XDefiant Season 2 Shoots Out September 25, New Faction, Weapons, Maps Revealed

For those looking to jump into XDefiant, or those who are still playing the game, Season 2 is right around the corner, as it’s set to kick off this September 25! Included in the second season of the free-to-play shooter is a new faction in the Highwaymen, new weapons, maps and more.

New Faction: The Highwaymen

Based on: Far Cry

Passive – Revved – Increases fire and reload rate for consecutive kills

Abilities:

• M79 Grenade Launcher – The M79 is as straightforward as it is devastating; simply point it at your target, whether that’s an enemy or their ability, and blow it up. Two shots before it goes into cooldown.
• Scrap Turret – Mounted machine gun provides 360-degree coverage from wherever you place it.

Ultra: Saw Launcher – Blasts ricocheting buzzsaws to effectively dominate any close-quarters space

New Weapons:

• PP19 SMG – Stands apart from other SMGs in the game by focusing on damage and accuracy over movement speed and rate of fire, with the highest headshot-damage multiplier in the group. It boasts a large magazine, increased range, and a more consistent recoil pattern.
• L86 LSW – Designed to allow runners to run, aim, and shoot faster, functioning almost as a middle ground between the AR and LMG classes. To balance out its boosted speed, the L86 deals less damage and carries fewer ammo than other LMGs it has the fastest time to kill in 30-45 meters.
• SPAS-12 – A new semi-automatic shotgun, a combination of the AA-12 and the M8-70. It has the capability to one-shot kill, but can quickly finish the job with a second shot if the first one wasn’t enough

New Maps:

• Waterfront (Available at S2 launch) – Inspired by the post-apocalyptic Hope County, Montana in Far Cry: New Dawn. Waterfront is big, holding both a skate park and music stage area, and favors long- to medium-range playstyles (sorry, SMGs).
• Signal (Available In-Season)
• Air & Space ( (Available In-Season))

New Game Mode: Bomb

Coming later in Season 2, Bomb is a new arena-style mode where the attacking team picks up a bomb, plants it in one of two designated locations, and attempts to ensure its detonation. Meanwhile, the defending team attempts to defuse it – or prevent the bomb from being planted in the first place. Teams switch sides every round, and the first team to win six rounds wins the match. Bomb will start in casual playlists, allowing the developers to gather community feedback and refine gameplay before it hits Ranked.

Bomb also switches up some aspects of gameplay, designed to ensure teammates are working together to form the best strategy to win the game instead of relying on faction abilities or camping. Once your Ultra meter is full, you can’t switch to another faction to use its Ultra ability; if you try, your meter will be reset. Stick with your pick and activate that Ultra right when your team needs it the most.

Oh, and the other thing about Bomb? No respawns. You only get one life per round, so tread carefully and don’t go barreling right into the path of a Cleaners’ Incendiary Drone.

Private Matches

Private matches are coming to XDefiant later in Season 2, allowing you to create custom games for you and your friends. You’ll be able to select the map, mode (both Ranked and Unranked iterations), and how many players you want in your lobby. In private matches, you can roll with the standard 6v6 (or 4v4 in Ranked) party size, or customize to 1v1, 2v2, or trios.

You can watch the new faction in action in the latest XDebrief episode:

Aside from this, there’s also a new device incoming and a new limited-time mode out for Season 2. Once we know more about those, we’ll be sure to let our readers know. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the Year 1 roadmap which got an update, right here.

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