When it launched, Kuro Games‘ Wuthering Waves suffered from a host of technical issues, along with a bloated narrative and some sub-par voice acting. However, the core story, wonderfully crafted world, and enjoyable gameplay kept me invested through its initial release. Now, nearly five months later, I still log in every day, looking forward to knocking out my dailies and prepping my characters for the next content drop. So settle in as I explain why I’m still playing Wuthering Waves.
The first thing Kuro Games has done to improve the game experience is address the technical problems. The plethora of technical hiccups that held back players’ enjoyment is all but a memory. Any technical difficulties players run into these days fall well within the norm for a huge open-world game. The dedication and speed that went into fixing the product players were investing in helped smooth out the gameplay and establish a level of trust that players’ complaints would be listened to. The approach Kuro took towards mending the hurt due to a rough launch also helped establish another element of their work on Wuthering Waves that helps keep me coming back: Their generosity towards their player base.
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To compensate for the struggles players endured as the game got off the ground, Kuro Games showered players with lots of resources. Eventually, they even gave everyone a free five-star character. While these gifts were appreciated, it quickly became clear that they wouldn’t be isolated incidents. The developers soon showed that their philosophy was to get players invested in their game through easy access to resources and content.
Every update comes with many bonuses that players can claim, mainly by doing the things they would do anyway. And in their 1.2 patch, they even gave away one of their new five-star characters, something rarely done by their biggest competition. This generosity helps smooth out gameplay and leaves the player feeling like Kuro Games genuinely wants them to have a great time and hopes they’ll spend money.
With all the technical elements and monetization discussion out of the way, let’s talk about the gameplay that keeps me coming back to Wuthering Waves. While the core tag-in-and-out action gameplay hasn’t changed, each new character introduced utilizes the simple core mechanics in interesting ways, growing the moment-to-moment gameplay experience. From Zhezhi zipping around the battlefield paintbrush in hand to Shorkeeper’s multi-phase Resonance Liberation, each character has showcased how the developers can work within a simple framework to make each character feel unique and fun.
The core gameplay is also kept fresh by not belaboring how long players need to engage with it. There are many days where I do little more than knock out my dailies, which take less than 30 minutes. But despite the short play time, I always feel like I have made progress on whatever goal I’m currently working towards.
Whether it’s leveling a new character or upgrading skills, Wuthering Waves never makes me engage with content that feels like a waste of my time. No resources only drop X% of the time. If I spend my time-fighting something, I will get rewarded for it. And the number of times something must be done to reach a desired end always feels reasonable.
Along with making each character fun, the game does a great job of allowing each character to be a viable choice for players’ teams. While the five stars are always the strongest, nothing keeps players from playing characters they like as they complete the narrative or grind for resources. Four-stars like Chixia provide fun and engaging experiences that players who are unconcerned about having the “meta” list can enjoy bringing to a fight. Even Rover, the main character, holds their own.
This is especially surprising as many character collector games leave the main character behind as quickly as possible to encourage players to pay for better ones. The ability to keep my Rover in my party is a huge strong point for the game for me, as I want the character who is supposed to represent me present for the story’s critical fights.
Speaking of the story, this is another element of Wuthering Waves that has been refined now that the game has seen several new content drops. While the initial story offering was weighed down by exposition and future setup moments, the follow-up drops have been far more focused affairs. While some moments can still get a little wordy, the overall presentation of the stories that have come in the 1.2, 3, and 4 patches have delivered tons of memorable moments.
From epic scenes like Jinshi’s confrontation with the Gaurdian Sentinal Jué to emotional moments like The Shorekeeper’s reunion with Rover, the biggest moments in these arcs hit with all the force of a big-budget triple-a experience. And with three out in the first five months after launch, Kuro Games doesn’t leave its players waiting long for their next narrative event.
While the core narrative delivers the biggest moments, Wuthering Waves has also shown that it understands the importance of framing the world it exists in outside of the crises that threaten it. While small side missions always deliver opportunities for slice-of-life stories, Kuro Games has gone bigger than that, devoting a whole update, 1.2, to the city of Jinzhou’s Moonchasing Festival.
While the update still brought some heart-string pulling moments, it largely focused on the game’s cast working to make a celebration memorable. Getting to revisit with previous personalities as they excitedly work to make a community event shine is a wonderful way to help players invest emotionally in the world the game tasks them with protecting.
The developers continue to draw me into the world of Wuthering Waves, thanks to its wonderful design and visual presentation. While the original set of regions the game launched with look great, each subsequent addition has only gotten better. From Mt. Firmament’s design that depicts a giant stone dragon jutting out of the center of the island to the ethereal colors and glowing flora of The Black Shores, the world keeps growing, not just in size, but creativity and design.
The above are just the biggest reasons why I’m still playing Wuthering Waves. Loads of quality-of-life improvements and gameplay tweaks have also done lots of work in keeping the unending gameplay loop of this free-to-play game running smoothly. With so much already available and more on the horizon, it doesn’t seem like my adventures with Rover and their companions will end anytime soon.
Wuthering Waves is available on PC and mobile devices.
