Battle Royale games are rather popular, aren’t they? You drop out of a plane or a helicopter with a squad, do some scavenging, and then you slowly get pressed into rival survivors by a giant wall of something like fire or gas or a storm. You fight others until only one team and one sliver of land is left, then you are extracted for a victory lap. So, which battle royales have perfected this gameplay loop?To help you decide which to check out next, we’ve used a mix of our community ratings and personal favourites to list (in no particular order) the best battle royale games available on Xbox right now.Call of Duty: WarzoneCall of Duty is dominant. So, taking a swing at the ever-popular battle royale genre was never going to fail, really. Call of Duty: Warzone is now a staple. Using a realistic gun set from two eras — contemporary and 80s — gives it a bit of seriousness that some of the other games lack. Naturally, each weapon handles well, and shooting is just so satisfying. When it launched, Warzone introduced a gameplay mechanic that allowed you to buy kill streaks, armour, ammo, and — most importantly — downed friends. As a failsafe, on your first death, you get sent to the Gulag, where you 1v1 another player. A victory sends you back to the map of Verdansk and your imminent second death. There are options for four, three, two, and one person teams with a separate map with a higher pace of game called Rebirth. Upon these foundations, a solid BR experience has been built in the nearing two years since launch. More guns, a map change, story teases, themed events, and more have always kept it in the top tier. All of the additional content has been solid after a few initial patches. This is just a rock-solid BR. There are issues, though. The meta has been stable for a little while, but it always feels like it is really to fall apart on a dime. Meaningful content is only sporadically added, sometimes allowing big teasers to result in very little. The map is a little tired, as well, despite the 80s makeover for Cold War. It is also around 100GB, and it just keeps getting bigger. But if you can stomach that, then this is a game that should be installed for the long haul. Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® – Digital Standard EditionIncludes:- Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare®- Warzone, featuring a Battle Royale mode- Battle Pass system*- In-game XRK Weapons Pack- In-game Tactical KnifeExperience a visceral Campaign or assemble your team in the ultimate online playground with a mix of Multiplayer maps and modes, the franchise’s premiere Battle Pass system, and Warzone – included for all online players.Super Animal RoyaleDeath to all animals, except one. That is the briefest description we can give you for this oddity called Super Animal Royale. 64 little animals get dropped into a safari park and start blasting. Take that, stupid fox! The top-down perspective gives it a bit of a browser game look, but to us, that is very appealing. Those games always had an unrivalled stickiness and hidden complexity. Super Animal Royale is offering just that at the same cost: totally free! You can be sneaky or loud, use a bunch of weapons, and be a panda or a monkey or a hippo. What more do you want?Super Animal RoyaleSuper Animal Royale is a 64-player, frenetic, top-down 2D battle royale where murderous animals fight tooth, claw, and machine gun across an abandoned safari park. Collect and customize your favorite critters and weapons, then put them to work in solo matches or team up as a squad of up to four players!Apex LegendsApex: Legends is a hero battle royale developed by Respawn, who also made Titanfall 2. You select a character with a specific power — like a healing drone or reality phasing — and drop onto one of the maps with a three, two, or one-person squad. The shooting is superb; it is a little slower to kill an opponent than Warzone but given the systems operating around the gunplay, that helps eke out battles into tough mental challenges as well as slugfests. The powers all feel balanced but unique enough and useful enough that you will have to start thinking about team chemistry. The maps are interesting and vertical, with just enough nuggets of unique space to offer varying challenges and combat scenarios. Apex Legends’ reputation just keeps growing, so if it looks like your speed, now is a great time to leap in!Apex Legends™Apex Legends is the award-winning, free-to-play Hero shooter from Respawn Entertainment. Master an ever-growing roster of legendary characters with powerful abilities and experience strategic squad play and innovative gameplay in the next evolution of Hero Shooter and Battle Royale.SpellbreakNow, for something a little different. Put down your guns and pick up the gauntlets because Spellbreak is all about magic. There are classes wielding these gauntlets with different elemental abilities: toxicity, frost, stone, wind, and fire. As you go, you pick up runes with different abilities that help you fly, teleport, or become invisible. The different combination of gauntlets that you could be using, in addition to the rune system, makes this not only visually and thematically different from other titles but presents a unique gameplay system for players to enjoy. Ruined castles populate hills, and automaton workshops crack apart in the desert to the north. Updates are big, but infrequent. That means there is always time to squeeze in a bit of Spellbreak between other titles, and you won’t regret doing so!SpellbreakSpellbreak is a