Duet Night Abyss is going to save me an absolute fortune thanks to its respectful approach to gacha

Weebframe. Waifuframe. Warframeshin. Pan Studio's Duet Night Abyss certainly wears its core influences proudly on its heavily customizable sleeves. The new fantasy anime game is finally here, and to label it as more gacha slop would be doing it a disservice, chiefly because it's done away with the worst elements of the transactional model. And these aren't the only prohibitive system staples within the subgenre that Pan Studio's gotten shot of.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Duet Night Abyss had kicked character and weapon banners to the curb. Every member of the Duet Night Abyss tier list can be acquired through farming in-game content and accruing Character Shards, demanding only your time, rather than your money. It's a ridiculously bold decision, especially considering the hundreds of millions of dollars the likes of Honkai Star Rail in Wuthering Waves regularly pull in every time a new meta-defining character is added to the cast.

Obviously, I won't celebrate too early if the grind is too rough. But having recently returned to Honkai, only to find my meta teams from six months ago can no longer hack end game content, I do feel better about the prospect of simply having to put the time in to get back up to snuff, rather than Himeko beaming my credit card down onto the latest Honkai Star Rail banners.

The process of grinding has also been eased, as Pan Studio has lifted the limitations of time-gated energy systems, allowing us to farm endlessly for whatever we need. Not having to worry about logging in regularly to avoid overcapping energy makes me feel like my time is being respected more, which I feel is a crucial predictor of success in today's ultracompetitive market.

So, how does DNA make its money? Well, from what I've seen so far, it goes incredibly hard on customization, bringing gacha elements only to its cosmetics; these don't have any bearing on gameplay. This is how microtransactions used to be and should be, and I'm elated to see studios in this particular arena, the upcoming Ananta being another example, beginning to return to these sorts of monetization practices.

Naturally, a good gacha system doesn't make a top-tier game. But at the very least, it's enough to entice me to give DNA a shot. If Pan Studio can match respectful practices with a strong cast, moreish combat that can sustain its grind. and a riveting narrative, then I have no doubt that the game will succeed. Many of its gameplay beats pull directly from Warframe, from its mod system to its flowy combat style, so I don't think it'll struggle there. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've booked a trip to Atlasia.

If Duet Night Abyss doesn't look like the game for you, then check out more of the best gacha games and best action games that could fit the bill.

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