Paladins, a multiplayer shooter featuring different heroes with special abilities like Overwatch, will soon get a Battle Royale-inspired mode that looks very similar to PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.
Paladins: Battlegrounds is still in development, but from how it is described by Hi-Rez Studios, the similarities between the game mode and PUBG extend beyond their names.
'Paladins: Battlegrounds' vs 'PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds'
When Paladins was released in September 2016, it immediately drew comparisons with the massively popular Overwatch, which was released a few months earlier that year. There were theories that Hi-Rez Studios changed some of the game's elements while in development to try to emulate the success of Blizzard's hero shooter.
Hi-Rez Studios apparently follows the trend, as at the Hi-Rez Expo 2018, the developer announced Paladins: Battlegrounds.
The new game mode, true to its name, draws heavy inspiration from PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. In Paladins: Battlegrounds, players will see their characters dropped into a big map, where they will gather resources by looting outposts and fighting over legendary gear coming down from zeppelins. Like PUBG's circles, there will be a fog in Paladins: Battlegrounds that will push players closer to each other as the playing field gets smaller.
One major difference between Paladins: Battlegrounds and PUBG, however, is that while PUBG offers solo and team matches, the new Paladins mode looks like it will only be a last team standing affair. Of course, the Paladins mechanics of hero abilities and mounts will also be brought over to Paladins: Battlegrounds to add more flavor to the game.
According to Hi-Rez Studios, Paladins: Battlegrounds is still early in development. However, it is being planned to be released within the year to the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC, and it will be completely free.
Paladins: Battlegrounds, however, might be too similar of a name to PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. Could there possibly be a lawsuit on the horizon for Hi-Rez Studios?
The Attack Of The 'PUBG' Clones
The success of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds has so far spawned several clones, including Fortnite's Battle Royale mode and a similar mode in Warface. Most of the PUBG copycats, however, can be found on the iOS and Android mobile platforms.
In a bid to apparently stem the influx of PUBG clones on smartphones, Bluehole Studio has teamed up with Tencent to create an official PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds mobile version. The port will be initially released in China, but there is a good chance that it will eventually be launched worldwide.
