Blizzard managed to make quite the splash with “Overwatch” when it came out, and now that the hype around the game has finally started to subside, other developers have gotten some breathing room for their own projects. And Hi-Rez Games seem to have taken the idea to an extreme level, outright copying the main ideas of “Overwatch” in their title, “Paladins”.
While “Paladins” has been out for a while already, it just got added to Steam, and has been enjoying a lot of attention. Its free-to-play model immediately drew large numbers of players, with many leaving positive comments on the game’s store page and praising the developers for their work.
At the same time, it’s obvious that the game has received a little inspiration from “Overwatch”, as many things about it look quite similar to Blizzard’s game, right down to the style of some heroes. There are some differences at the same time, of course, as it can’t be the exact same game.
The maps are a little larger and more open in “Paladins”, and the game also has a different style of balancing its heroes during a match, including things like character progression and unlockables. It’s also free to play, an obvious plus for Hi-Rez against Blizzard, but it’s questionable how much the game is going to be able to progress based on that factor alone.
It mostly depends on how the studio is going to handle it in terms of updates, balancing patches and new content. Players are quite open to changes in their favorite heroes right now, as the game is still fresh and the meta hasn’t been established that much yet. But in a few months, things will likely start to become more rigid and Hi-Rez would have to think twice about balance changes.
Some players are worried about getting into “Paladins” exactly due to Hi-Rez’s involvement, and the studio’s history in the industry. They’ve already buried two games that weren’t earning them good enough profits, and while “Smite” is still active, many players see it as a question of time before that game is shut down as well.
In the case of “Paladins”, it will probably be a story similar to what happened to “Tribes: Ascend”. As long as there is interest in the game and players keep making purchases in the store, it will stay afloat. If Hi-Rez start getting disappointed with their player numbers though, it probably won’t be long before the game is taken out.
Some players argue that the failure of “Tribes” was partly due to the way microtransactions were handled in that game, as the studio got a bit greedy with their prices at some points. They should have learned a lesson or two from that, and if they handle “Paladins” in a more player-friendly way, this should be a perfect opportunity for them to steal a good chunk of that market share.
Steam reviews for the game are mostly positive right now, and its player numbers are quite high as well. With all eyes on “Paladins”, the game has a true chance to succeed right now.
Meanwhile, some players have been shaking their heads at “Battleborn”, Gearbox’s attempt at getting into that same market niche. The game was seen as a pretty major failure for the studio, and according to some players, a big contributor to that was its price.