In the midst of a sold-out World Championships and after a decade of pouring their hearts and souls into the MMO giant that is SMITE, the dedicated team behind the project stood before us, beaming with excitement, to announce the next chapter in their franchise’s story. With great pride, Titan Forge's General Manager Travis Brown proclaimed that the time for SMITE 2 is upon us.
SMITE 2 won’t just be an expansion or a beefed-up battle pass, says Alex Cantatore, Smite's Executive Producer, in today’s keynote, it’s a true sequel, a term that was really pushed in the presentation. When we asked them what it meant to be a "true" sequel, Cantatore expressed that the next game will be the evolution of the cross-platform, third-person MOBA, leaping two whole generations to an Unreal 5.2+ engine like Thor shaping up to slam Mjölnir into an unsuspecting skull. The new and improved edition of the game promises to invoke greater feelings of the godly powers at your disposal, along with easier systems to allow the player base to express their creativity.
For the fanbase, this news may come with some mixed feelings. There are no doubt countless players who have dedicated years of gaming and more cash than they care to admit, but that's not lost on the devs - it wouldn’t be the spectacle it aims to be without the community behind them, in particular, the “Olympians”. We asked how they managed the expectations of the die-hard fanbase and it was clear that the project was very much a collaboration with its playerbase. Brown explained that the Olympians would critique every idea, big or small like they’re assessing a restaurant for a Michelin Star. And it made them better. The core goals for SMITE 2 were laid out in the keynote, centring around respecting the time, money, and accomplishments that players have accumulated during their tenure on the franchise's original title.
To put minds at ease right off the bat, we had a chance to chat with the devs behind the SMITE franchise and one message was made abundantly clear - the original SMITE is not going anywhere. At least, not in the foreseeable future. So for those not looking to upgrade their console or simply could not part ways with the OG mythical MMO, you’re welcome to continue your godly warfare as per usual. However, for those who are able and excited to explore horizons new, SMITE 2 will deliver upgrades and alterations across the board.
The task of transferring the Mount Everest of skins and other goodies from SMITE to SMITE 2 was admittedly far too arduous a task for Titan Forge to realistically achieve to the standard that they feel the players deserve. So a lot of time and discussion was had to figure out how to adequately compensate their time and resources, and from the ashes of this rose Legacy Gems and Divine Legacy.
Legacy Gems are simply the Gems from the original SMITE transferred over to the sequel at a 1:1 ratio. To reward their loyalty, all purchases with Legacy Gems will be 50% off until you run out of them. To coincide with this, players will also partake in the Divine Legacy event to kick off the game's 11th year and will reward progress for players for each year of the game. If you've been there from the start, you'll hit the jackpot and enjoy the spoils of your dedication to the game. On top of that, the Divine Legacy event will grant players 11 free skins for when SMITE 2 launches, along with a free unlimited Tier Five and Four that you get to pick yourself.
Outside of the gaming experience, SMITE will also be revamping its competitive structure. The keynote also announced the return of the global professional scene with the SMITE 2 Founders Series, culminating with multiple LAN majors, including the first European/UK major since 2017.
Growth, development, and expansion are at the forefront of the minds of Titan Forge (aside from the happiness of their players, of course), and it looks very much like SMITE 2 will be everything the original game is and better. With five new gods coming to SMITE 2, including Greek goddess Hecate, the devs have confidence that what they have in store will be what the players are asking for. While they were tight-lipped about any future collaborations, it's clear that Titan Forge is pushing to be a titan of the Esports world in their own right.