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Paragon: Epic Games’ Competitive MOBA, Killed Before Its Time — VeryAli
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Paragon was destined for greatness. This is a post-mortem tale of the rise and fall of Epic ‘s innovative take on the MOBA genre and the dedicated players that still keep its legacy alive.
For those that don’t know, MOBA stands for “multiplayer online battle arena.” Heavyweight titles in this genre include Dota 2, Heroes of the Storm, and the champion of all e-sports games, League of Legends. In 2018, the LoL Summoner’s Cup (equivalent to the world championship) gathered nearly 100 million viewers, The Sports Rush reports. The same tournament in 2020 had a grand total prize pool of nearly $6.5 million USD. There’s a very good reason that these games draw stadium-worthy crowds:
They are fiercely competitive.
Games such as Paragon do not encourage every player to chase that huge killstreak or grind the next unlockable weapon. That “unlockable weapon” in a MOBA is akin to mastering another game mechanic and being able to use it in the…
