[p][img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/2f855a5f966f90c8ac70ac60b302f567f408a5de.png"][/img][/p][p]Happy new year from the Double Edge team! We’ve been hard at work and figured it was time for an update. Today’s newsletter will focus on our plans for onboarding, but first let’s go over the current road map.[/p][p][/p][h1]Road Map[/h1][p]Closed Alpha: [strike]Completed[/strike][/p][p]Closed Beta First Stage: [strike]Completed[/strike][/p][p]Closed Beta Final Stage: Ongoing[/p][p]Open Beta Global Launch: Q2 2026[/p][p align="center"][img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/63065656bbf99ef3db826a18ec9634ecdb9ad681.png"][/img][/p][p]As you can see we are getting much closer to the finish line! Most of the work remaining revolves around getting onboarding and monetization in a good place. Our final month or two will be reserved solely on making things as polished as possible.[/p][p][/p][h1]Onboarding[/h1][p]Relic Arena at its root is a strategy game that can be a little daunting at first glance. We are extremely confident that we have a game that many people will love, but getting past that first hurdle of information overload has been our toughest issue to tackle. As a result, we’ve released [b]the Silk Road beginner challenges[/b], which are available to play immediately after finishing the tutorial.[/p][p][/p][p][img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/e09fa3650b7b93556231fe84b182130ac809f293.png"][/img] [/p][p]The silk road was a vast ancient network of trade routes that spanned from Europe to East Asia. In this mission, you will be greeted by Cleopatra herself, who will give you a mission to deliver her silks to a secret admirer. There are 5 missions in this beginner challenge, each designed around learning how specific units work and how to overcome certain obstacles. [b]By finishing her task, you will unlock Cleopatra as a Leader permanently.[/b][/p][p][/p][p][img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/7dba1959a74e5e51a571531503f4962bf60d9bbe.png"][/img][/p][p]Our tutorial does a good job of going over the basics of the game, but we only introduce a few relics (spells). Going from that into a real game was too big of a jump, as there are around 100 relics in the game at the moment. Each of these challenges will provide you with 10 unique relics that you can equip onto your hero in order to beat the enemy at hand. Doing it this way has made the game much more digestible and gives you an early look as to how effective combinations of spells can make a difference.[/p][p][/p][p]In addition to this, [b]we have introduced standalone challenges that are released periodically.[/b] These are presented a little differently, as the puzzles are not realistic scenarios that you will be able to encounter. An example of one is you are fighting against a Giant gorilla that is extremely slow, but if they get close enough will just one-shot you. You are presented with a handful of relics you can choose from to complete the challenge, and whatever you win with will be removed from the pool if you choose to complete the next level. [b]These challenges have 3 levels, each with varying rewards.[/b][/p][p] [img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/9611d8b201392d84d3fe3a2e82aab259fc412f59.png"][/img][/p][p]In the future we plan to tie this into a global leaderboard system where you can compete for the fastest time or the lowest amount of gold spent. The possibilities for this are quite vast and we know we are just scratching the surface.[/p][p][/p][h1]Next Blog Post[/h1][p]Thanks for reading! In the next newsletter, we will talk about some very exciting new features: live spectating and a fully functional replay system![/p][p] [/p][p align="center"][img src="{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/44775380/4a5b10cecd784d98321b6619cca8ee4b7036f076.png"][/img][/p][p] [/p]