Sword of Justice, an Eastern fantasy-themed MMORPG developed by NetEase, has just released Season 1.3.1 Update for the Southeast Asia region. This update will run through September 3, and the main highlight isn’t just the new content, but NetEase’s decision to reset the season’s progress. This means that both veteran and new players will start from the same starting line.
This is a fairly common strategy in live-service game to attract returning players who had stopped playing. A season reset is usually a “safe” time to come back without feeling like you’re far behind players who play regularly. Is it effective? It depends on how engaging the new content offered to fill that progression is.
12-Player Raid and the New Evernight Haven Map
The headline feature of this season is Evernight Haven, a three-tiered open-world map that reportedly features time-manipulation puzzle mechanics—players can rewind and fast-forward time to uncover secrets within the map. This concept itself isn’t new in the MMORPG genre, but its execution can only be properly assessed once it’s actually been tried out in-game.
This map features a 12-player raid against a boss named Liu Xingwen, who is depicted fighting across three timelines simultaneously: the past, the present, and the future. In addition to this raid, NetEase has also added a 6-player dungeon titled “Forgotten Secrets,” the final chapter of “Dreamblade Abyss – Illusion,” and a new adventure chapter, “Memories of Cloudcrest.”.
For MMORPGs that rely on PVE content to keep players coming back, the sheer volume of content crammed into a single update can seem overwhelming. But more isn’t always better—what really matters is usually the depth of the encounter design, not just the number of dungeons and raids released at once.
Summer Costumes, and This Is Where Monetization Starts to Become Apparent
In addition to PVE content, Season 1.3.1 also brings a wave of new summer beach-themed costumes through the Sea Scales collection. There are also exclusive costumes for the Southeast Asian market, such as the wolf-themed Greedy Wolf, as well as Nether Bone and Nether Whisper for the Ghost Festival theme. Plus, there are regular outfits like Resonant Heartbeats and Autumn Maple, all the way up to the high-end cosmetic sets Butterfly and Deep-Sea.
Community Events and Tiered Discounts
NetEase has also launched a creator incentive program and guild events to encourage players to share moments ranging from raids and beach photos to fashion showcases. There’s also a Team Consumption event that offers group rewards—including exclusive avatars and titles—to groups that meet specific spending targets.
At the same time, NetEase is also launching the Season 1.3.1 edition of its Lucky Thursday campaign starting July 30, featuring discounts of up to 67% and stackable invitation coupons. There’s also the Chain Bundle, which is claimed to offer more than 10 times its original value for 600 Ornate Jade.
Packed with Updates, but Monetization Still Takes Center Stage
For longtime Sword of Justice players, the progression reset in Season 1.3.1 is likely the most compelling reason to give the game another try—especially if you feel like you’ve fallen far behind. Meanwhile, for new players, the abundance of PVE content—including raids, dungeons, and story chapters—offers a rich starting point to explore.
But as is typical in live-service games, free and paid content coexist within a single update. Interestingly, the new raids and dungeons don’t mean we can ignore the fact that most of this season’s promotional highlights are actually the costumes and discounted bundles. Interested players would be wise to focus on the gameplay content first before getting tempted by the accompanying discount perks.
