The First Berserker: Khazan has just been fine-tuned with its inaugural balance update, especially aimed at making the Easy difficulty setting more manageable. This update was rolled out with some changes to the weapons and boss dynamics in the game.
Crafted by the South Korean team at Neople and brought to players by Nexon, The First Berserker: Khazan offers a fresh spin on the soulslike genre, complete with cel-shaded visuals and rapid combat sequences. Despite aiming for the challenging gameplay synonymous with its genre, it distinctively includes an Easy mode. When a player falls three times in the game, they’re offered to switch to Easy mode—though, it’s a one-way ticket for that playthrough as there’s no turning back to the Normal mode once this choice is made.
As the game geared up for its release, it received a balance patch in the early hours of March 27th. This update makes the Easy mode significantly gentler by upping the damage Khazan delivers and lowering the damage received, covering both health and stamina. Neople hasn’t detailed the specifics of these changes, so the precise impact on gameplay remains a bit of a mystery.
In terms of gameplay, reducing health and stamina costs significantly benefits those who rely on Guard-based tactics. Up until now, blocking has been a stamina-heavy skill to maintain, with perfect Guards using up more stamina than dodges, despite being a slightly easier technique to master.
Feedback from players has been instrumental in bringing about this change. Junho Lee, the Creative Director, noted that while the Easy setting was designed with accessibility in mind, some players were struggling with it, leading to this revision. Nonetheless, the game still poses an engaging challenge for those up for it.
This latest update doesn’t just stop at difficulty. It also enhances the Greatsword’s Brutal Attack skill while adjusting the Spirit and Guard Stamina consumption for the Spear’s Phantom: Heatwave skill. Some bosses like those in Skoffa Cave and the Great Temple have been toughened up, whereas others, like Viper, have been eased. This update is marked as version 495103 on Steam, and 01.002.028 and 1.1.2.28 on the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S, respectively.
On launch day, a patch note was made available outlining not just gameplay tweaks but also error fixes. Players are encouraged to update to the latest version for the best experience.
Among the bug fixes are remedies for crash issues when retrying battles or checking certain tooltips, along with a solution to stats dropping when specific gear was in use. Further detailed information is available in the March 26 Known Issues post.
As for difficulty balancing, the update made further enhancements to the Easy mode buffs. Boss characters were rebalanced across different difficulty settings, with some bosses becoming less challenging, while others received a power-up.
For those interested in specifics, the Greatsword sees a boost to its Brutal Attack, and the Spear’s Phantom: Heatwave now asks more from its Spirit and Guard Gauge.
For those encountering graphical issues or crashes, Neople is investigating and encourages players to reach out for support, providing log and save files for troubleshooting. Detailed steps on how to locate and send these files are outlined, promising enhanced assistance from the support team.
For players affected by these issues, reaching out through the 1:1 inquiry is recommended, allowing support staff to provide more precise help based on logs and save files you can provide.
Players looking for more on the balance updates can refer to Neople’s Dev Note, and for assistance with game launch or save file issues, the support team is ready to help via direct inquiries.
