Battle Royale Hype?

The concept of battle royale is simple, yet, to every fiber of our innate primal psyche, incredibly satisfying! Last man standing in an unforgiving world of distrust and unhinged nature. If you think about it, this concept has been around for quite a long time. Specifically in the gaming world I can think of no other example short OF...drumroll please...BOMBERMAN!!!

Originally this game came out in Japan in 1985, then a couple years later for us here in the US, 1987. This game features the very concept of Last Man Standing! As you begin with your character, you start the same as everyone else then quickly try to collect power-ups to give you the edge over other players, though, not without skill of course. Sounds pretty familiar, right? However, it's unclear in this game as to why you must be the last one standing, it's not like there's a "chicken dinner" waiting for you or anything. All the same it undoubtedly makes for a fun experience with your friends! Who may possibly not be your friends after you blow them away with your skills...and bombs of course.

This game franchise has been running since, basically, the beginning of Nintendo! Despite their 7 year Hiatus between Bomberman Live: Battlefest for Xbox 360 and Super Bomberman R for the Nintendo Switch, there has been a plethora of Bomberman games over the years...no I don't count Bombergirl...lets not talk about that one.

Next! Most notably in 2008, the Hunger Games franchise was born into a series of books. Later, the first book would be adapted to film in 2012, revealing the Girl On Fire on the big screen. This franchise was incredibly popular, and rightly so. To see the trials and hardships of Katniss Everdeen brings almost all of us to think, What would I do in such a situation? Could I do what needed to be done? How would I survive? Once again, we are back to that base, primal instinct of survival which floods our brains with all sorts of chemicals.

With the franchise doing so well, it seemingly revived the craze within the gaming industry and effectively brought it to a whole new level. Reaching the open world sandbox communities like the most popular, Minecraft, it seems this new and improved concept of Battle Royale has ate its way into our hearts and will go on to create bigger and better things!

SO, You're in your room back in 2017. Perhaps you just woke up and got a little breakfast to eat from the kitchen. You sit down at your computer desk and load up your favorite Twitch Streamer to watch as you eat. What's this? Your streamer seems to be playing some sort of unfamiliar Battle Royale game fueled with adrenaline, an arsenal of weapons, a sizeable and pleasing map, and a promise of purely delectable victory!

Yup! Here it is! I have written about Playerunknown's Battlegrounds before so feel free to check out that article on my profile! (shameless plug)

What more can I say about this game that I haven't already, eh? It has captured our attention in quite a big way. With the vastness of its maps, slew of guns, and not to mention VEHICLES! You play your way whether it be solo, with a squad of strangers or with your own friends. You can choose to drop in very popular areas to see if you have what it takes to survive the onslaught of other enemy players. Or drop into some remote location so you can stock up on weapons, healing items, and more to help you survive to the very end.

The constant feeling of not knowing where any enemy could be hiding within the belly of the enormous maps, keeping you on your toes throughout the entire match. This is a recipe that has followed through all the Battle Royale games to come after.

The evolution of these games is unprecedented and shows no signs of slowing even in the slightest. Of course, there are those out there that believe the genre is overrated and won't even touch another Battle Royale game, however, I feel the popularity is undeniable, even if you are one of those that feel this way. We've had mobile adaptations, constant updates of existing games, and even new games coming out of the woodwork each year!

The exhilaration you feel once you route your last enemy and see the Victory screen is all just too satisfying! It all comes down to wanting to be the best! And of course having others recognize you for it. So for those of you that feel the same way I do about all these games and the whole concept, I part you with this: MAY THE ODDS BE EVER IN YOUR FAVOR!