Dota 2 casters Shannon “SUNSfan” Scotten and Andrew “Jenkins” Jenkins have revealed Relic Arena, the spiritual sequel to their custom game Ability Arena.
The duo created Ability Arena, which quickly became one of the most popular custom games in Dota 2, however after Valve implemented new monetisation rules the game stopped development and the pair looked to create an alternative. That alternative is Relic Arena, a standalone game that is being developed for PC and mobile.
Of course with the game no longer being within Dota 2 it has a totally new theme, which features iconic leaders from history battling it out for supremacy. So far Alan Turing, Abraham Lincoln, Cleopatra, and Mahatma Gandhi have been announced, with more to be revealed as development progresses.
The game is similar to how Ability Arena plays, with the classic auto-battler style, however instead of selecting spells to build units you will be selecting relics, which all have unique systems attached to them. You can still upgrade them, as was a key feature of Ability Arena, but there are now multiple possible paths and bonuses to choose from, giving you further customisation options.
All of the relics and characters are taken from history and actually existed, meaning you can make some fantasy fights against leaders from different time periods and weapons that they would have never seen.
The goal is to create a game that is much easier for newcomers to understand than Ability Arena, which requires Dota knowledge to enjoy. Now that requirement should be removed, making it much more accessible, but keeping the deep gameplay that made it challenging and difficult to master.
“We take pride in our somewhat cheeky motto: ‘This game is casual enough to play a game while on the toilet, yet hardcore enough to play on stage at a LAN in front of 10,000 people,” said SUNSfan. “Just don’t do both at the same time.’ This encapsulates our vision: a game that fits into your daily routine with ease, but also boasts the depth and complexity to take center stage in competitive gaming arenas.”
Relic Arena is now live on Kickstarter, with the team hoping to raise $25,000 to fund development. Should this goal be met it is expected that Relic Arena will launch into closed beta in 2024 before officially launching in March 2025.
Ability Arena was one of the best custom games available in Dota 2, so seeing the core idea getting a second chance at life after Valve killed it is great. Hopefully, the Kickstarter will get funded and Relic Arena will actually be made.