Another week, another battle royale game. This time, Respawn Entertainment has thrown its hat into the ring with Apex Legends, a game that isn’t Titanfall 3 but will have to make do in the meantime. For what it’s worth, Respawn’s take on the absurdly popular genre looks to be a lot of fun, and it got us thinking about our own thoughts on how BR games have played out thus far.
The GR editorial team described their thoughts on the battle royale genre below. As always, leave your responses in the comments section, and we’ll feature our favorite in tomorrow’s Tell GR.
Paul Tamburro, executive editor: “I like the idea of battle royale games more than I like the execution. I’m sure a game will come along eventually that will change my mind, but aside from that week where I was briefly hooked by Blackout, a battle royale game has yet to really sinks its teeth into me. Apex Legends looks interesting, but I’d much rather a BR game focused on the survival aspect of its concept rather than eventually devolving into a military shooter with zero respawns. Replacing all the guns with fatal traps, makeshift melee weapons, and primitive projectiles would be a more faithful take on the Battle Royale movie these games are emulating.”
Jason Faulkner, senior editor: “I’ve never really been interested in battle royales. PUBG was okay for a while, but by the time Fortnite hit big I was over it. I play almost exclusively single-player games, and when I do play multiplayer games I’m more into cooperative experiences, which battle royales are pretty much the antithesis of. I like feeling like I’m making some sort of progress when I’m playing a game and I’m not really into playing a match for 40 minutes then losing all that progress because some dude glitch shoots me through a wall or something.”
Mack Ashworth, lead editor: “I’m still a big fan of battle royale. So long as the game is able to make the beginning, middle, and end all fun with good pacing, then I’m definitely up for a tension-filled fight to the death. Of course, it’s also important for the game to receive regular updates, as fighting in the same location, with repeating weapons and other equipment, can quickly become boring.”
Bradley Russell, news editor: “I do care about battle royale. It’s easy to dunk on the genre because you might not understand the appeal but there’s a reason millions of players spend their free time with several variations of the genre. It’s fun, easy to pick up, and each session you play is likely to come with as close to transcendent watercooler chat as the industry is capable of at the moment. You can regale your friends and family with tales of Marshmallo concerts, near-escapes in exploding helicopters, and even that time you stared at grass with thousands of other people in the hopes that a new battle royale will emerge. What other genre could do that?”
Michael Leri, features editor: “Battle royale is just not for me. Scavenging around for 20 minutes just to get shot by some prick I didn’t see is frustrating. The RNG gods give the genre high highs but can also curse you with the Mayonnaise Gun while your opponents get equipped with the Ass Blaster 9000 and laser proof armor. And that’s no fun. I can enjoy the tension and cool moments from afar but it isn’t for me.”
Yesterday’s best comment
Question: What is your most played game ever?
Marco Caballero: “Good question. I vividly remember clocking over 300 hours on Fallout 3. But also, I have played both FF7 and FFT fully over 3 times (and that’s more than 100 hours a pop). So either of those.”
