Gigantic All in on Original Gameplay Decisions

We’ve been following Gigantic for ages. Not the “it’s been delayed forever to make it the best game ever” like Zelda, Gran Turismo or Warcraft 4. No, Gigantic has taken ages mainly to find its place. The title came very late to the MOBA party, much like Heroes of the Storm, and has been attempting to find a niche. That’s unfortunate, given how truly different, and well polished, the game was even in those early days. I was able to appreciate the SMITE-like originality in presentation and lane design despite growing that beard in eight hours to hide one of the hardest hangovers I’ve had in recent memory.

Time and circumstance hasn’t enabled Gigantic to make up any ground. Everything from hardcore mobile games like Vainglory have eaten the casuals, the company lost funding when its publisher aborted, only to grab traction after further losing ground to those established. What’s to save this James Phinney original from cozying up in the MOBA dustbins with Battleborn and whatever attempts EA made that I’ve forgotten? Why, the very perk that got Motiga attention to begin with, originality.

Gigantic launches today, July 20. Days from now the company will push – one assumes – potentially the patch to end all patches. 5v5 combat may never be the same. If that’s true, I’m fine with that. Developers and publishers alike have been phoning it in for far too long. LoL and DotA2, the biggest of the bunch, have the same gameplay of the mod that began it all over a decade ago. If it flops, which, I honestly don’t expect, I’ll be unhappy, but, sadly, not shocked. The most likely outcome is that Gigantic will present some sort of mediocre popular option. Not popular enough to gain millions of fans but popular enough to keep the game going. But it’d still bring some original ideas to the forefront.

As a fan, I’d walk-by-the-door-shoulders-hung-low about it, but appreciative. As someone that critiques games I’d be downright annoyed that we, the gaming public, shunned another game trying to do something different and for the better.

It’s not like Gigantic has been Firefall.

Come join the Lorehound crew as antilles and I take on all comers in Gigantic. If our dashing mugs and sharp-barbed quips aren’t enough to keep you around, there’s always the complete ineptitude of antilles and my constant “back in my day” diatribes. Oh, and the giveaways. We’ll have those Founder Pack things kids like so much these days.