Paragon has just become a faster-paced game.
Developer Epic Games today released the Monolith update for its free-to-play MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena), which is in an open beta on PlayStation 4 and PC. The Monolith update brings changes to the whole experience, speeding up characters in an attempt to make the gameplay more action-oriented. MOBAs like League of Legends and Dota 2 are some of the most popular games out there, especially in the growing esports market. A change like this for Paragon could help it stand out in that crowded field.
Paragon already has some major differences when compared to Dota 2 and League of Legends. Those games are only available on PC and have a top-down view, while Paragon is out on PlayStation 4 and PC and features a third-person camera. Still, they’re all about team-based action centered a cast of eccentric heroes. Paragon just looks prettier, thanks to Epic Games technical know-how and the Unreal Engine.
It does still have competition on consoles with Smite, another third-person MOBA that’s available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. Smite is more of a traditional MOBA with a slower pace. We don’t know the active player numbers for either Smite or Paragon since the developers and publishers won’t disclose them, so it’s hard to compare how they’re competing against each other.
The Monolith update also adds a new map (itself called Monolith) that is 30 percent smaller than the original battlefield. It also features an asymmetrical layout when compared to the first map’s symmetrical design. All of the game’s heroes also saw changes, which you can view in the full patch note.
Open betas can often feel like glorified demos, but this huge update shows that Epic is doing plenty of tinkering with its MOBA before committing to a full release.