multiplayer action-spellcasting game where you unleash your inner battlemage. Master elemental magic to fit your playstyle and cast powerful spell combinations to dominate other players across the Hollow Lands.]FortniteWe feel like we don’t need to introduce you to Fortnite. The game is so insidious that people who don’t like video games talk about it. Heck, Lieutenant Colonel’s have actually name-dropped this behemoth at some of our family dinners. This is truly a social phenomenon that hosts trailers, concerts, and game-changing set pieces. The social hub aspect makes it easy to forget this is also a really good battle royale. The unique quirk here is the building mechanic that totally alters the field of play. Sure, you do some shooting, and there are some funky gadgets, but the great players know how and when to build walls and floors until they are staring dominantly down upon their feeble opposition. The shooting is not for everyone; it is third-person and can feel clunky until it all clicks into place. Once it does, there is a freedom in the way it handles that is a true rarity. With an ever-changing map, costumes and skins from your favourite franchises, and seemingly endless themed events — the pace at which this game move is phenomenal. If you haven’t already, just know that Fortnite is ready for you to build a home with it. FortniteFight in a cosmic war in Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 7: Invasion. Alien forces have infiltrated the Island while Doctor Slone leads the IO forces against them. Jump into battle by taking up both side’s tech: abduct your foes in a flying Saucer, blast enemies with the Rail Gun, create your own Alien in the Battle Pass, and more. As the Season progresses and the war escalates, new weaponry will be deployed and the battlefield will be shaken up. The battle for the Island begins now.Fortnite is the completely free multiplayer game where you and your friends can jump into Battle Royale or Fortnite Creative. Download now for FREE and jump into the action.PUBG: BattlegroundsThe OG is still a goodie. PUBG was on the scene well before Fortnite, and yet it is still a great experience. Survive, shoot, kill is the order of operations, plain and simple. With multiple vehicles and a host of maps on the roster, you will get your BR fix, no doubt. The simple limitation of your backpack resources creates emergent gameplay moments founded upon your panic in realising you’ve picked the wrong gear for the way the circle has folded. Despite its wear, PUBG still has a really solid community of players. The question is if you can get a grip of the games on a controller and stomach the occasional appearance of cheaters. The title is on Xbox Game Pass, though, so it is worth jumping in to find out! With plenty of PUBG coming in the future, like a single-player campaign and a TV show, you can be sure this one is sticking around. PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDSOutwit your opponents to become the last player left standing. Game requires an Xbox Live Gold subscription. In-game purchases optional. Game purchase includes access to the PUBG Public Test Server. For more information, please visit www.pubg.com.Forza Horizon 4 – The EliminatorNow it’s time to step away from the guns and the magical spellcasting gauntlets with The Eliminator in Forza Horizon 4, which provides a refreshing twist on the battle royale genre. Seventy-two players in cars and various other vehicles compete to be the ultimate winner by racing against each other in an ever-decreasing play area. Everyone starts with a Mini Cooper and can pick up higher-levelled cars that are dotted around the map or by challenging another player to a head-to-head race and winning. If you lose, though, you’re out. It’s completely different to any other BR out there, and hours of fun can be had with The Eliminator; it’s just a shame some of those Eliminator achievements are so damn hard to unlock. Forza Horizon 4Dynamic seasons change everything at the world’s greatest automotive festival. Go it alone or team up with others to explore beautiful and historic Britain in a shared open world. Collect, modify and drive over 450 cars. Race, stunt, create and explore – choose your own path to become a Horizon Superstar.Hyper ScapeThere is no doubt that Ubisoft Montreal’s Hyper Scape has been struggling for players as of late, but that doesn’t mean that this isn’t worth testing out. Hyper Scape is a fast-paced BR where you will feel like you are constantly ducking and diving. Instead of gas or walls, the city is falling away section by section, thus forcing players into a Catan-like hexagon. There is verticality in abundance here, along with wild powerups that could turn you into a giant rolling marble. There are a lot of features added to the baseline formula, and that isn’t for everyone, and firefights can fizzle out quickly. In fact, gunplay can be hit and miss even so far away from the launch of the beta in 2020. However, Hyper Scape is for fans of big flashy plays and a fast bite of a glamourous sci-fi treat. HYPER SCAPEHyper Scape™ is the one and only urban futuristic free-to-play Battle Royale where 100 contenders engage in first-person close-quarters combat and fast-paced matches to become the next global superstar.Do you have a favourite battle royale game that we haven’t included in our list? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. This article was updated on 28/08/2021. Additional reporting by Sean Carey.
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