There’s a new powerhouse Battle Royale game in town and it’s gunning for Fortnite. Apex Legends was silently released by the makers of Titanfall, Respawn Entertainment but it didn’t stay quiet for long. Quickly Apex Legends grew to be a massive player in the Battle Royale arena. People are now losing interest in Epic Games’ once monumental phenomena, Fortnite. However, the video game industry and fans alike are keeping a close eye if this is just a trend or if Apex Legends will put an end to Fortune for good.
What Makes Apex Legends Different?
Apex Legends includes unique mechanics that make it stand out when compared to other Battle Royale games. It is played in groups of three and gamers choose between wildly different heroes at the start of each match. A full list and a detailed look at each of the heroes, also known as Legends can be found here. Each of the Legends brings with them special abilities that help influence the tide of a gunfight. Support characters can heal or give teammates the ability to reposition quickly, some can teleport, leaving behind traps, or trick enemies with holograms and so much more. Apex Legends does a tremendous job mixing hero-based first-person shooter mechanics with a Battle Royale game.
Another aspect of Apex Legends people are enjoying is its user-friendly tagging system. Teammates can communicate effectively using the tagging system without ever having to speak on a mic. Tag guns, armor, or health packs to alert teammates there is loot waiting for them and point out enemies, effortlessly. One button is all a player needs to communicate with their teammates using Apex Legends tagging feature.
Fortnite was a sensation when Epic Games first released it for free. A year after its release, Ninja was streaming Fortnite on Twitch at an ESPN event and broke a record with over 600,000 concurrent viewers. Fornite brings its own mechanics that made it stand out against the once king of Battle Royale, Playerunknown Battlegrounds (PUBG). In Fornite, players can build walls, ramps, and manipulate their creations on the fly in order to give themselves a tactical advantage over the enemy. Radically different than any other Battle Royale available in 2017 and quickly going viral, Fortnite was and remains the ultimate champion among Battle Royale games. However, now it looks like there could be a new king in town.
Step Aside Fortnite, or Is It Too Soon To Tell?
According to Gameindustry.biz, on February 12th, Apex Legends stream viewers watched 8.4 million hours of matches. This is a million more hours than Fortnite ever received in a single day. With Fortnite running out of steam and Apex Legends just beginning, it seems as though a new Battle Royale game is finally going dethrone the fort-fueled death arena that is Fortnite. Still, Fortnite continues to trend higher than Apex Legends on the Twitch Stream charts. Apex Legends might be off to a great start but the long-running champion, Fortnite, isn’t going down without a fight.
With such a massive audience, the old champ isn’t giving up its title just yet. There is still a long road ahead for both Battle Royale games and Apex Legends came out of the gate strong. Only time will tell for sure if Apex Legends is the game that will put down Fortnite, however, the future looks bright for the newcomer.
This guest post is courtesy of Gigamax Games
