Between balance patches, DLC, and stiff competition from other titles, a multiplayer game's lifecycle is unpredictable—even for developers. On April 20th, 2021, developer Fatshark Games dropped the free Chaos Wastes expansion for Vermintide 2, hot on the heels of the game's third anniversary. Best described as Left 4 Dead- Meets-Warhammer, Vermintide 2 has exceeded Fatshark's expectations.
Despite prior expansions meeting mixed reception from the community, the game still enjoys a loyal player base with an insatiable appetite for skaven-slaying. The Best War Games recently met with Fatshark to discuss their different approach with the roguelike-like Chaos Wastes expansion, their aspirations for the game's future, and the challenges associated with sustaining a long-running title. Fatshark Game Designer Markus Olsen and Game Director Marten Stormdal each offered insights on Vermintide 2' s growth and shared the sentiments guiding their development philosophy.
From Standalone Title to Live Service
When asked about the challenges of continuing to develop a long-running title, Markus explained:
"To be perfectly honest, we’re still figuring some of these things out. We didn’t really design Vermintide 2 to be a live service game. Personally, I am happy—and horrified—that people are playing for tens of thousands of hours. So we are looking for ways to improve the game in the long term, and satisfy those players who just want to play it with their friends, and those who want to grind for new items. Upping the quality of every system in the game."
The seasonal battle pass and live service format has become nearly ubiquitous in multiplayer games, so it was surprising to hear that Fatshark never intended for Vermintide 2 to function as such. While the live service model should not be applied to all multiplayer titles, it makes a lot of sense for the Vermintide 2 community.
Since the core game modes, and the Chaos Wastes expansion are fundamentally cooperative experiences, the balance concerns battle passes can introduce to competitive games are less pronounced for Vermintide 2 players. Even the much desired and long anticipated versus mode is expected to feature asymmetric, rats-versus-heroes play, leading to some more lenience than a typical shooter or battle royale title where every player is on supposedly equal footing.
New Ways to Play
While balance is still a crucial aspect of Fatshark's development of Vermintide 2, the Chaos Wastes expansion was crafted with wild experimentation in mind. When asked if substantial adjustments were required for the roguelike expeditions mode, Markus had this to say:
"Y es and no. I think… I’m gonna have to phrase this in a good way. There’s no special treatment for how weapons work. Obviously, we had to keep team synergies in mind. But that’s what’s really cool about Chaos Wastes. It’s a playground for crazy experiments. You can go bananas in terms of what you do, which is a huge plus."
That kind of playground experimentation will likely appeal to Vermintide 2 veterans, as players must adapt their builds on the fly to accommodate semi-randomized weapon upgrades. But it is also a smart move for Fatshark, as they can assess player feedback to learn what kind of gameplay combinations hold the greatest appeal.
Shaking up long-established formulas can be risky, however. Vermintide 2's previous expansion, Winds of Magic, drew some fire from fans for being a paid expansion that threatened to splinter the community, and for feeling 'disconnected' from the core experience in terms of progression. But the beauty of a roguelike mode is that players can go from zero to hero over the course of a single play session. And Fatshark made the update completely free to avoid splitting their player base.
Vermintide 2 is now available for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, as well as Xbox Series X/S. The Chaos Wastes expansion is available for PC, with a forthcoming release for consoles.