In celebration of the game’s one-year anniversary, developer Ember Lab has announced that Kena: Bridge of Spirits is getting an Anniversary update. The game’s biggest update yet will add many new features to the game including New Game+, Charmstones, Spirit Guide Trials, Kena Outfits, accessibility features, and more. Ember Lab also revealed that Kena: Bridge of Spirits will be available on Steam the same day. The game was originally an Epic Games Store PC exclusive and is also available on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4.
As most New Game+ modes, players will restart the game with all of their previously unlocked abilities, upgrades, outfits, Rot, etc. There will be redesigned and more challenging combat encounters which will include new enemy types unique to New Game+. Many bosses will have some additional phases. Charmstones are unique collectibles that provide different adjustments to Kena’s stats and abilities. Some Charmstones contain a benefit and a drawback. There are also rare cursed Charmstones which provide reduced abilities for those players who want a serious challenge. There are also Charmstones that are connected to the new Spirit Guide Trials.
Spirit Guide Trials is a whole new game mode accessed from the Mask Shrine. These trials will challenge a player’s skills. Speaking on the Spirit Guide Trials, Ember Lab said: “By building a variety of replayable challenges, we wanted to encourage all players to test out different combinations of their upgrades and deepen their combat experience.” There are three different categories of Spirit Guide Trials: Obstacle Courses, Wave Defenses, and Boss Reflects. Obstacle Courses focus on Kena’s primary abilities including the Bow, Bomb, and Dash. Wave Defenses pit players against multiple rounds of increasingly difficult enemies. Boss Reflects allow players to revisit their favorite boss fights. Each trial can be played as many times as players want and include objectives to complete.
Rewards for completing the Spirit Guide Trials include unique Charmstones as well as outfits for Kena. Each outfit is inspired by one of the characters she meets along her journey. Completing bonus objectives within each trial can unlock color variations for each outfit.