<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
is	O
a	O
free-to-play	O
action	B-Application
role-playing	I-Application
video	I-Application
game	I-Application
developed	O
by	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
and	O
published	O
and	O
distributed	O
by	O
Epic	O
Games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
initially	O
launched	O
in	O
beta	O
in	O
May	O
2018	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
early	O
access	O
version	O
launched	O
on	O
May	O
21	O
,	O
2019	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
,	O
including	O
full	O
support	O
for	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
,	O
and	O
was	O
fully	O
released	O
for	O
those	O
platforms	O
on	O
September	O
26	O
,	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
version	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
December	O
10	O
,	O
2019	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Versions	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Device
5	I-Device
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
Series	I-Device
X/S	I-Device
were	O
released	O
on	O
December	O
2	O
,	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
takes	O
place	O
in	O
a	O
fantasy	O
setting	O
,	O
where	O
a	O
cataclysmic	O
event	O
has	O
torn	O
the	O
world	O
apart	O
,	O
releasing	O
monstrous	O
creatures	O
known	O
as	O
Behemoths	O
that	O
prey	O
on	O
the	O
surviving	O
humans	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
is	O
the	O
studio	O
's	O
first	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
was	O
heavily	O
inspired	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
frequently	O
compared	O
to	O
,	O
Capcom	O
's	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
series	O
,	O
which	O
can	O
see	O
hundreds	O
of	O
hours	O
put	O
into	O
a	O
game	O
by	O
a	O
player	O
;	O
the	O
developers	O
themselves	O
have	O
over	O
a	O
collective	O
6000	O
hours	O
in	O
various	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
titles	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
was	O
also	O
influenced	O
by	O
Dark	B-Application
Souls	I-Application
and	O
World	B-Protocol
of	I-Protocol
Warcraft	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
Houston	O
credits	O
Dark	B-Application
Souls	I-Application
specifically	O
for	O
helping	O
to	O
prove	O
out	O
that	O
there	O
is	O
a	O
market	O
for	O
"	O
hardcore	O
action	O
games	O
"	O
focused	O
on	O
player	O
versus	O
environment	O
encounters	O
,	O
which	O
allowed	O
them	O
to	O
take	O
a	O
safe	O
risk	O
on	O
their	O
approach	O
to	O
Dauntless	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
is	O
intended	O
to	O
be	O
played	O
cooperatively	O
as	O
they	O
see	O
it	O
as	O
a	O
social	O
experience	O
,	O
and	O
intend	O
to	O
add	O
social/multiplayer	O
interactions	O
that	O
are	O
persistent	O
in	O
games	O
like	O
World	B-Protocol
of	I-Protocol
Warcraft	I-Protocol
and	O
Destiny	B-Application
to	O
differentiate	O
Dauntless	B-Application
from	O
the	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Houston	O
said	O
that	O
they	O
plan	O
to	O
make	O
extremely	O
difficult	O
quests	O
within	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
so	O
that	O
while	O
most	O
players	O
will	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
reach	O
a	O
principle	O
endgame	O
state	O
,	O
only	O
a	O
few	O
will	O
be	O
skilled	O
enough	O
to	O
take	O
on	O
these	O
quests	O
,	O
similar	O
to	O
some	O
quests	O
in	O
World	B-Protocol
of	I-Protocol
Warcraft	I-Protocol
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
September	O
,	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
pushed	O
back	O
the	O
release	O
schedule	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
citing	O
issues	O
found	O
during	O
the	O
closed	O
alpha	O
period	O
including	O
game	O
stability	O
and	O
game	O
balance	O
in	O
comparison	O
to	O
the	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
formula	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Houston	O
,	O
who	O
had	O
previously	O
worked	O
with	O
Electronic	O
Arts	O
on	O
Mass	B-Application
Effect	I-Application
3	I-Application
,	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
first	O
games	O
that	O
introduced	O
loot	O
boxes	O
,	O
said	O
that	O
they	O
wanted	O
to	O
give	O
players	O
"	O
a	O
clearer	O
relationship	O
to	O
the	O
content	O
that	O
 [ they're ] 	O
purchasing	O
"	O
in	O
their	O
decision	O
to	O
eliminate	O
these	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
was	O
initially	O
planned	O
for	O
a	O
personal	O
computer-only	O
release	O
,	O
but	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
have	O
been	O
in	O
discussions	O
with	O
publishers	O
for	O
consoles	O
,	O
and	O
would	O
like	O
to	O
support	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
if	O
they	O
do	O
publish	O
to	O
these	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Houston	O
said	O
that	O
his	O
team	O
was	O
not	O
