Albion Online introduces a new low-stakes PvP mode for more fun but less soul-crushing item loss

In the world of MMORPGs, there are a few names everyone knows, like RuneScape or WoW. Albion Online is not one of them, which is a shame, because it is pretty fun. Case in point, the recently released Abyssal Depths that adds content to one of the best aspects of online gaming: PvP.

You will launch into this new content from the Antiquarian’s Den, a fresh hub for PvP. It offers improved matchmaking, promising fairer fights. From here, you will enter The Depths. Albion is jumping on the bandwagon with an extraction-style dungeon set up featuring a modified PvP ruleset. If you die, you drop your inventory, but you keep your equipped items, making for a lower-stakes affair.

Perform well enough and you can unlock two Antiquarian rewards: big spider mounts. Outside of PvP and arachnids, you can also collect the Truebolt Hammer and Stillgaze Staff Crystal Weapons. If you are a newer player, there is an improved tutorial to work through alongside a Character Progression category in the Journal for all denizens of Albion to earn long-term achievements.

From July 5th to August 2nd, Albion Online will host an invitational contest, dubbed The Crucible. Over 100 of the globe's top streamers will form their own guild and compete for points across the four weeks. The top 20 will be rewarded with prizes worth over $50,000 and 10,000 Twitch subscriptions.

The overall winner will also be granted a very special prize: a genuine pair of Galatine swords. Forged by the masters at Man at Arms, they will be a real-life representation of the in-game weapons. A very cool prize, which is why it is incredibly disappointing that the only people eligible to win are those who could more easily buy them themselves. 

Albion Online is available to download from the App Store and Google Play.