Amazon has been dipping its toes into gaming lately, and its latest game is coming to Steam on May 20, Crucible. While its racing game, The Grand Tour Game, didn't do well, this new free-to-play battle royale is looking promising. It has a little bit of everything from other popular games in the genre mixed with some MOBA elements and unique elements that could help it stand out. With so many battle royales on the market right now, Crucible may provide the refreshing gameplay the genre needs.

The game takes place on a colorfully forested alien planet, and it's more than just a battle royale, featuring PVE elements throughout three different modes. The main mode is called "Alpha Hunter" and involves two person teams battling others. Like some other games, the arena shrinks as time goes on, but what stands out is the ability to form temporary alliances if your partner dies. Instead of having to go alone, players can join up with other single players on the fly to form a new team and just as easily disband in the middle of combat and turn on their new pals. This mechanic will create some interesting situations, especially towards the end of a round. When there are only three players left, alliances are removed, and it becomes a free for all.

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Another familiar mode is "Harvester Command." This is essentially a combination of capture-the-flag and point gathering while trying to defeat opponents. Located around the map are mining devices called Essence Harvesters that need to be taken by one of the two player teams. Teams are made up of eight players who race to collect 100 Essence from the Harvesters. With only three around the map, it operates like some of World of Warcraft's PVP gameplay while still having action-filled battles. Like many capture-the-flag style modes, one player must spend time capturing the Harvester while the team protects them or leaves them to die.

The third mode, "Heart of the Hives," contains the most PVE with objectives involving taking out bosses and then capturing their hearts for your team. Don't expect something Monster Hunter style when confronting the bosses. It's very basic, and you'll be dealing with other four person teams. Once the boss is down, one player must claim the heart. There are three to claim total, and the team who has the most wins. This is the most unique mode since it combines some aspects of popular PVE and PVP games. All three modes give Crucible enough gameplay to keep it interesting and leaves room for seasonal content and updates. Outside of the objectives, there is hostile alien wildlife to deal with that look like a combination of Anthem and Dauntless, as well as Essence to gather.

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Essence functions as both the game's currency and experience. It can be gathered from exploring the map, killing players and creatures, or simply completing objectives. The characters themselves are even called Essence Hunters, showing off the importance of this unusual resource. So far, there isn't much information about it, so we'll just have to wait until the game comes out. This may mean this game will have events or a changing story surrounding the planet similar to Fortnite's island.

To start, there will be 10 different characters to chose from, each with their own weapons, abilities and gameplay. Unlike games like Overwatch, there aren't really roles, but characters still have unique playstyles, like in Team Fortress 2. Each character is unique with abilities and looks that stand apart. For example, there is a Zora-esque sniper who uses a harpoon gun instead of a typical rifle and uses a grappling hook to travel quickly or gain high ground. So far, it seems like most characters have their own ways to get around with varying speeds. This is dictated by character's stats, like mobility or control, on top of the usual like health, which gives players an idea of what to expect when deciding who to pick. Characters also level up and gain abilities to choose from, allowing players to customize them to suit their playstyle.

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