MOBA games have been stagnant for some time, especially given League of Legends’ relative supremacy and the downfall of Blizzard’s Heroes of the Storm (gone but very much not forgotten). Enter Evercore Heroes, the debut release from Vela Games, a studio founded in 2018. Taking the building blocks of the MOBA format and reinventing it with some PvE MMO flair, the devs are out to create something we’ve never seen before.
Blending traditional MOBA gameplay with MMORPG-style boss combat, players compete against one another in teams of four to obtain resources, level up, and then take on the level’s boss. Whoever defeats the tyrannical overlord the quickest is crowned the winning team, then you dive back in and do it all over again.
Your team is divided into three classes: tank, DPS, and support, akin to the WoWs or FFXIVs of the world. Players will be able to choose their character, and customise their skills from a vast web of abilities, meaning no two games are the same – but no two competitors are, either.
Eight heroes have been revealed, with more set to drop at launch, and even more set to drop throughout the game’s lifecycle. We see master archer Zari, shadow assassin Shade, mighty warrior Fyn, and druidic healer Beko in the game’s trailer, but we catch a glimpse of the other four faces that make up the roster right at the very end.
These are melee fighter Blink, combat medic Remy, regal mage Lotus and, last but not least, party man and all-round magical menace, Cynder.
It’s worth noting that Evercore is an entirely PvE game; you go head-to-head defeating environmental monsters instead of enemy players. This will (hopefully) make things a little less toxic, whilst also retaining the competitive element.
This is where things could potentially get tricky, as there’s nothing quite like outplaying your lane opponents in League, or darting around the Arena in WoW. PvE may be a hard sell to players who are hungry for that true competitive experience, so it’ll be interesting to see how the game is received. As an avid Janna main during the day and WoW Shadow Priest by night, though, Evercore Heroes brings both of my two favourite worlds together, and I can’t wait to dive in.
Players can sign up via the website to play the pre-alpha test of the game, which will run from October 13 to 16 (a birthday present for little old me). In the meantime, though, be sure to check out our list of the best MMORPGs, as well as our rundown of the best fantasy games on PC – they’ll get you in the Evercore Heroes mood in no time.