Hey, word on the street is there’s a flashy new MOBA in town. Ever heard of Battlerite?
Back in 2011, up and coming Swedish based Stunlock Studios released Bloodline Champions; a free-to-play online arena game. The idea was to build a MOBA without any of the downtime. No creeps, no mana, low cooldowns, and compact stages ensure matches are packed with action 100% of the time. Now you’ve probably never heard of this game, heck, you’ve probably never heard of League of Legends back then either. It was clear that Bloodline Champions was ahead of it’s time, had it instead been released at the MOBA genre’s prime, the reception could have been different. “Eureka!” I imagine Stunlock devs exclaim when they came up with the idea for Battlerite. A strategic move not unlike what Square Enix had done for Final Fantasy XIV when they re-released it as A Realm Reborn(only in FF14’s case, it was because the original was garbage and they had to improve nearly everything about it).
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7apc6dCt3U]If it didn’t work for Bloodline Champions, why should it work on Battlerite?
Bloodline Champions was never a bad game. It simply lacked a good player base as MOBAs weren’t exactly as popular as it is now. Fast forward to present day and we find the MOBA scene growing faster than you can type ‘ggez’; an opportunity Stunlock Studios pounced right at without delay. Battlerite is ,undeniably so, the spiritual successor to Bloodline Champions and is now currently on Steam Early Access. The core concept it’s predecessor boasted many years ago is still at the heart of what Battlerite is all about. Even some of Bloodline’s roster managed to make it’s way to Battlerite in one form or another.
Battlerite’s main selling point is probably it’s straightforwardness. Matches usually don’t take any longer than 15 minutes; a nice change of pace from the usual 20-50 min MOBA skirmishes. Abilities also cost no mana. You need only worry about your skill downtime and aim as all abilities are skill-shots. There are also no lanes, so your focus is only with your opponents and control over health pickups and power ups. Since game modes are currently only 2v2 to 3v3, team composition is also key, with 19 playable champions to choose from spread evenly across all three roles: Melee, Ranged, and Support. It’s utterly clear that Battlerite is straightforward. So straightforward, in fact, that you can pretty much pinpoint exactly which games some of their features took inspiration from.
I’m guessing most of the people from Stunlock Studios are Blizzard Entertainment fans ’cause the inspirations they took from their games is as obvious as Roadhog’s bellybutton. Not only do you unlock random rewards via Loot Chests, but the customization screen also looks near identical to Overwatch’s. At the beginning of each round, you also get to pick one out of three possible upgrades to your skills, similar to talents in Blizzard’s Heroes of the Storm (and now, apparently, also in DotA 2). They even have HotS’ mounts, which you can imagine, wouldn’t even have much use in Battlerite’s miniature maps.
Now these ‘inspirations’ are obviously minor –one can even say these are just merely the standards for today’s MOBAs– and Battlerite at it’s core remains their most original concept, but it bugs me that these borrowed concepts could have at least been re-dressed to not look too familiar to other games. I’m only saying this because the last thing they need right now is to be branded as just another copycat (Paladins?). MOBA fans can be a sensitive bunch; the slightest hint of plagiarism between these games can cause an outrage among fans.
Having said that, my overall experience in Battlerite’s Early Access has been nothing short of spectacular. It gave me the same strategic, adrenaline filled fun I’ve come to expect from my favorite MOBAs without taking much of my time. The game, for the most part, also seems to be taking steps to the right direction, shaping up to be quite the promising title. Battlerite has something real to offer and has become formidable enough to challenge the genre’s current masters. Though it does look like it still has a long way to go, I have a feeling MOBA fans should keep a close eye on this one.