worried	O
about	O
potential	O
competition	O
from	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
:	I-Application
World	I-Application
,	O
which	O
was	O
announced	O
to	O
be	O
coming	O
in	O
2018	O
for	O
personal	O
computers	O
and	O
consoles	O
during	O
the	O
Electronic	O
Entertainment	O
Expo	O
2017	O
in	O
June	O
2017	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Houston	O
said	O
"	O
The	O
more	O
AAA	O
products	O
that	O
are	O
coming	O
into	O
this	O
genre	O
,	O
the	O
wider	O
it	O
’s	O
going	O
to	O
get	O
"	O
,	O
and	O
believes	O
that	O
Dauntless	B-Application
differs	O
itself	O
by	O
being	O
tuned	O
to	O
a	O
co-operative	O
experience	O
and	O
using	O
free-to-play	O
mechanics	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
studio	O
later	O
affirmed	O
in	O
May	O
2019	O
that	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
World	I-Application
had	O
initially	O
dipped	O
some	O
of	O
its	O
player	O
count	O
,	O
but	O
Dauntless	B-Application
has	O
since	O
steadily	O
grown	O
thanks	O
to	O
the	O
interest	O
in	O
this	O
style	O
of	O
game	O
created	O
by	O
the	O
success	O
of	O
Monster	B-Application
Hunter	I-Application
World	I-Application
,	O
and	O
was	O
around	O
3	O
million	O
total	O
players	O
at	O
that	O
point	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
At	O
The	O
Game	O
Awards	O
2018	O
in	O
December	O
2018	O
,	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
affirmed	O
that	O
Dauntless	B-Application
would	O
release	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
in	O
early	O
2019	O
,	O
and	O
with	O
future	O
plans	O
for	O
a	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
and	O
mobile	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
wants	O
to	O
offer	O
a	O
One	O
Dauntless	B-Application
system	O
to	O
players	O
,	O
with	O
their	O
progress	O
being	O
saved	O
through	O
a	O
single	O
account	O
regardless	O
of	O
which	O
platform	O
they	O
play	O
on	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
for	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
,	O
and	O
worked	O
with	O
Sony	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
to	O
work	O
out	O
these	O
details	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
helped	O
Phoenix	O
to	O
support	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
through	O
Epic	O
Games	O
 '	O
previous	O
efforts	O
to	O
secure	O
that	O
for	O
Fortnite	B-Application
Battle	I-Application
Royale	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
May	O
21	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
while	O
still	O
in	O
early	O
access	O
,	O
Dauntless	B-Application
was	O
released	O
for	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
transitioned	O
Windows	O
players	O
to	O
the	O
Epic	O
Games	O
Store	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Prior	O
to	O
release	O
,	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
only	O
had	O
anticipated	O
having	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
between	O
Windows	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
users	O
,	O
as	O
they	O
were	O
still	O
in	O
discussions	O
with	O
Sony	O
on	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
cross-platform	O
support	O
,	O
but	O
by	O
May	O
21	O
,	O
they	O
had	O
secured	O
the	O
approval	O
from	O
Sony	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
As	O
such	O
,	O
Dauntless	B-Application
is	O
the	O
first	O
game	O
to	O
ship	O
at	O
launch	O
with	O
cross-play	O
between	O
these	O
three	O
major	O
platforms	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Switch	O
version	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
December	O
10	O
,	O
2019	O
,	O
and	O
versions	O
for	O
the	O
PlayStation	B-Device
5	I-Device
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
Series	I-Device
X/S	I-Device
launched	O
on	O
December	O
2	O
,	O
2021	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
versions	O
support	O
cross-platform	B-Application
play	I-Application
and	O
progression	O
with	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
,	O
PlayStation	B-Operating_System
4	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
Xbox	B-Device
One	I-Device
versions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
acquired	O
Bot	O
School	O
Inc	O
.	O
in	O
August	O
2019	O
to	O
help	O
with	O
Dauntless	B-Application
support	O
and	O
cross-play	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
were	O
acquired	O
themselves	O
by	O
Garena	B-Application
in	O
January	O
2020	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
acquirement	O
did	O
not	O
affect	O
normal	O
operation	O
of	O
Phoenix	O
Labs	O
or	O
Dauntless	B-Application
,	O
and	O
served	O
to	O
bolster	O
Garena	B-Application
's	O
international	O
presence	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Dauntless	B-Application
received	O
tentatively	O
positive	O
reviews	O
at	O
the	O
time	O
of	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
