Battleborn vs Overwatch vs Paragon

Battleborn, developed by Gearbox (Borderlands), is a humour infused shooter with MOBA elements such as levelling up per match/mission. The game includes a story mode which introduces a variety of quirky characters and the online multiplayer has various game modes which feel unique. The game has had both a ‘Closed Technical Test’ in January, which led to a delayed release to polish the game, as well as an open beta this past week (13th April for PS4, 15th PC/Xbox one until 18th April). Gearbox have actively been listening to the community in regards to both balance of characters and features in the gameplay, tweaking these in both testing phases. Often Overwatch and Battleborn are the titles compared head to head, but this does little justice to either title. Online gameplay is accompanied by the typical tight learning curve present in MOBA games. Without proper guidance into a fairly new genre for console gamers could see Battleborn failing to grip a more casual audience. This is reflected in the main comments received from the community, which centre around a lack of explanation to core mechanics and unclear marketing to show off the game’s play style. With the release on May 3rd, Battleborn’s biggest task is to establish itself as a title before Overwatch begins its public beta a few days after.

Overwatch is Blizzard’s (Starcraft 2, World of Warcraft, Diablo 3) next big game. The game has seen a long period of closed beta, which at stages earned a bad reputation due to a large number of loyal fans never receiving an invite whilst streamers and their friends were given access. Controversy also recently struck the game after a pose from one of the characters was removed for allegedly being oversexualised. Blizzard have pushed through all this, however, to develop a game which provide fast paced gameplay and a cast of characters with excellent diversity. While indeed the game does look fun, many feel like the game is essentially an updated Team Fortress 2 with skill cooldowns. The game modes are exactly the same between the two, and certain characters share the same role and weapon types as classes from TF2. However, many high skilled players from the TF2 community have moved to Overwatch in the hope that Blizzard support a competitive scene. With a larger cast of characters compared to TF2 (21 to 9) and with more to be released for free, Overwatch adds more depth to an old formula. With Blizzard behind the helm, a large and loyal player base is also likely, a crucial element for the success of an online only game.

Paragon comes from Epic Games (Unreal Tournament, Gears of War) and unlike the other two titles follows closely to the typical MOBA game formula. The aim of Paragon is like many others; push through enemy defenses and eventually destroy their base. Where Paragon breaks the mould is with a deck system earned through in game credits. You can tweak the properties of your character depending on the kind of role you want to fill in your team. Paragon is not in the same style of game as Overwatch or Battleborn, and shares similarities with the third-person MOBA – SMITE. The early access model also seems questionable to the game’s current state, as some jungle minions have placeholder models and ruins the aesthetic of the game. Searching the community forums also shows a large number of complaints that players are not being listened to by Epic, which could be to do with a tight release schedule. Whether Paragon will grip an already saturated and competitive market is yet to be seen. The open beta phases, currently scheduled as ‘Summer’ will be make or break for the game.

It’s often difficult to compare games which are only pitted against one another through market competition. Such is the case in particular for Battleborn and Overwatch, both with overlapping beta/release dates as well as first person shooting. However, hopefully this competition will encourage gamers to experiment and expand the games they play. We shouldn’t shy away from comparisons, as they allow us to critically analyse what we are really getting for our time

Keep yourself in the loop as we review each title when it hits full retail release.