been the case since the open beta launched in March, and that only a small group of “hardcore” players are now playing PvP. Mizu adds: “As some of the most passionate fans of Siege mode, it’s been difficult for us at Robot to come to terms with this feedback and data. As the game has grown, Siege and Survival modes have competed with one another more and more for development resources.
“The need to balance the traps, heroes, and gear for both of these game modes and develop each in consideration with the other is holding them both back.”
And thus Siege will be removed following the next Orcs Must Die! Unchained update. An account reset is also planned, therefore Robot has created this Q&A which speaks to the move's general queries.
In short: all social connections you might have will remain intact, however experience will be reset “so that all players can experience the new game equally.” Gold purchases will be refunded and all players will be given an “extra boost” via a five euro bonus activated by logging into the new update during the first two weeks post-launch.
