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| DotA prime in action |
Since then, the creators of MOBA have gone off to create new studios and games, and the genre has exploded. Today, there are dozens of MOBA games such as Heroes of Newerth, League of Legends, Dota 2, Heroes of the Storm, Smite...the list goes on. Millions of people tune it to watch world championships, such as Dota 2's "The International" which provided a ten million dollar prize pool to the first place team. To say MOBAs have been a success is an understatement.
However, MOBAs have traditionally (still feels weird to say that about a genre that's only be around less than 10 years) been a PC only affair. But, there have been a number of pushes to get some MOBAs onto other platforms. However, the genre is slowing creeping onto mobile and console, and the future is looking bright, indeed.
Vainglory
First, Supermegaevilcorp created Vainglory for iOS. For lack of a better term, this is a MOBA that has been reduced down to a more easily digestible chunk for smartphones. For example, there is a single lane, and the jungle is only on one side of that lane. This creates two specific areas where players will be at all times. Teams are limited to 3v3, and each characters only has 3 abilities and a passive. While some might bemoan the relatively simplistic approach, it was done out of necessity. And, it actually works. It may not have the depth of Dota 2, Hon, or LoL, but it's relatively fast paced and it does look really good on an iPhone 6. The roster is still pretty small (12 or 13 total right now), but each character has a good amount of personality. If you have an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus, I recommend at least giving it a shot.Other Mobile
A few other MOBAs have attempted the mobile arena as well. Solstice Arena is available for iOS as well as PC. I have not had a chance to try this yet, but I will likely do a stream of it in the near future.Orcs Must Die! Unchained
Orcs Must Die began as a hybrid dungeon-master and tower defense game. Orcs Must Die! Unchained now mixes that formula with the MOBA genre. Players are now in control of what kinds of minions spawn and their strength. Players also lay traps to damage their enemies, adding another layer of strategy. Check out the video to the right for some more basic info. Unchained is coming to Playstation 4 and is about to enter it's second closed beta phase.Gigantic
Next is Gigantic, a completely new franchise coming to PC (Windows 10) and Xbox One. In this game, there are no lanes with automatically spawning minions. Instead, matches take place in a large arena with capture points. These capture points can be controlled by either team, which will foster a lot of team fights, and provide that team with one of a number of bonuses. While teams fight over these capture points, each team will have a large NPC guardian roaming the field as well. The goal is to defeat the other team's guardian, but it won't be easy. They move, and are very powerful. Gigantic will have full account parity between Xbox One and Windows 10, so players can play on either platform and have the same progress no matter where they play. Check out the Pax East trailer to the left.Smite
Spearheading the console MOBA push is a PC MOBA veteran: Smite. Smite is the most traditional MOBA heading to consoles, in that it has a 5v5 mode with 3 lanes and towers. However, there is plenty to set Smite apart from its PC brethren:- 3rd person camera (same with OMDU and Gigantic)
- All basic attacks are skill shots, and no auto attacks
- Offers auto-skill and auto-buy options for players who don't want to micromanage
- All playable characters are based on real-world mythological deities
- Purchasing the $30 Ultimate God pack will unlock all current and future gods for a single account
- Offers multiple different modes, with a daily rotation of special modes
I've been playing Smite's PC version off and on for a few months, and it has provided some greatly fun experiences. One of Smite's flagship modes, Arena, pits two 5 player teams against each other in a circular arena while attempting to guide waves of minions to their opposing team's portal. Each team begins with a pool of 500 points, and loses points when a god is killed or minions enter their portal. This mode is a blast! It's much more action packed than a traditional 5v5 3 lane affair, and the energy stays high throughout the match. The daily special mode will sometimes offer additional twists on Arena and other modes, but one of my favorites was the All Ra mode. That's right...a typical arena match, but the only god you could be was Ra. For those who are not familiar...he's a noisy guy who floats around and fires sun lasers. I don't think I'll be forgetting that match for quite some time.
Smite is currently in it's first wave of testing (alpha) on Xbox One, and I recently got access. I'll have more impressions available next week once I've gotten more games under my belt, so stay tuned! Check out a quick preview of Smite (and Ra in particular) to the right.
Battleborn
While they don't call it a MOBA, Gearbox Software -- the folks behind Borderlands -- have announced their next game: Battleborn. They are open about the MOBA influences, but steadfastly hold the line on it NOT being a MOBA. Personally, that's enough for me, and I plan to check it out. The character designs seem pretty fun, and the gigantic turrets look really imposing. Check out the walkthrough below to get a glimpse of the co-op gameplay.Sadly, MOBAs get a lot of hate in gaming communities due to their communities having a bad reputation for being toxic. While that's not always true (all generalities do have a basis in fact, though), I like the genre a lot. These games are a blast to play with friends, and I'm excited to have new platforms to play them on and new pools of players to group up with.
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