Yep, even I was amazed. Nobody could have expected it. It looked like every conceivable original idea for a gaming genre had been cooked up, spat out and served to the pixel-starved masses. Hell, even scenarios where you were devoid of all weaponry and had to literally sneak your through the campaign, were surely the tipping point of it all, right? Well, never count out the ingenuity of the human brain. The current "Battle Royale" gaming craze is still in full swing and literally took the industry by storm. So given I'm also enjoying this genre so much too, here are some of my thoughts on a few of the bigger games out there, utilizing this award-winning formula premise. Starting with...
https://ipfs.busy.org/ipfs/QmcJyNHnRcX7fwbD7w4gn6wmgcvuT19jeYXhEsinigSDFP
Playerunknown's Battlegrounds (or rather more affectionately referred to as PUBG). I remember within the first five minutes of playing the game, thinking this was something I'd never seen before and was slowly getting addicted to right from the get-go. The map environments were perfect, ranging from densely forested jungle terrain to wide open dessert vistas. As the ever-decreasing "Circle of God" game mechanic continually shrank the map, the tension as well as stakes, grew higher too. The weapons and range of attachments are excellent, adding a new layer of detailed customizability to the already frantic in-game action. Though divisive with some, I personally loved the graphics, especially those beautiful draw distances that allowed you to cover miles of ground if kitted out with the right sniper rifle. All in all, this for me is the one that started it all and quite simply... the best so far!
https://ipfs.busy.org/ipfs/QmazNdde123jtwxcGFG5wJHg8sbirqaz2ePQxRJcYjJqJe
However, I'm sure many will disagree as there is but one other main contender for the crown, who has already arguably won in terms of their pure numbers player base. That game being Fortnite. Now, I must admit something. Hands up, I have only had all of around ten minutes of time spent with this title and whilst I do see the appeal in it (especially as it's a free-to-play title too which is a huge plus), I'm not a big fan of the cartoony nature of it all. I recall a moment where a character lobbed a grenade at another, only for the "victim" to start dancing uncontrollably and to the probable amusement of all who watched him. Fair enough, it only a game, but I need a tad more realism and relatability to the whole thing. So really sorry, but I found the overall package chilidish in nature and thus, quite off-putting. Maybe I need a few more hours of play to change my mind? Who knows...
And finally, with the dawn of "Battle Royale" gaming, the opportunity of a lifetime was presented to the Call of Duty global behemoth franchise. So much so, that the latest Black Ops 4 game didn't even have a built-in single player campaign to speak of. How's that for a ballsy move! But, given the budget and expertise that went into creating it, some consider this the "de facto" experience when it comes to the "Battle Royale" genre. So what they wanted to get nailed to perfection, appears to have been done so rather well. Again, I only played it at launch for a bit but was actually mighty impressed by what I saw. Between PUBG and this, I'd say "pick your poison". But purely in regards to loyalty to its original roots, I personally would still stick to the former.
And now we have the new contender for the throne with the relatively recent release of Apex Legends, that brings a new futuristic theme to the fast-filling arena in an almost "Titanfall-esque" setting. And fantastic, it certainly looks. Will have to give it a go as it is also a free-to-play title and has surprisingly reasonable system requirements. My trusty GTX 970 should just about to able to cope, I should think. The time for a proper computer upgrade is fast approaching now.
So, that's just my two cents worth of "gush" about just how great, yet so simple, this new "Battle Royale" genre is. It now just begs the question. How many more times can this level of genre-defining innovation happen again in the future? Oh well, enjoy for now and make the most of it. See you all on the battlefield!
