Realm Royale is coming to PS4 and Xbox One, and sooner than you might have expected. A closed beta will kick off the week of July 30, with sign-ups now live on the official Realm Royale site. If you're curious to try it out or have already been playing on PC and want to see how the game fares on console, definitely get your email on the waiting list.
"But what is Realm Royale," some of you may be asking. Well, as you might have guessed, it's another battle royale game in the vein of Fortnite or PUBG. And yes, it's okay to roll your eyes a bit - the battle royale genre may already feel a bit oversaturated, with asset-flipping copycats and major publishers alike jumping on the bandwagon. Indeed, Realm Royale itself began as a mode in the hero shooter Paladins. But over time, Realm Royale has managed to carve out its own identity. (Sidenote: remember when hero shooters were the new hotness?)
For starters, it's got a fantasy aesthetic, taking place in a world full of magic and a cartoonishly-proportioned medieval landscape. Sure, players are still running around with guns, but it's mostly crossbows and single-bolt rifles instead of machine guns and semi-autos (though the game has recently gotten an expanded arsenal).
There's also Realm Royale's emphasis on class identity, making who you play as tactical a choice as your loadout. Mages, for example, can fly through the air, shoot fireballs, use ice to become immune to damage for a short time, or put up a wall to impede other players. Meanwhile, an Assassin can do a short-range teleport, drop smoke bombs, or even disappear entirely.
But perhaps the most fun / funny thing about Realm Royale are the chickens. In games like PUBG or Fortnite, getting wounded will either straight-up kill you or, if you're playing with teammates, make your avatar begin to crawl limply on the ground until someone else can revive you. In Realm Royale, depletion of your HP will turn you into a chicken. You have no offensive or defensive abilities in this form, but if you can survive for 30 seconds, you'll be revived so you can re-enter the royale.
I totally understand feeling battle royale fatigue, just like we all felt hero shooter fatigue, and MOBA fatigue, and modern military shooter fatigue throughout the years. And honestly, no battle royale game has held my interest for very long. But I think I'll give Realm Royale a try. How about you?
Elsewhere in the world of battle royale games, Fortnite is celebrating its first birthday (aww). If you're not just aiming to be last one standing but also eater of all cakes, you're gonna want to check out our guide to all Fortnite birthday cake locations.
