Is Realm Royale Back? (A WGG Investigative Report)

Realm Royale has just unveiled and released their massive “Reforged” update, which has put the title under the brightest spotlights it’s seen since it originally debuted in Early Access in 2018. The game immediately exploded in popularity, peaking at over 100,000 players during the month of it’s release.

Over the course of the next few months, player numbers tanked exponentially, with small spurts of hope here and there popping up. Now, Realm Royale: Reforged is here… And the game may officially be back.

A few years back, our very own Dr. Bob offered some impressions on Realm Royale, proclaiming that it had the “potential to be a standout Battle Royale game with its new and innovative mechanics that really separate itself from the others”. Realm Royale enjoyed some decent bursts of popularity over the last few years, but it seemed that with each passing month less and less people were talking about the little fantasy BR that could. Developer Hi-Rez studios made some questionable design decisions and peeled away many features that separated the game from the pack, but now Reforged is here – and hope is on the horizon.

Last 4 months, the small team worked tirelessly on bringing Realm Royale Reforged to the community. It's a very small step, but I can't tell you how proud I am of each and every one of them.

9 people. Shout out to the others who made this a reality. Marketing team/community team

— Hirez Thor (@ThorDG) August 22, 2022

I got my hands on it this morning, and I’m happy to report that the game feels great. Game designer and community director “Thor” from Hi-Rez praised the team (of only nine people!) for making this new release possible, and it’s pretty incredible to see the body of work they’ve put together.

So, what’s new with Realm Royale? For starters, Armor has returned to the game. There’s also new weapons, abilities, and class-specific skills have returned as well. The game feels just as unique and fresh as it did when it launched, and it’s clear that the community is responding favorably to the changes – since the active player count has more than quadrupled from when I fired up the game the other night.

Full patch notes and release updates are available here, and here’s hoping that Realm Royale gets the second wind that it deserves. Just know that if I see you our there on the map, I’m turning your ass into chicken fries.

Realm Royale: Reforged is now available on all consoles, Steam, and the Epic Games Store.