Another sweet update from the Splinterlands team and this one is all about style and identity.
The avatar project already had a solid launch during the Christmas holiday with some basic items tied to the Winterfest sale.
Now we see the next step with an expanded avatar shop and a bit more room for experimentation.
This blog is not a full breakdown of the release notes but more my personal take on what this update means and why I actually like the direction they are heading.
The biggest highlight of the recent update is without a doubt the avatar shop getting new items.
Right now the focus is still on frames and backgrounds and while that sounds simple it already adds a lot of flavor to the game.
To me this still feels like a starting point.
The kind of feature that slowly grows over time instead of being dumped all at once.
That is usually a good sign because it gives the team room to adjust and players time to react.
If you look closely at the items and their prices you can clearly see that the team is experimenting.
They are testing what works and what does not.
What players are willing to buy and what might be ignored.
Normally I am not a huge fan of cosmetic items especially when they are locked behind spending money.
In many games cosmetics feel forced or overpriced or pushed too aggressively.
With Splinterlands it feels different, for me.
Probably because cosmetics do not impact gameplay at all.
No stat boost no hidden advantage no pay to win feeling.
You can fully ignore the avatar shop and still play exactly the same game.
But if you care about looks and identity then it gives you another way to personalize your account.
Personally I have not decided yet which item I want.
But I know for sure I will pick up one or two backgrounds.
Some of them already look really clean and I have seen a few avatars in battle that genuinely stood out.
Some examples:
One small but noticeable change is the updated battle end screen where avatars are shown off.
From a design perspective I actually like how they implemented it.
It adds personality and makes wins and losses feel a bit more personal.
That said I turned it off.
When I am speed playing three Frontier accounts at the same time every second matters.
Waiting for extra animations before jumping into the next match slows everything down.
Luckily the team gave us the option to disable it.
That is a big win in my book.
When I play Modern in a more relaxed setting I might turn it back on again.
There are a few things I personally would like to see added in the future.
Avatar items tradable.
Being able to buy sell or trade frames and backgrounds would open up a small but interesting market.
It would also make rare or limited cosmetics more meaningful.
Second I would love to see avatar items appear in reward chests or the rewards shop.
Even at a low drop rate it would feel great to earn cosmetics through gameplay.
Of course the team needs to be careful here.
Anything that can be bought with Glint and sold for DEC always comes with potential exploits.
But I honestly think demand for cosmetics is limited enough to keep that risk under control.
No major gameplay changes no economy shake up just a clean expansion of the avatar project.
The major update is coming with escalation
It improves the look and feel of the game without forcing anything on the player.
You can opt in or completely ignore it and both choices are valid.
If this is just the beginning then I am curious where the avatar project will go next.
For now it is a sweet little update and a nice sign that the team keeps polishing the experience beyond pure gameplay.
Beaker signing off 😎
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