For Honor Year 8, Forged in War, Begins on March 14

For Honor embarks on Year 8 of new content and updates – titled Forged in War – starting on March 14, with the first of four new seasons that will each tell standalone stories focused on special weapons unique to one of For Honor’s factions. Year 8 will also bring two Converted Maps – non-Dominion maps that are being reworked to gradually deepen the game’s pool of Dominion maps – with the first, Cathedral, coming in Season 1 Title Update 2. Additionally, Year 8 will bring two new Heroes (in Title Update 2 for Season 2 and Season 4), new Hero Skins, new game modes, and more.

Season 1, titled The Sword of Ashfeld, will tell a story focused on the Knights and a legendary sword, Valor’s Edge. Passed down from an empire of Knights that stood mighty before the Cataclysm, it’s now carried into battle by its last wielder, the Unsung Knight – first glimpsed in For Honor’s 2016 CG story campaign trailer – who fights to protect the weak and appears as a new Skin for the Warden. Stories centered on the weapons of the Samurai, Vikings, and Outlanders will follow with each successive season in Year 8.

The Unsung Knight will be available on March 14 for 25,000 Steel, and arrives alongside the Last Hero Standing launch event, which introduces a new game mode and a survival-themed makeover for the Canyon map – both of which are inspired by the Unsung Knight’s moment in the trailer and the fight between the Raider, Kensei, and Warden – as well as the return of the original menus, War Map, and (remastered) music. The new mode – also called Last Hero Standing – is a 1v1v1 free-for-all in which the first player to win three rounds wins the match. The game mode will be accessible only through matchmaking in solo queue and will be available from March 14 until April 4. Last Hero Standing also comes with a free event pass, with rewards including a new Battle Outfit, ornament, mood effect, and weapon skins.

Players can expect new Battle Passes as well, which will be joined by the Legacy Pass, a new feature for Year 8 that enables players to purchase or continue previous Battle Passes in chronological order. In Year 8 Season 1, players can buy or continue the Year 4 Season 1 Battle Pass, which includes a new tier with all content retrofitted for Heroes who weren’t part of the Battle Pass when it originally released. Players who originally purchased the Year 4 Season 1 Battle Pass can continue it at no charge. Each pass includes 100 tiers of rewards and an additional tier 101 for the Legacy Pass, and players can purchase the new season Battle Passes and Legacy Passes separately, or grab both in the seasonal Battle Bundle (which also instantly unlocks 25 tiers on each pass and a 20% battle point boost).

For Honor recently celebrated its 35-million-player milestone, but those who have yet to purchase the game will be able to grab it in new Standard, Gold, and Ultimate Editions – all featuring bold new keyart – which include 14 Heroes, 20 Heroes, and 26 Heroes, respectively. And regardless of which edition you own, Arcade Mode – first introduced in the Marching Fire expansion – will be free for all players starting March 14.

Year 8 Season 1 will also feature three Hero Fests for the Warden, Centurion, and Peacekeeper on April 4, April 11, and April 18, respectively. During Hero Fests, one Hero is available for players to try for free for a week, and is also available to purchase at a discount. A unique execution is also released at the start of each Hero Fest. The Centurion’s Hero Fest also coincides with the Rite of Champions throwback event, which tells the story of three legendary heroes with community contract orders that spawn three per day and focus on a specific Hero.

On March 21, the Testing Grounds will reopen to test countermeasures against ganking, a group attack timed to exploit opponents who are mid-animation and can’t react. The changes being tested will affect the damage value in ganking situations, and will affect the Warden, Conqueror, Jormungandr, Shugoki, Hitokiri, Shinobi, Jiang Jun, Zhanhu, Pirate, and Ocelotl.

For Honor is available now for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC via Steam, the Epic Games Store, and Ubisoft Connect. It is also included with a Ubisoft+ Classics or Premium subscription, or available for purchase from the Ubisoft Store.