For the better part of a year, "Fortnite" has been the most popular battle royale, and game, in the country. Children and adults alike spent countless hours trying to get that victory royale. The most popular streaming platform for gamers, Twitch, has been dominated by people watching and playing "Fortnite." But on February 4th, an under-marketed game came out and took players by storm. "Apex Legends" is the newest game to hit the markets, and over 10 million players played it in the first three days of launch. This new game, created by Respawn Entertainment, will be the game that dethrones "Fortnite" as the most popular game around.
For beginners, I was scrolling through Twitch a few days after the launch of "Apex Legends" and saw something extremely baffling. The number one game being watched and played wasn't "Fortnite," it was actually "Apex Legends." "Apex" was pulling in over 270,000 viewers, while "Fortnite" only had 130,000. The numbers weren't even close, and that really surprised me. Obviously, the numbers will inflate when a new game comes out, but to outnumber the most popular game in the world by over 140,000 viewers is surprising.
One huge difference between "Fortnite" and "Apex" is the avoidance of building. "Fortnite" has prided itself on the fact that you can build your own protection to help you in a fight. "Apex" is way different though. "Apex" doesn't let you build walls like in "Fortnite" but they allow you to be as mobile as almost every other game. The running speed is insane, the sliding adds an additional boost to speed, there are numerous options like zip lines and ropes to get you where you need to be as soon as possible, and you can climb walls. This type of mobility allows you to evade pressure and enemies without building walls, and this is something other battle royale games lacked.
"Apex" also has different types of characters. In almost every battle royale game, you drop into a game with a random character that is no different than any other character. "Apex" actually allows you to pick up to eight different characters that have different abilities and ultimates. Strategically picking your team with synergy can benefit you in the game. Since there are teams of three, picking support, a tank and a DPS will help you better than just picking random characters. "Apex" requires a lot more strategy than games like "Fortnite" and "Call of Duty: Blackout." Not to mention, "Apex" also incorporates a "ping" system which allows you to communicate in-game without needing a microphone to talk to your team. This further proves the point that team coordination and strategy are much more important in "Apex" than any other game.
"Apex" also took the same idea as "Fortnite" to become profitable, make the game free. While some may not understand this move, it is actually the best option for games nowadays. Making the game free-to-play allows everyone to play it. There is no financial commitment by the player, which gives players a reason to try the game out. Having someone pay for the game, to possibly be disappointed, is not the key to making money or keeping players happy. With so many players, and the possibility to buy in-game loot, the game will undoubtedly make money. The in-game microtransactions in "Apex" allow you to buy skins or voice lines to trick out your characters. With a game this popular, everyone will be competing to have the best things, so players will give their money to look the best. This type of idea makes games a lot of money, hence why "Fortnite" was so popular and made so much money.
All of this adds up to a game that is currently and will continue, to beat "Fortnite" as the most popular game. It has only been about a week since the launch of a game, and a lot can change with time, but the hype is extremely real. "Fortnite" seems like old news while "Apex Legends" is the place to be in the gaming world today.
