2016 promises to be another blockbuster year for video games. Already, Salt and Sanctuary and Hyper Light Drifter (played it, LOVED it) have made huge splashes in the indie market, while the Ratchet and Clank remake has impressed in the mainstream. Later down the road, many triple-A titles are set to release, with both Uncharted and Deus Ex looming on the horizon – the former set to release next week!
Perhaps overshadowed by this are two games already at war with one another – Battleborn and Overwatch.
Both are team based competitive multiplayer games and both are set to release in May. Battleborn, in fact, released this week, dropping on Tuesday (May 3), well ahead of the May 24 release scheduled for Overwatch. Blizzard, however, refuses to be overshadowed by their competitor. This week, they’ve scheduled an open beta for May 5-9. In reality, the beta started last night (May 4) for the Americas, and a day earlier for anyone who pre-ordered the game.
So the battle between these two properties is well underway, but that brings us to the most important question of all – which one is better?
In a perfect world, it wouldn’t matter, but most people don’t have $120 and countless hours to spend on each game. So there has to be a winner, right? Sort of.
I’ve been lucky enough to play the beta of both games and from my hours with each, it’s very clear that Battleborn and Overwatch occupy the same space, but are geared towards very different types of players. This means that it should be relatively easy to choose between the two depending on the type of game you’re looking for.
So let’s get to it:
Of the two, Battleborn draws much more inspiration from MOBAs. The game has multiple play modes and includes a single player campaign (with co-op), but really shines when it pits players against one another. During the beta, I had a chance to play the most MOBAesque game mode available in the game. During this mode, each team is tasked with marching robot minions down lanes. Tower-like way points are destroyed. Lanes are pushed. MOBA game play is achieved.
Anyone who has spent time playing League, DOTA 2, or Heroes of the Storm will find this all very familiar.
In addition to the MOBA play style, each character has the ability to progress via leveling. Each level gives the player a choice between two options that change the character’s powers in some way. These options vary wildly depending on the champion, but overall, give the player a choice between offensive and defensive play styles. The ability to mix and match gives each character enough range to stay interesting across multiple matches.
At the end of the day, anyone looking for something with a mix of MOBA and RPG elements will be much more interested in playing Battleborn. It has a very familiar feel, while managing to stay fresh.
More than anything else, Overwatch reminds me of Team Fortress 2 on steroids.
It’s very much a shooter, where combatants are placed in an arena and tasked with an objective. These objectives are what you would expect from a competitive shooter – Assault, escort, and control. Some of the maps are even reminiscent of the ones in TF2.
But where TF2 had to grow into these different modes, Overwatch already has them mastered. Levels are expertly designed to provide multiple angles of attack, some only accessible to certain characters. Past that, choke points and smaller cramped areas are expertly scattered across the map to make each encounter more exciting than the last.
There isn’t any progression in the game, but there doesn’t need to be. This game is a shooter and that’s where it shines. Blizzard has taken its time to give each character a play style that is unique, but balanced. The characters fall into four main categories – Assault, Defense, Tank, and Support – and embody their role in a multitude of interesting ways.
While all of the characters are interesting, I’ve found myself drawn to Bastion, Mei, and Lucio most of all. Each are perfect examples of the more interesting play styles available in Overwatch.
One other interesting aspect of the game – also reminiscent of TF2 – is the ability to switch characters at each respawn. For some reason, I didn’t expect this to be an option, but it is. Though something simple, it’s nice to have the option to change from a support to an assault if the team is having trouble breaking through the enemy lines during a final push. The little things, right?
(One final thing that I really liked about the game, but couldn’t really figure out where to fit in, was the post game screen. Pretty much every aspect of game play is tracked, with medals awarded based on – I think – career averages over each character played. On top of that, there is a play of the game recap AND player highlights that can be commended. Again, it’s the little things that make this game shine.)
When it comes down to it, Overwatch fills the team based shooter hole that’s been empty for years. While there have been other options out there, none have debuted with the same polish and attention to detail that Overwatch has. But what else would you expect from a Blizzard title?
Visual style is the final thing to consider when looking at both games. It’s hard to say which one is better since each game holds true to the stylistic elements that each company has adopted over the years.
Battleborn leans more towards cell shaded art, very much like what can be seen in the Borderlands games. Aside from that, there tend to be plenty of particle effects and animations from each character, so expect lots of color when playing.
Overwatch exudes Blizzard’s signature art style – you know the one I mean – and it looks really good. Besides that, voice acting and sound design for the characters is fantastic – much better than Battleborn, I’d say.
And – though a small point, but definitely worth mentioning – I played both games on PC. Some parts of my machine are aging, but I could still run both games on max settings with no frame rate skipping, hiccups, or other graphical anomalies. Both games are absolutely solid.
At the end of the day, which of these two games comes down to the desired experience. Anyone who wants a mix of RPG and MOBA elements should be more than happy with Battleborn, while those desiring competitive shooting should be totally comfortable with Overwatch, but both are fantastic in their own way.
Personally, I’m leaning towards Battleborn. For my $60, it feels like something I could put a lot more hours into. The characters are much wackier and have a much more fluid feel because of the RPG elements. On top of that, Gearbox humor really is my cup of tea. While Overwatch is still fun to play, it doesn’t feel like there is enough content to keep me interested past a few solid weeks (since the open beta is on now, I’m going to keep playing to see if my mood changes).
I haven’t purchased either yet, but if my wallet does come out, it will most likely be for Battleborn.
If it does, expect a more comprehensive review in the near future…
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