Paladins (PC, PS4, Xbox One) keeps our author Leya engaged. In a review, she takes a closer look at the “free Overwatch”.
I have been playing Paladins for a few months now and am still having a great time. However, there are a few things I would wish for in the future.
When I jumped into Paladins, I didn’t know much about this hero shooter. I had only heard that it is supposed to be the “Overwatch for the poor.” I have played Overwatch for countless hours and assumed that Paladins would meet my tastes.
Overwatch has been put aside, and Paladins has become an addiction. What is the reason for that?
Experimenting with the deck build is the heart of Paladins
As a big MOBA fan, I find exactly what makes the game so appealing to me in Paladins. The card system offers me many strategic choices. I can significantly customize the same character through my deck building and adapt it to the specific match. I am free to choose how I want to play my champion and role.
In Paladins, there is no classic support character that runs after their team with a healing beam. Healing supports can quickly become damage supports with the right items. Flankers become damage dealers and vice versa. Should I enhance my tank’s shields or rather go on the offensive? The decision is left to me through the cards.
This flexibility and the rediscovery of champions – depending on the build – makes Paladins a constant favorite for me. There is always enough to experiment with over the long term.
The champions are strong characters, even without lore
I love the champions of Paladins. At first, I thought they were very similar to those in Overwatch. But that’s not the case at all. The heroes play differently and have different personalities. Although there is still no great lore, the champions have strong character. Just through their voice lines and appearances, they manage to captivate me.
An example: The Bomb King is always cheerful and spreads good vibes. Sometimes he tells me laughing that he wants to make a bomb out of my head. Suddenly, his bombs with cute faces look very different.
My favorite champion is actually Evie.
For the future of Paladins, I wish for …
After half a year of Paladins, I still want more and am not yet tired of this action MOBA. However, I do have a few wishes for the future.
At the moment, Paladins is still full of bugs, and with each patch, new ones come up again. Additionally, the servers often suffer from severe hiccups. Paladins is still in beta, which is why I overlook these issues.
The characters of Paladins burst with personality and I am sure they all have cool stories to tell. It doesn’t affect the gameplay. But lore helps me dive deep into a game.
Paladins offers few maps. Here, the pace of new content is restrained. More variety in the maps would create more depth in gameplay. It becomes monotonous playing on the same maps after a while. There is definitely a need for improvement here.
Paladins is F2P and fans of casual shooters definitely won’t make a mistake giving Paladins a try. However, one must be able to accept that Paladins still suffers from hiccups here and there and is not polished down to the smallest detail. After all, it is still in beta.
Paladins is referred to as “Overwatch for the poor” but is rich in MOBA elements, strategic decisions, and quirky characters.
What is your opinion on Paladins? Please share your impressions in the comments.
