MOBAholic: The Simple Complexity of Awesomenauts

These days, it seems like everyone's trying to get in on the multiplayer online battle arena (or MOBA) action. Originally popularized by the Defense of the Ancients mod for Warcraft III: Reign of Chaos (and StarCraft's Aeon of Strife map before that), this team-versus-team real-time strategy subgenre is quite the hot item in PC gaming. In this regular column, GameSpy writer and MOBA junkie Ryan Scott offers up his insight into this ever-growing field of competitive (and largely free-to-play!) multiplayer PC gaming.


It's in the audience's nature to constantly scrutinize and assess a competitive game's long-term viability. If we're to believe everything we hear about MOBAs on forums, League of Legends is a toddler's game with a low skill ceiling, Heroes of Newerth is an ersatz Defense of the Ancients that slowly sold out to an increasingly casual-friendly audience, and Dota 2 is the one true game that every competitive MOBA player must play, lest they forever forsake their right to label themselves as anything but casual. We see similar patterns with one-on-one fighting games and real-time strategy all the time, too, and the stakes are high. Those games labeled as fiercely hardcore enjoy sustained, multi-year interest, while the others quickly wither and die.

Different Strokes

But the MOBA ecosystem is different. League of Legends does cater to a wildly different crowd than Dota 2, but they both enjoy massive and loyal audiences that dwarf just about any other gaming community outside of World of Warcraft. I don't particularly like Dota 2 so far, but that doesn't mean I can't hop onto League of Legends and channel every fiber of my competitive being in every match I play.



That brings me to Awesomenauts -- a cartoony, sidescrolling, minimalist MOBA that debuted on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in May 2012, and will come to PC soon. Yes, it's a colorful, left-to-right action game that you play with a control pad. No overly complex positioning; no frantic team coordination at critical late-game monster spawns; no agonizing over counterpicks and team synergy as you browse the 100-character roster. You'd better believe I'm excited about its arrival on PC.

Turning The MOBA On Its Side

For one, here's a truly casual MOBA to serve as a fun, low-investment multiplayer romp at best, and a gateway drug at worst. It tosses out all notions of targeting cursors and complicated pathing decisions; you push a button, and something happens. Many close-up clashes come down to hammering on your character's main attack button, and watching life bars deplete in fights that are often one step short of a Looney Tunes-style dust cloud. The ultimate goal is the same -- support AI minions in pushing across a multi-lane map (a vertical one, in Awesomenauts' case) lined with defensive turrets, and destroy the enemy headquarters -- but how you get there is a fair sight more frenetic than the usual Dota 2 game.

Oh, and one thing I forgot to mention: In Awesomenauts' three-on-three battles, you choose between six characters -- three of which initially lie behind account-based level locks. But this paltry half-dozen roster encompasses all the major MOBA archetypes, from tank to support to pusher to melee stealth assassin. The fact that developer Ronimo has promised more characters in the future is of no consequence; we have everything we need right here. Each character gets an attack, a jump, and two (yes, two) other upgradeable skills, each with a slew of buffs to purchase inside your base.



For example, Sheriff Lonestar gets a stick of dynamite, with upgrades that include multiple dynamite sticks, a bigger blast radius, a blinding effect, or a bounce effect for a bit of added range. His Bull Charge (which sends a wild steer charging forth to push enemies away) gets augmented with a size increase, a faster cooldown, a slowing effect, or a speed buff. Lonestar's basic ranged attack gets some damage and attack speed buffs, while his standard double-jump upgrades to a triple version. And that's in addition to character-independent health increase, regeneration, and movement speed improvements.

MOBA Lite, or MOBA Right?

Essentially, Awesomenauts consolidates the average MOBA's leveling mechanics, skill system, and item shop into a single set of purchased upgrades. So long as you have the cash, you can buy any available upgrade in any order you want (and you unlock further character-specific options as you level your account up through match wins).

Then you run right out, hit some guys with your new toys, and hopefully send them packing while your minions beat on their turret. Awesomenauts is an amazingly fast MOBA, with matches that top out at maybe 15 minutes of play time. It's not without its share of strategic considerations, either: some maps feature a couple of giant brush patches that hide you from anyone on the outside, and one map even has a tantalizing trapped floor that's lined with gold. If no one's around, you can safely line your pockets... but if someone steps on the button just above the trapped floor, it's an instant death for anyone caught below.



I think the major challenge that Ronimo faces -- and I hope the folks over there know this -- is in cultivating a healthy community. The console audience is scattershot; Awesomenauts' impending Steam debut can only mean better things for it, but only if Ronimo puts some effort into adding content and engaging the player base. I'm not expecting a Riot level of audience outreach, but I hope they don't send their game out to die, either.

Whatever the case, I'm hoping Awesomenauts leads to an even greater influx of MOBA players -- ones who see the entire landscape as a land of varied and interesting opportunities, and not an infight for some imaginary "most hardcore MOBA of all" cred. As Awesomenauts goes to show, this genre's got a lot of interesting and untapped directions to grow in, and an audience that embraces and appreciates the variety. It's every bit as tense as any other top-shelf MOBA around; simplicity most certainly does not equal competitive mediocrity.



Ryan Scott managed GameSpy's day-to-day editorial operations, until a bout of temporary insanity took him away. Nowadays -- when he's not yelling at someone for forgetting to call mid lane MIA, that is -- you can listen to his weekly ramblings on various podcasts over at Geekbox.net. And if you've never given these MOBA thingamajiggers a try, he thinks League of Legends is an excellent place to start.


Spy Guy says: I know a lot of you guys love complexity in your games, but there's definitely something to be said for a pure and simple experience that cuts away all the extra stuff. What's your favorite simple game?