The multiplayer gaming community has been blessed with some mind-blowing battle royale offerings in the last couple of years. After the wild success of games like Fortnite and PUBG, other battle royale titles hit the market. One such fine offering was the Blackout mode of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 which changed the whole battle royale narrative with its high-octane solid offering. Another recent addition to the battle royale market was the ESports-friendly Apex Legends, which was an instant hit, amassing a whopping 50 million legends in the first month itself.
What is Blackout?
Blackout is the Call of Duty’s offering to the battle royale fans similar to titles like PUBG and Fortnite. Blackout is the battle royale game mode that comes bundled with the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 as a stand-in for the campaign mode. Blackout takes some heavy inspiration from PUBG while bringing in some elements of the fast-paced Fortnite into its gameplay. You can choose to play Solos, Duos or Quads (Squads without the ‘S’). The game and mechanics work the same in all the three modes, the tactical differences are night and day. Just like other battle royale titles, you fight to outsmart your opponents till you’re the last man standing.
What is Apex Legends?
Apex Legends by Respawn Entertainment is probably one of the most popular battle royale titles till date which took the whole gaming community by surprise by its free-to-play battle royale experience. In fact, Apex Legends is developed by the creators of Call of Duty but made quite a name for itself in the first week alone, taking a slant on the battle royale formula that is more esports friendly. The game is based around the legends, which are the characters of the game who possess some unique abilities that significantly take the game to a whole new level. This is also the EA’s first entry into the competitive esports world with the same first-person viewpoint but a slightly different battle royale formula.
Difference between Blackout and Apex Legends
Gameplay
– Blackout is the battle royale game mode that comes bundled with the Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 as a stand-in for the campaign mode. It is basically a mashup of the whole Call of Duty: Black Ops universe but more esports friendly. Similar to other battle royale titles, Blackout allows you to engage in a heavy battle-like experience and try to outsmart others until you are the last man standing. You can play solo, with a friend (duo), or with your own team (quads). You along with your team are dropped into the vast Blackout map via an aerial transport with nothing but your wingsuit.
Respawn Entertainment’s Apex Legends is a new battle royale title set in the Titanfall universe and published by Electronic Arts. Apex Legends is purely a squad-based game where you get to choose from the twelve legends, which are the characters of the game, and each character possesses unique abilities of their own. Unlike Blackout, it is not meant for playing solo. What sets the game apart is its unique ping system which takes the whole teamwork and coordination efforts to a whole new level.
Map
– Blackout is a modern military style shooter that bears no resemblance to Apex Legends. The map, for one, is huge though but it is not as vast as the map of Apex Legends. The Blackout map is inspired by pre-existing multiplayer maps, like Nuketown, with each location pointing towards a different setting, from a construction site to a giant hydro-electric dam and winding rivers. Some areas even have zombies to keep you occupied. Apex Legends, on the other hand, has two maps, King’s Canyon and World’s Edge and knowing where to land exactly is the key to your success in Apex Legends. A decent landing place means where you can round up some decent loot before you start fighting your opponents.
Revival
– In battle royale structure, death is the end. When you are shot down by an opponent, that’s the end for you; you have to back out and start afresh. This is the aspect where Apex Legends took a rather different approach. For a limited time, you can revive your teammates when their health is down marginally or respawn them entirely after their death. This means your fellow squad members can be healed, revived, and respawned. But there’s a catch; you have to play a little game of “capture the banner”. You must bring your dead member’s banner to a Respawn Beacon before the time runs out to revive them from the grave. In Blackout, death is the end and there is no respawn feature.
Blackout vs. Apex Legends: Comparison Chart
Summary of Blackout and Apex Legends
Both the games have their pros and cons. There are certain areas where Apex Legends seem to take the higher ground such as its huge arsenal of weapons and ammunitions, its characters with unique abilities, and its unique ability to resurrect dead team members from grave. You can choose from the host of weapons and characters to suit your playstyle. Although shooting your opponents is the best way to get rid of them, the game offers some more stylish ways to kill them. Each character can summon from its three finishing moves which can be triggered by hitting the right button in front of a downed opponent. Blackout has a much bigger map has much better and detailed graphics than Apex Legends. Although, the characters in Blackout have no special abilities, there is far more choice available when it comes to character selection compared to Apex Legends.