Paladins: Champions of the Realm (let’s just call it Paladins, shall we?) is Hi-Rez’s newest project, announced last month.
Like Smite, seemingly taps into what’s popular right now with a wee twist. In their MOBA, it was bending the formula around a third-person action game; in Paladins, they’re adding cards and deck building to a team-based FPS.
It looks pretty nifty.
While the deck building, particularly the fact that you can get a card mid-game that might inspire you to change your build, has more than piqued my interest, I can’t help but worry that the art style is going to make Paladins a bit hard to notice.
In an effort to get away from the grimdark aesthetic of yesteryear, it seems like every developer and their mum is trying to put out games that all look like they are based on the same non-existent cartoon. Overwatch, WildStar, Atlas Reactor, Battleborn and now Paladins — they all seem to blend into one game, visually at least.
Here’s hoping the mechanics make that easy to overlook.