Dev Talk: Tracking
We recently kicked off a series of Dev Talks which take a look at a number of new features coming soon to Albion Online, starting with the all-new Shapeshifter weapons. In the next of these videos, Game Director Robin Henkys takes a look at Tracking, a new open-world activity.
Goals
As the open world is the heart of Albion Online, Tracking looks add a new element to gameplay here:
Players are challenged to search the open world in pursuit of a target The focus is less on direct PvP combat, but rather to increase the amount of players roaming the open world This encourages chance encounters for different-sized groups
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How does it work?
Following Tracks
Players must first craft a Tracking Kit, which lets them interact with tracks in the open world Reading a track reveals a location to search for further tracks This may be in the same region or a neighboring region Players will generally have to search a wider area for tracks, not a specific point There, players may find further tracks, the final target, or other random encounters Each tracking step has a time limit//assets.albiononline.com/uploads/media/default/media/d4fda21a053735f05dc7f18458620e51264edd96.jpeg
Finding the Target
Each step increases the chances of catching the target, which will usually then involve a fight Bringing too many players can scare off the target, meaning the chase must continue As only the hunters know the location of their target, larger groups cannot simply wait to contest them
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What can be found?
Initially, rare creatures matching the Shapeshifter weapon forms can be tracked down and fought These can drop new Artifact Items These can be crafted into Shapeshifter Artifact Weapons They can also drop new Alchemical Ingredients These can be crafted into a set of rare potions Part of a wider rework of potion enchanting A wider range of trackable creatures will be introduced in later updates
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We hope you’re excited about all the new possibilities which Tracking will open up. In our next Dev Talk, we’ll talk about a new concept which may use ingredients from Tracking: Legendary Items. Stay tuned for that, and thanks for watching!