So, in order for a new battle royale to stand out, it requires a killer pitch, right? So, what if we just went with a wacky mix of popular tropes?
WONDER PEOPLE, a Korean firm, has released SUPER PEOPLE, a new battle royale game. Yes, branding is strange.
Super People's entire premise is that it looks and plays virtually identically to the basic PUBG game, but it has 12 playable characters who can use super powers to carry off some outrageous stunts. That may be a dealbreaker for battle royale aficionados who desire a perfectly balanced experience, but it does present a few interesting circumstances that you wouldn't necessarily see in more absurd fare like Apex Legends.
One of my favourite abilities is this massive dark sphere that functions as a stun bomb, blinding adversaries and, of course, allowing you to sneak away undetected. It reminds me of Drizzt Do'Urden's darkness globes in that it's a massive hazy ball visible from hundreds of yards away. When anyone outside of it can see it on the horizon, it may not be the finest stealth ability.
There's also a feature that allows you to blink/sprint a short distance in a split second, similar to the smoke powers in Dishonored or perhaps Infamous: Second Son. I saw an influencer broadcasting Super People get caught up in a classic PUBG scenario: Stuck in an open field with only a random container for shelter and an adversary roughly 50 yards away. He blinks his way to the right, into a superb flanking position behind a wooden fence, after chucking out a few lucky smoke grenades. It's not enough to catch his opponent completely off guard; victory requires a furious barrage of shots.
In my little time playing the game, I've seen other players use a wild leap ability to leap down a hill of trees and flank adversaries in the same way.
One character's teleportation skill, which appears to reach ludicrous distances, is one of my favourites. A character can be seen teleporting from the bottom level of a Space Needle-style building all the way to the top behind their opponent in Super People's Korean training film. Other highlights include "Gas Soldier," who physically chugs a gas canister and then throws poisonous grenades like it's homecoming weekend at university.
Your character is chosen at random, and you can only reroll once to keep things fair. If you have the necessary materials, you can enhance your gear and weapons using the treasure system. You can utilise a blueprint to create your own customised loadout drop box, which will spawn at random in each game.
But what good is half-decent battle royale gaming if the map isn't up to par? While Super People won't win any medals for innovation in that department, I do like how distinct, detailed, and well-rendered each portion of the enormous island is.
Ring of Elysium was enjoyable to play on a BMX bike or snowboard when it first came out a few years ago, but the surroundings were a touch barren as a result. Super People is like the New England countryside, where gorgeous fields of flowers dot the terrain, there's a full space shuttle launch platform for some reason, the aforementioned Space Needle, and a whole mausoleum, among other things.
It's amusing to see the insides of all these opulent homes where you're hiding. They're well equipped with sleek kitchens, expensive entertainment centres, and outdoor BBQ pavilions, far from the deterioration of PUBG. I'm almost afraid to shoot inside these opulent residences that I could never afford in real life.
Super People appears to be yet another fight royale that has just scraped its way into the debate for a week before fading, at least in the perspective of Western spectators. But the more time I spend looking at the subtleties and how the map is built, the more I want to give it a fair chance.
Super People is holding intermittent alpha tests at the moment, but you can follow the Steam page here.
