Amazon launches first big-budget video game with alien-hunter ‘Crucible’ in a bid to take on rival titles Fornite and League of Legends
- Amazon announced its first big-budge video game called ‘Crucible‘
- It is free-to-play, third-person shooter game is driven by choices of players
- Players can team up with other to take down aliens or battle each other
- The game is set to be released May 20 at 12pm ET on Amazon Gaming Studios
It was conceived as an online book store, then transformed into an e-commerce giant and now Amazon has entered the world of video games.
The firm released its first original big-budget game called Crucible with the hopes to take on rival titles such as Fortnite and League of Legends.
The free-to-play, third-person shooter game is driven by choices of players who work with teammates to take down alien creatures.
Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter told CNBC that Amazon’s move into the gaming space is ‘the same way that they got into books and music.’
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The firm announced its first original big-budget game called Crucible with the hopes to take on rival titles such as Fortnite and League of Legends
Amazon has its hands in a range of products and services – it is developing artificial intelligence, provides data storage, produces movies and more.
So the shift into the video game market may not come as a surprise.
Crucible is a shooter game that is defined by choices players make along the way.
Each player is a ‘hunter’ and has a unique set of weapons and abilities to destroy aliens who have invaded a futuristic world, along with battling each other.
The free-to-play, third-person shooter game is driven by choices of players who work with teammates to take down alien creatures – and it will be available May 20 at 12pm ET
The video game is part of the firm’s Game Studios that was created in 2012, which released Living Classics, a social game played on Facebook.
It also designed mid-tier gales for its Fire TV streaming device, but the games fell flat among users.
However, Amazon had developed a strategic way of claiming a stake in the gaming world.
In 2014, the company purchased Twitch – a platform that lets users stream themselves playing video games live for others to watch, Bloomberg reported
And then two years later, Amazon launched Twitch Prime, which gives game-playing Prime subscribers extra perks for no additional cost.
The release of Crucible during a pandemic may seem like a wild move, but since the coronavirus has forced millions into their homes, gaming has seen a spike in users.
A report from March revealed that the platform Steam had a record number of players online from all over the world this weekend – with over 20 million gamers connected at the same time.
Crucible is a shooter game that is defined by choices players make along the way. Each player is a ‘hunter’ and has a unique set of weapons and abilities to destroy aliens who have invaded a futuristic world, along with battling each other
Players can team up to fight aliens or each other in Crucible. Each character had their own weapon and unique abilities
The highest single peak in terms of players was on in one afternoon when 20,312,000 players all connected at the same time – the most in its 16 year history.
Out of the 20 million users logged on to the steam app on Sunday, nearly 6.4 million of them were actively playing a game.
The data is based on usage for the 600 most popular games on Steam and looks at in game usage and those browsing the steam store.
With major sporting events canceled, gatherings of large groups banned and pubs beginning to close – people are looking for ways to pass the time indoors.
Crucible is Amazon’s push into the gaming market as well as a way to take on rival titles like Fornite (pictured)
Crucible is a free-to-play third person shooter game. Users make their own choices throughout the world to determine how the story is played out
Microsoft Xbox has also seen a rise in the number of users – unfortunately they don’t publish live usage data in the same way as Steam.
Xbox boss Phil Spencer said on Twitter: ‘Usage is up on almost everything. Thanks go out to all the Ops/IT teams at all the companies that are working hard to keep everything running smoothly with all going on around them.’
He added: ‘It’s heartening to hear from so many people using gaming as a way to stay connected during these times. Play is a fundamental human need. Proud to be part of an industry that can offer escape and fun right now. Stay safe.’
