Since we released No Rest for the Wicked Together, weāve now officially given the internal green light to make the new class system the default.
Let me explain why weāre making what looks like such a drastic change.
For the last couple of decades, most ARPGs have picked one of two approaches:
1) Hard class systems.
Games like Diablo or Path of Exile ask you to pick a class upfront, and that decision defines your character forever. You can branch a bit within the boundaries designers allow (e.g. Hammerdin in D2), but you canāt truly craft your own class - youāre always working inside a predefined box.
2) Attribute systems.
Games like Dark Souls or Fallout let you allocate stat points as you level up, and your build emerges from those choices. From Software has used this model for ~17 years, so many assume itās āsolved.ā But attribute systems come with inherent issues: players canāt realistically know which stats to invest in early, and once choices are made, youāre either locked in or forced to rely on respec systems to undo mistakes.
We donāt think either approach is ideal - which is why weāve been working on something different.
With the upcoming Jobs System in Wicked, your characterās class adapts dynamically based on how you actually play. If you spend a lot of time swinging swords, youāll naturally become a better swordsman. If you switch to wands or staves, youāll start progressing as a mage.
Each class has its own weapons, traits, and runes, and players will need to use and master that class to fully unlock its potential. And once mastered, all of the classes skills can be used on other classes as well.
Your class isnāt chosen in a menu - itās earned through play.
This system is clearly inspired by Final Fantasy Tactics, and we genuinely believe it could change how players - and even other developers - think about progression systems in ARPGs.
Iāve learned a lot about this as a developer: In Ori and the Blind Forest, we introduced a traditional skill tree, and quickly ran into a problem: players want to min-max, and they donāt want to be forced to invest into X just to reach Y. Thatās why we moved to the Spirit Shard system in Will of the Wisps.
In a similar way, we believe this new Jobs System finally breaks through some long-standing barriers in ARPG progression.
Itās always scary at first to make changes like that deep into development, but Iām very much convinced that this is going to be a major step into the right direction, not just for Wicked, but for ARPGs in general.
I really think Yasumi Matsuno had figured out the proper answer 30 years ago already and most western developers just havenāt paid enough attention.