Best Battle Royale Games, Ranked
4. PUBG
Poor, poor PUBG. The granddaddy of the battle royale genre has taken quite the tumble off its throne since the arrival of competition. That doesn’t make it a bad battle royale game by any means, but the competition certainly offers a more polished and deep experience.
PUBG’s general gunplay has its fans, with it outshining other battle royale titles with in-depth mechanics. There’s an array of weapon attachments to switch up their effectiveness in battle, and the island has its iconic locations you’ll be sure to grow familiar with over time.
It’s also these in-depth mechanics that work to PUBG’s detriment, with other titles, particularly Fortnite offering a more accessible experience to hop into and get acquainted with. It’s possible to learn the ropes of PUBG, it might just take a little longer than you expect, and see you succumb to a number of quick deaths, too.
Sadly, PUBG lacked the polish when it was crucial to really stand strong against the likes of Fortnite and Black Ops 4’s Blackout mode. Though it runs well on PC, the console platforms still leave a lot to be desired, especially when Fortnite now runs at an effortless 60 FPS on Xbox One X and PS4 Pro.
PUBG is by no means a bad battle royale game, but compared to the competition, it hasn’t been able to retain the hype around it. It’s always possible 2019 could lead to a complete turnaround at some point, but we wouldn’t go holding our breaths.
Best Battle Royale Games, Ranked
3. Blackout
Where PUBG feels like a more clunky military shooter, Blackout comes out the gates with the classic twitch-based Call of Duty action at the forefront of the experience. In a matter of games, you’ll be busy sliding across the floor, picking up weapons, and hopping into a vehicle to get inside the circle.
For anyone remotely familiar with Call of Duty, there’s a lot to like about Blackout. Its map features iconic locations from previous games, contains a handful of easter eggs, and the gunplay feels as tight and responsive as ever.
It’s not just the gunplay that feels so familiar. The climbing, sliding and general navigation of the world feels fast and fluid, something which can’t be said about PUBG. Simply put, if you’re looking for a battle royale experience that feels and looks like its running on current generation hardware, Blackout’s where you want to look.
Blackout also throws in additional character missions that task players with meeting certain goals or requirements with a particular character in order to unlock another. It’s a neat little way to give you something else to work toward, outside of simply winning the game, which adds a nice amount of replayability to proceedings.
Blackout is a fantastic military battle royale game, offering more fluid and fast-paced, first-person action that PUBG simply cannot live up to. Its character missions grant you something else to work toward, and Call of Duty fans will love the callbacks that its map offers. It does cost to play, though, so that’s something to keep in mind.
Best Battle Royale Games, Ranked
2. Apex Legends
Respawn Entertainment’s foray into the battle royale genre is arguably one of the finest you can play right now. Opting for a first-person perspective, Apex Legends takes the tight, refined shooting found in Titanfall 2, adds a bunch of Legends with unique abilities, and tasks you with being the last team standing.
It’s these unique characters and their abilities that make Apex Legends stand out from the crowd. These add a whole new dimension to the battle royale genre that few others have truly tapped into, in making teamwork and supporting your teammates with unique abilities an additional factor to take into account.
As such, communication is pretty key, especially when Apex Legends forces you to play in a team of three. Thankfully, communication with strangers can be a breeze thanks to the ‘Ping’ communication system, allowing players to mark locations on the map and make a callout.
Be it a weapon location, enemies being spotted, or simply suggesting the next place to move to, it just works.
What’s more, Apex Legends is entirely free-to-play. Sure, you can invest in microtransactions for various cosmetic goodies, but there’s nothing forcing you to. Plus, for those who find Apex Legends to be the perfect fit for their battle royale tastes, Seasonal battle passes will offer challenges and more cosmetics to grind out.
With more Legends due to make their way to the title, and Respawn seemingly supporting the game with frequent updates, chances are you’ll always have something new or exciting to check out whenever you dive into the game.
Apex Legends is a true challenger for the battle royale crown, but it’s still a little early on for it to reach its true potential. We don’t quite know the extent of its lasting appeal either, which will be a true test of just how compelling its gameplay is.
Best Battle Royale Games, Ranked
1. Fortnite
Was this an obvious top-spot for the best battle royale game? Probably, but with Apex Legends biting at its heels, Fortnite will need to continue bringing its A-game to stay on top.
Fortnite was the first main contender to PUBG for the battle royale throne, granting a free-to-play third-person BR experience with an emphasis on building. Players gather resources and can then use these to form their own structures, often resulting in build-offs.
It’s one of those games that’s easy to pick up and difficult to master, and a lot of this comes down to the building mechanic. Gunplay feels smooth and satisfying, and Epic is constantly releasing patches to balance out the arsenal of weapons and vehicles that are now in the game.
As such, there’s seldom a time that dying in Fortnite feels cheap, and that helps its ‘one more game’ appeal. Further, with several Battle Passes under its belt at this point, players know that each season is going to bring new sets of weekly challenges, secret stars, cosmetics, and other goodies to grind out.
Not only that, but Fortnite’s gone one step further than the competition. Each season, players are treated to at least one ‘event’ which ultimately leads to a change to the map, or the introduction of new features in the following season.
We’ve seen the comet, rocket launch, the arrival and explosion of the cube, and even a Marshmello concert so far, and with an Earthquake event rumored to be taking place before Season 7 finishes at the end of this month, Epic doesn’t seem to show any signs of slowing down.
Fortnite is the gold standard of battle royale games, with smooth, satisfying gunplay, a map teeming with vibrant colors and iconic locations, an insane amount of cosmetics, battle pass challenges to keep you entertained, and free, live, in-game events to push the genre forward.
Its building mechanic may not be everyone’s cup of tea, and FPS fans may feel more at home with the likes of Apex Legends. In terms of a polished, complete battle royale experience, though, you can’t beat the free-to-play juggernaut that is Fortnite right now.
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