Top 5 MOBA’s of Summer 2013
Moba is a relatively new genre and has taken the gaming industry by storm with many variations coming from different studios all across the world. The mod for Warcraft 3, DOTA, created by icefrog has been taken home in various studios and also the hearts of many gamers. With prize pools exceeding 2 million dollars it would be safe to say that these mini sized skirmishes are a major business. There have been studios who stick true to the tried and tested formula and then there are those that make their own unique iterations on the same. Today we shall take a look at the 5 most popular MOBA’s that can be played right now.[divider]
5. Heroes of Newerth
Developer – S2 Games
Release date – May 12, 2010
Wikia Official site Facebook
HoN along with LoL were the first 2 mainstream Moba games. Before launch HoN was supposed to be the game similar to the original play-style of Dota and was not a free game. The heroes were similar as were the maps and the graphics were more dark. Gameplay was tighter and less forgiving with denying and more powerful abilities. Extremely competitive with players rewarded based on their mastery of the characters. The game went free to play some time ago and with constant updates and additions it is still a very worthy competitor even though some of it’s fanbase has moved on to the more well-known Dota 2. A recent update to version 3.0 has created a lot of buzz with improvements and updates all over the board, and make this a worth choice.[divider]
4. Guardians of Middle Earth
Developer – Monolith Productions
Publisher – Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Platform – PlayStation Network, Xbox Live Arcade
Release date – December 4, 2012
Price – S30
Guardians of Middle-earth is a fantasy Moba developed by Monolith Productions and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The setting of the game is Middle-earth, derived from The Lord of the Rings series. Guardians of Middle-earth was released for both major consoles. The game uses elements from the MOBA genre (picture creep waves attacking enemy tower). Guardians of Middle-earth incorporates the standard elements of a typical MOBA game, with an emphasis upon team coordination and simplifies game mechanics such as lack of ingame gold or items or lasthitting. Instead, it only relies on XP and you can equip buffs for a character outside the game in a meta. The roster includes Gandalf, Sauron, Golem and many others. Unlike most other MOBA titles, Guardians of Middle-earth emphasizes the living room console, rather than a PC, making it the only Moba to be played on a console. So if all you play on is a console and want to get your Moba fix, this game is the only option although it may be an average one.
You can get it for $20 as it is on a discount at the time of writing.[divider]
3. Smite
Developer – Hi-Rez Studios
Platform – Microsoft Windows
Release date – Q2 2013
A new entry to the MOBA genre. The game went through a long beta phase and recently went live with so many additions and changed that help create its own identity in the fairly crowded market. What makes this unique is the fact that the game is played in a third person perspective thus making it fell like an entirely different game (felling similar to a PvP match of a MMORPG). Although once you start playing all the skills that you learn in other top down variants start coming in handy thus making it a perfect blend of accessibility with known mechanics and a breath of fresh air. The game just doesn’t stop there but rather goes the full extra mile by introducing several game types exclusive to the game itself. The playable heroes include mythical gods from Hindu mythology, such as Agni, Kali and Bakasura. (No other game had me actually go to Wikipedia and read about gods so +1 to smite -1 to local priest). The gameplay includes the slandered 3 abilities (1 passive) and an ultimate. The game has a 2 tier currency system, one for in-game and one for the cash shop.[divider]
2. Dota 2
Developer – Valve Corporation
Platform – Microsoft Windows
Release date – TBA
Defense of the Ancients 2, has the honor to be named and have a lineage after the true king himself. Is it a worthy successor to Dota 1, many would believe so and they would not be wrong as the game offers the same experience (in some case, better) as the original Dota. But what really makes it a true successor is its ability to go beyond the HD generations’ fresh coat of paint. With innovations all around and an active community in Steam Workshop tie-in, alongwith a completely free game (for now) makes it the best choice for competitive sports. Speaking of which, it holds the Biggest E-sport prize in the history of gaming. As the time of writing, the upcoming Dota 2 Championship has raked in a sum bigger than 2 million dollars. Not bad for a free to play game with only cosmetic unlocks. For the new gamers efforts are made to make it easier to understand but make no mistake Dota 2 is a difficult game to get in. The graphics of the game are very mature and gritty with a great attention to detail in both the scenery and the sounds. Dota 2 seems to be stuck in beta limbo with an invitation only system so if anyone wants a key fell feel to leave a comment with your Steam name and I’ll send you one.[divider]
1. League of Legends
Developer – Riot Games
Platform – Microsoft Windows, OS X
Release date – October 27, 2009
League of Legends is a Titan amongst the men in MOBA’s and as if now is the most popular games in the world. League of Legends regularly exceeds five million peak concurrent players globally (Link). With no shortness of innovation and the game’s confidence to completely change players’ favorite heroes balance and items to game altering measure, it is safe to say that LOL is one of the most dynamic Moba games. With a recent event to finalize season 2 in the eSports realm, $2 million worth of prizes in the game made new records and highlights around the industry. This is one that shows no signs of slowing down. Follow the link to learn more about the game at the feature coverage here – F2P League of legends
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In part 2 of the series we will take a look at some of the games that have gone a bit more creative with the genre to bring forth new world and mechanics to break the iteration and bring evolution along with a breath of fresh air to this organized minion slaughter.
Part 2 Top 5 Creative takes on the moba genre
Part 3 Top 5 upcoming MOBA’s of 2013
