New hero shooter Paladins looks strikingly similar to Overwatch

Paladins, a new free-to-play first-person hero shooter, has launched in open beta on Steam – but you’d be forgiven for mistaking it for a certain other game.

Developed by Smite creators Hi-Rez Studios, Paladins promises a “blend of fast paced shooter action, a diverse cast of champions and deep character customization”, with players able to customise their heroes via collectible cards.

But there’s no two ways about it: it looks and sounds strikingly similar to Overwatch. Just check out the trailer below to see what I mean.

“Since the start of closed beta late last year we’ve been refining the core gameplay and the overall user experience,” said Hi-Rez co-founder Todd Harris. “Paladins is a team shooter with a fantasy setting, a sense of humor, and a high degree of customization and strategy. Paladins is now and always will be free-to-play and with our move to Open Beta anyone can download the game from the Paladins website or Steam. We look forward to continuing to shape and improve the game with an even larger community.”

While the beta appears to be limited to PC, the game is also said to be in development for current-gen consoles, although we don’t yet know when it’s targeting a release.

Fancy giving it a go? Head through to Steam to give it a download.

Source: Hi-Rez Studios