A lot has happened in the world of Soulmask in the last week. The survival game where you oversee a tribe of independently minded individuals released out of early access with an update that developer CampFire Studio says represents "a complete reinvention of the game." This launch coincided with the release of an Ancient Egypt-themed DLC that basically doubles the scope of the experience. On top of that, CampFire is offering this DLC completely free to players for the next month. As I said, there's a lot going on.
Let's deal with the free DLC thing first. On its Steam page, CampFire says that "all owners of the full version of Soulmask can get [the] DLC free for the first 1 month." To be clear on how this works, anybody who buys the base game through April will get the Shifting Sands DLC bundled in for free. If you already own Soulmask, launching the game within the next month will automatically add Shifting Sands to your Steam account.
As for what Shifting Sands brings, the DLC adds a second map that swaps out the base game's Mayan jungles for the dunes and deltas of ancient Egypt. In this map, which CampFire says is "as large as the base game", players can explore 10 additional ruins and dungeons, fight six new bosses, and expand their tribes' abilities with 325 new talents.
Shifting Sands also introduces several new types of vessel for players to build their mobile base on, ranging from a small wooden boat to a formidable Falcon-class airship, with an even bigger airship coming in the future (CampFire likes airships, apparently).
Whether or not you're interested in the DLC, the base game has received a significant overhaul too. The 1.0 version splits the game into three distinct game modes. There's a traditional survival mode, a "tribe mode" that focuses on expanding your civilisation, and a "warrior mode" that cuts out the core survival systems and makes Soulmask more of an action RPG.
Alongside this, the launch version adds a new tribe development mechanic that lets tribesmen pass on their talents via a building called the training ground, plus a new onboarding system that introduces players to Soulmask's many systems and concepts as you encounter them.
In short, it's about as comprehensive a 1.0 launch as you're likely to see. If you're yet to try Soulmask and are considering picking it up now it's finished, the base game is currently on a 10% launch discount, bringing the price down to $26 (£20). That discount ends April 23.
