Kena: Bridge Of Spirits Is Getting A Huge Update
Kena: Bridge of Spirits is releasing a massive update that should excite fans. This new update is going to bring in several new modes.
Impressive-looking action-adventure Kena: Bridge of Spirits, developed and published by Ember Lab, is getting a massive update — a New Game+ mode. In other equally important news, the game is coming to Steam for the first time next month, on September 27. This is approximately one year after Kena: Bridge of Spirits first debuted on the PC via Epic Games Store, which features some of the best gaming collections, and on PlayStation via its respective digital storefront.
As IGN exclusively revealed, Kena: Bridge of Spirits will receive a free Anniversary Update on September 27, which includes the aforementioned New Game+ gaming mode, as well as several other features, including Charmstones and Spirit Guide Trials, cosmetics, and accessibility features. However, the game will also get a Steam release on the very same day, after a one-year exclusive deal with Epic Games Store.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits‘ New Game+ mode is most certainly going to tickle the imagination of those who had previously completed the game, as it allows gamers who previously completed the game to restart the journey carrying over their entire character progression to the new game. Though it sounds a bit pointless to replay the game as an already built-up character, the combat encounters in New Game+ mode are redesigned to be more challenging.
The update also introduces another gaming mode called the Spirit Guide Trials, which test the players’ skills with a variety of challenges categorized as Obstacle Courses, Wave Defenses, and Boss Reflects. Completing this will unlock more cosmetics for the protagonist, with each one being inspired by one of the characters of Kena: Bridge of Spirits. However, the challenges don’t stop there; completing bonus objectives for each challenge unlocks a color variant for each outfit and some unique Charmstones.
Charmstones are stat-enhancing gems similar to those used in the ever-expanding World of Warcraft, where players combine certain gems with their equipment to boost the stats it offers. In most games, these gems tend to be color-coded, with each color adding or augmenting a specific stat. In Kena: Bridge of Spirits, however, it’s entirely possible that they’ll augment more than just the character’s stats, but also specific skills as well. Unfortunately, the details regarding this specific feature are still scarce, so we’ll have to wait until September 27.
Kena: Bridge of Spirits was Ember Lab’s debut game, the studio made of movie animation experts credited for creating the famous Majora’s Mask — Terrible Fate fan film. After spending five years animating commercials and developing branded applications, the development team felt that making a video game was the next natural step. However, Kena: Bridge of Spirits started out as an animated film, or a series, rather than a video game until they created Rot and realized that the gaming medium would be more appropriate for the narrative.
The studio signed a console-exclusive deal with Sony in 2017 for the further development of Kena: Bridge of Spirits, which was announced in 2022 at PlayStation’s Future of Gaming event. The game was originally scheduled to release in late 2020 but got delayed into 2021 due to working-from-home conditions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
