Naraka: Bladepointis one of the newer entries into the battle royale line-up, and it’s also one of the more unique attempts at revitalizing this oversaturated genre.
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The game is made by 24 Entertainment and the studio seems to be doing an okay job so far addressing player concerns and adding new content. For the most part,Narakais actually innovative, as there arequite a few things the title does differently than its peers. So, let’s go over some of the biggest deviations it takes from the classic BR gameplay loop, address whether these deviations work well or not, and why.
8The Chinese Mythology Angle
First and foremost, the studio, 24 Entertainment, is based in China, and a lot of the inspirations for the game and characters are based on Chinese mythology and history. Stuff like Omnyoji magic, monks, religious concepts based around Islam/Taoism/Buddhism, and even the fact that their dragon design (called Moonbane) is of a stereotypical Eastern dragon, rather than a western one (basically it’s like Shenron fromDBZinstead of the dragons fromGame of Thrones).
There are a ton of references or homages to be found in the character designs, abilities used, and more, making it a great game for fans of legends and history.
7The Focus On Melee Means Players Usually “See” Who Beat Them
One of the best aspects ofNaraka: Bladepointis the fact that its melee combat almost entirely eliminates the possibility of being “sniped” by an enemy from miles away, without ever getting a chance to retaliate. Obviously, this is radically different from other BRs, as gunplay is sort of the focus of this genre a lot of the time.
WhileNarakadoes have ranged weapons, and some of them are very strong, they’re a secondary source of damage, and the majority of them are meant to be used within 50 yards or so.This is an aspect that other BRs likeWarzoneandApex Legendsor even upcoming shooters likeHalo Infinitelean into rather than attempting to “fix”, and that’s because it’s not necessarily a bad thing. But, for those players out there who find themselves incredibly tired of always being wary of snipers hidden in the mountains,Naraka: Bladepointmight be more their speed.
6Environmental Traps & Hazards
Just about every BR has some gimmick (sometimes even multiple) that really separates it from the other ones.Warzonethrows an absurd amount of guns, loadouts, and vehicles at players to mess around with, for example. Meanwhile,Narakaobviously has melee combat to set it apart, but the environmental hazard system is also pretty unique to this genre. Though,with the newly releasedBloodhunt, even the melee combat isn’t entirely unique anymore.
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Spread throughout Morus Island are plenty of little traps and destructibles that players can hit from afar to drop them on their opponents. Sometimes it’s something as small as a Shadow Bush that allows players to hide in or even just little demonic spirit creatures that hide on rooftops to attack careless players who get close.
5The Combo & Parrying System
Alright, this article has danced around it long enough, it’s time to talk about the fact thatNaraka: Bladepointis a melee-focused BR game. It’s designed so that players fight face to face, even if that involves an ambush to start things off.
So, for those checking out the game,be ready to learn the visual tells for when to parry, which combos work best for which situation, how to use the grapple hook efficiently, and when to focus on offense or defense. It’s a bit of a hurdle at first,especially for beginners to the genre, but once a player clicks in with the combat, they’ll very likely get addicted toNaraka’sgameplay loop.
4The Unique “Ultimate” Abilities
In Battle Royales, classes/characters tend to have some sort of “Ultimate” ability they can use, the concept is similar to “Supers” in fighting games or even the Hero Ultimates in something likeOverwatch.Apex Legendsespecially has a lot of unique characters with thematic Ultimates and interesting backstories.
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Well,Naraka: Bladepointhas Ultimates as well, but they’re so innately different than anything in other games in the same genre, at least for the most part. Just to name a few examples:
3The In-Depth Character Customization
Frankly, this next feature feels like something out of an MMORPG rather than a BR. Basically, players can pick any character inNarakawith any skin they have unlocked, but they can also go in and “modify” their appearance even further. In other games, this would just mean picking between some different “color palettes" for the skin, but inNaraka, it allows them to fully edit the individual attributes of the character and create some hilarious monstrosities. So far, players have used it to:
2The Insufferably Forced Bot Matches
There are a lot of little things developers think of when designing a game, and methods of making sure players enjoy their first experience with the title is really important. This is why there are so many games that start with a big bossfight, the player character with all their abilities unlocked, or, most recently, online multiplayer games that populate the first match with bots. This last method is done so that players trying out some new shooter or BR feel very accomplished/skilled on their first attempt, which usually leads to them playing more. It’s a smart tactic, there’s no doubt about that, the only problem is when that “forced bot game” is a bit too forced.
Narakagoes a bit too far with this concept, sadly enough. The fact thatBladepointforces players into bot games even after their first game, without telling them, has been a constant complaint fans have made since the game was released. Other games likePokemon UniteorSpellbreakdid this too, but every time it’s done the backlash is always immense so it’s odd that new games keep trying to integrate it.
1That $20 Baseline Price
And lastly, to end things on sort of a sour note,Narakais different from other BR games in the sense that it costs money to play. Up until now, it seemed like all BR developers agreed that this genre of game should use either:
However,Naraka: Bladepointdecided to double down on its potential returns and charge players for the game outright, while also putting a bunch of cosmetics in the game that cost more money to obtain. The base game costs $19.99, while there are other editions that are more expensive.
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