Dear lord, even MapleStory 2 has a battle royale mode

We are rapidly approaching the point where a game not having a battle royale mode comes as a surprise. Or maybe I blinked and we're already there? Because apparently MapleStory 2 has joined the fight: its battle royale mode, Mushking Royale, was announced earlier this year, and will be included in its upcoming beta (which you can apply for here). The beta runs from July 18 through July 31, but Mushking Royale will only be playable from July 20 through July 22. 

If your memories of the original MapleStory are anything like mine, you're probably wondering how you could pull off battle royale in a 2D action RPG. Well here's the second-act twist: MapleStory 2 is actually a 3D, isometric action RPG. And as weird and unlikely as it sounds, Mushking Royale looks the part. See for yourself:

The main battle royale boxes have all been checked. It's a 50-person free-for-all. You drop in on a hot air balloon. An encroaching circle forces players into fights until there's only one left standing. Nearest I can tell, you loot chests for supplies and kill mobs to strengthen your character. Winners earn some nifty cosmetics. And perhaps most importantly, you can hide in bushes. That's battle royale all right, and strange as it is, it's actually kind of interesting in a Realm Royale kind of way. 

Thanks, Blue's News. 

Austin Wood
Staff writer, GamesRadar

Austin freelanced for PC Gamer, Eurogamer, IGN, Sports Illustrated, and more while finishing his journalism degree, and has been a full-time writer at PC Gamer's sister publication GamesRadar+ since 2019. They've yet to realize that his position as a staff writer is just a cover-up for his career-spanning Destiny column, and he's kept the ruse going with a focus on news, the occasional feature, and as much Genshin Impact as he can get away with.