Smite 2 reworks MOBA’s Conquest mode with more interaction, progression and some seriously powerful effects
New developer deep dive shows a map that’s both back-to-basics and richer with options
Smite 2 was revealed as a standalone sequel to the third-person god-battling MOBA last month, using Unreal Engine 5 for a visual overhaul on the front end while making a number of significant gameplay and balance changes behind the scenes. Ahead of its planned alpha test this spring, developers Titan Forge have now shown off how the game’s Conquest mode will be evolving.
In a new developer deep dive video, the old Conquest is acknowledged as being “too complex”, leading the Titan Forge team to approach reworking its map by iterating on its core elements rather than just adding more stuff for players to deal with.
A good example are the jungle buffs acquired by eliminating camps around the map. In Smite 2, the camps will level up each time they’re killed, providing gradually more powerful effects that make it worthwhile to keep returning.
In a similar way, foes such as the Fire Giant and Gold Fury will also have multiple stages of progression. The Fire Giant will gain a buff when killed, becoming more difficult to take down but rewarding better drops.
Meanwhile, Gold Fury marks possibly the most significant new opportunity for players, providing permanent team effects when defeated up to three times, at which point she will become Ancient Fury. Take down Ancient Fury and you’ll knock out your opponent’s towers and Phoenixes for a full three minutes, opening them up for a potentially game-winning attack.
Elsewhere, the map will introduce a new interaction system, allowing players to choose when they pick up buffs - rather than automatically collecting them when they walk over the drops - and letting them open doors manually from the other side. You’ll also be able to interact with the Warhorn, an objective point that will upgrade your next wave of minions to champions when claimed.
The swap to Unreal Engine 5 under the hood will apparently make for some more subtle but no less welcome improvements, with the new engine letting Titan Forge’s devs tweak individual parts of the map for better fine-tuning rather than having to approach the map as one single mass. The engine upgrade will see everything run smoother, too, combining with game-wide improvements to animations, spell effects and more.
The Conquest-specific changes add to Titan Forge’s vision for a full Smite sequel that adds depth for existing players through greater ability variety - tied to a new system of managing two power sources for abilities - while also streamlining the current roster of over 100 characters and making it welcoming enough for newcomers to jump in here.
We’ll see how that works out soon enough, when Smite 2 releases its alpha playtest later in spring.