Paladins is Smite maker Hi-Rez Studios’ take on Team Fortress 2 — with cards instead of hats

Now that Hi-Rez Studios is doing pretty well in the MOBA market, it’s time to take another shot at the team-based shooter scene.

Hi-Rez is already supporting the popular multiplayer battle arena (MOBA) Smite (which is doing well for itself even if it isn’t a League of Legends-sized success), but today, it revealed a new free-to-play game, a team-based shooter called Paladins.

“Paladins combines a rich fantasy setting with the fast action of a team-based first-person shooter,” Hi-Rez noted in a press release sent to GamesBeat. “In addition to the core shooter experience, Paladins also offers deep strategy and in-match character progression through decks of collectible cards, which amplify and augment a character’s core set of abilities.”

So, think Team Fortress 2 with cards instead of hats.

Hi-Rez doesn’t have any in-game footage of Paladins, but it did say that it’ll be playable at this week’s Gamescom conference in Cologne, Germany. Hi-Rez previously released the free-to-play team-based shooter Tribes: Ascend in 2012, although it stopped updating that game in July 2013 (the game is still online, though).

Mike Minotti

Mike Minotti has been with GamesBeat since 2012, starting as an intern. Based near Youngstown, Ohio, he now manages GamesBeat's editorial team. He's also a prolific podcaster, appearing on multiple shows covering the gaming industry.