Re-created from the original 2004 MMO of the same name, the Snail development team is now focused on gaining feedback from players in the upcoming weeks in order to hone game mechanics such as questing, leveling, dungeon design, and PvP mechanics.

Dark and Light's massive sandbox world takes the storyline beyond the traditional MMO, delivering a unique blend of MMO and survival mechanics. Players have the freedom to develop settlements, unlock magical abilities, fight for their tribes, or just enjoy exploring the world’s many distinct environments. Dark and Light's use of Unreal Engine 4 guarantees superb visual fidelity and advanced physics, providing players with a rich and stimulating gaming experience in an ever-changing virtual world.

Dark and Light is a persistent, living world, with a heavy focus on combat where movement and battle have shifted from third-person tab-targeting to an action-based FPS-style system. The game features active participation through dodging, where precise aiming along with managing skills and magical abilities are the keys to victory. Players need not enter the fray alone, as many of the world’s creatures can be tamed and used as mounts to gain a tactical advantage in battle.

Dark and Light features environments inspired by real-world locations, including volcanoes, snow-capped mountains, swamps, plains, forests, jungles and more. Additionally, Dark and Light showcases beautiful fantasy biomes, such as a series of floating islands where players will encounter more than 50 unique species of creatures as they traverse the landscape. These aren’t just mindless, cut-and-paste mobs either – each has been meticulously designed to fit seamlessly into their respective habitats and will behave as though they had naturally evolved in the world.

Snail Games USA will launch the first major Dark and Light content update to Steam Early Accesson Saturday, September 2.

Players are invited to explore "The Mysteries of Blackice Peaks" by adventuring into the all new Frost Cave. If you can get past Ice Spiders, blue-skinned Ice Goblins and other mutant beasts, you'll encounter the first giant boss, Bytorg The Frost Bound ... so maybe bring some friends?

As summer fades, a chill is coming to Archos ….

Amongst other things, The Mysteries of Blackice Peaks content update will include:

1. New Adventure - Frost Cave:

Deeply-buried and home to various Ice mutant beasts, the Frost Cave is an all-new area to find and explore. Each creature has different attack capabilities to stop players in their tracks. Those that get past them to the darkest depths of the caves, will meet the very first giant boss – Bytorg the Frost-Bound.

Some of the Creatures in the Cave:

• Ice Goblin: recognized by their blue-skin and glowing eyes, these guys are more greedy and tricky than your average Archos goblin!
• Ice Golem: golem with increased defense thanks to some nice frost armor
• Ice Spider: a tough opponent with fast reflexes
• Ice Minion: summoned protectors of Bytorg the Frost-Bound
• Cave Yeti: fiercely territorial creatures, guarding the Frost Caves for generations
• Bytorg the Frost-Bound: giant yeti sealed by the frost mountains, guardian of the Frozen Workbench. This gigantic creature is as tall as three men, and can cast different kinds of ice spells. Do not meet alone

2. New Weapons and Equipment:

New frost armor and weapons can be crafted via the Frozen Workbench guarded by Bytorg the Frost-Bound. The only key to activate the workbench is carried by Bytorg at all times – of course.

• Frostblade: A one-handed weapon with freeze and deceleration effect when hitting the target
• Force Bow: A strong and durable bow made of the furs of Bytorg which deals tremendous damage to targets
• Frost Hammer: A heavy hammer made of the Earth Essence and Crystalline Alloy. It deals more damage while riding on Vicious Hyena
• Frost Armor: Crafted from Bytorg’s loot drop and provides considerable defense against ice and lightning damage 

3. New Energy Surge:

The emergence of Bytorg brings an energy surge throughout the land. Previously buried energy veins scattered around the world start to pulse again. Adventurers can search for these ground veins, tap into them with magic, and summon the ancient deities to imbue powerful crafting enchantments and magic essence into their weapons and armor.

With such a great energy force, also comes some mutated creatures …

4. New Structures, Engineering, Spells and Other Surprises!

Full patch notes detailing all of the exciting new content mentioned above and other fixes will be posted to the Dark and Light Steam page once the content goes live.

While it's possible to survive as a lone wolf, it's a long and hard path that many players won’t be able to handle. Dark and Light’s survival aspects can be extremely draining, as hunger, fatigue, illness and attacks from other players and wild creatures will take their toll. There will be no quests or tutorials, so learning about the world quickly is vital if players want to thrive. It is extremely important to support each other and grow together in order to progress.

Key Features:

• Master the Elements: Discover, craft, and cast dozens of powerful magical spells to take on the threats looming on Archos.
• Explore a Massive, Living World: Travel from frigid mountain peaks, to dense forests, floating islands, hidden caverns, volcanic regions, and more.
• Build a House and Support Your Faction: Join one of three factions, build your own noble house, and take on other players to dominate Archos.
• Choose a Side: Support the Light or the Darkness, fill the world with powerful Dark creatures, or purify the world with Light.
• Take Command of Powerful Creatures: Tame virtually any creature you encounter in the world - giant treants, mystical elementals, and legendary dragons can be at your command.
• Protect Your Home: Build anything from a straw shack to an enormous fortress to defend against hostile forces.
• Free Sandbox Exploration: Cut scene-driven storytelling and instances are emphasized over questing. After siding with a faction (which determines the player’s starting city), the world opens up, enabling players to develop their character the way they want. They can take the role of a skilled artisan, ferocious warrior, a happy-go-lucky explorer, or anywhere in between.
• Mysticism and Magic: No matter which path a player chooses, they will incorporate magic into their skill set as they develop. A limited pool of skill is allocated to level up, making it crucial for players to plan early to ensure they end up with a character they’re satisfied with.

Dark and Light is currently on Steam in Early Access for $29.99.