Originally starting life as a zombie survival game, H1Z1, or Z1 Battle Royale as it has recently been rebranded on PC, was perhaps the first game to jump onto the battle royale trend, but only managed to secure a full release last year, leaving it lagging behind somewhat. “Even the most jaded of battle royale fans will find their interest rejuvenated by Apex Legends thanks to Respawn’s attention to detail, superior gunplay, and fantastic innovations, though the loot boxes and progression system certainly need addressing.” With varied characters and abilities, stellar gameplay and a pinging ability that was so good that Fortnite had to pilfer it for themselves, Apex Legends has established itself as a battle royale juggernaut in short order. It’s absolutely brilliant, taking the tropes and genre conventions of the battle royale formula and adding enough of its own ideas to create something truly spectacular.
The current darling of the battle royale genre, Apex Legends has taken the world by storm over the past month, and rightly so. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of the most influential, innovative and best battle royale games on the market right now. Of course, with so many to choose from and more on the way, it can be hard to know where to begin.
Now, the market is crowded with copycats, innovators and imitators. Though they’ve been around in some form or another for the past few years, their popularity has been skyrocketing since 2017, with no signs of slowing down. You just can’t move for the suckers these days. Anyone who’s been following the gaming industry at the moment probably feels like they’re drowning in a sea of battle royale games.