Opponent 3: Paladins – Champions of the Realm – Does innovation pay off?
The Hi-Rez Studios have a hot iron in the fire: With the team-based first-person shooter Paladins: Champion of the Realm, the American studio is sending a supposed Overwatch competitor into the race.
Always on the lookout for the holy grail of MOBA and MMO, I regularly search the infinite expanses of the internet. Often with success, more often without, and mostly Schuhmann is faster. Who would have thought that I would accidentally stumble upon a gem of a team shooter in Hall 9 at gamescom? And that on the way to the fries stand.
With Paladins: Champions of the Realm, the developer studio known for Smite has secretly developed a team shooter in the MOBA style with Hearthstone-like elements. Yes, Hearthstone-like elements. Because in Paladins, there is a kind of collectible card system implemented, allowing you to improve your heroes during the game.
Before the match starts, you put together a deck from a pool of cards. Each time you level up, you can choose one of three randomly drawn cards from your deck and improve your hero. Thus, character development during a match depends on how you plan your deck and how much luck you have with drawing cards. Oh yes, there are mounts too!
Forecast: Paladins: Champions of the Realm reminds me of a great title from long ago called BattleForge. An extremely good game with a mixture of trading card game and RTS. It was years ahead of its time.
What the Hi-Rez Studios are packing into this title in terms of innovation is truly impressive. Maybe Apple could take a few pointers from it. Although the playable version at gamescom was not even in alpha status (source: The nice man at the stand, wearing a Hi-Rez t-shirt and holding a KFC Family Chicken Box), the game ran exceptionally well.
What I particularly like is the changing gameplay scenario within a match. Starting with a kind of “capture the flag with intense shootouts and plenty of action”, moving to a tactical capturing and defending mode. The card system also gives an innovative impression, as it is much more than just “another way of attribute distribution”. Here, luck plays a crucial role. The combat system is kept simple, yet the shots go exactly where I aim.
Currently, Paladins: Champions of the Realm is still in an early development stage. A release date is therefore uncertain. Most likely in 2016 and then for PC.
Competition enlivens business! With Gigantic, Battleborn, and Paladins, Blizzard is already facing some fierce competition before the release of Overwatch. How dangerous the opponents ultimately are for Blizzard’s upcoming team shooter can only be speculated. My favorite is definitely the “underdog” Paladins: Champions of the Realm. And yours?
