What Happened To Paragon?

Paragon was a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena game produced by Epic Games.

Powered by Unreal Engine 4, the game was launched in March 2016, with the free-to-play version made available five months later.

In January 2017, Epic Games reported the game already had 832,000 active players, with many praising the game for its true third-person nature.

Successive seasons were released over the next year, with each added skin proving extremely profitable.

However, in a statement released on January 26, 2018, Epic Games announced that:

“After careful consideration, and many difficult internal debates, we feel there isn’t a clear path for us to grow Paragon into a MOBA that retains enough players to be sustainable.”

At the time, the game had not even progressed beyond the beta phase.

Aspect	Description
Founding and Development	Paragon was a third-person multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game developed by Epic Games. It aimed to compete with established MOBAs like League of Legends and Dota 2 while offering its unique take on the genre. The development began in 2015, and it quickly garnered attention due to Epic Games’ reputation for creating visually stunning and innovative gaming experiences.
Early Access and Beta Testing	Paragon entered early access and beta testing stages, generating significant excitement among gamers. One of the game’s standout features was its incredible graphics and immersive 3D gameplay. Players were eager to explore the possibilities of a MOBA in a fully realized 3D environment. The promise of Paragon lay in its potential to redefine the genre.
Rising Hopes and Community Engagement	Epic Games actively engaged with the gaming community during Paragon’s development. They created forums, took player feedback seriously, and made frequent updates to address concerns and improve the overall gaming experience. This level of community involvement fueled high hopes for Paragon’s success. Players felt heard and believed in the game’s potential.
Challenges and Competition	Despite initial excitement, Paragon faced formidable competition in the MOBA genre. Established titles like League of Legends and Dota 2 had already solidified their positions and amassed large player bases. Paragon needed to find a way to differentiate itself and provide something unique to stand out in a crowded market.
Free-to-Play Model	Paragon adopted the free-to-play model, allowing players to access the game without an upfront purchase. Instead, revenue was generated through in-game purchases, microtransactions, and the sale of cosmetic items. The model aimed to attract a broad audience while monetizing the player base through optional purchases.
Declining Player Base	Over time, Paragon encountered a significant challenge: a gradual decline in its player base. Some players cited balance issues and concerns about the core gameplay experience as reasons for their departure. The difficulty of capturing and retaining players in a highly competitive market became evident.
Development Pivots	In an attempt to revitalize the game and address player concerns, Epic Games made several significant changes to Paragon’s core gameplay mechanics. These changes included introducing a new card system to replace the previous item shop and making updates to the map layout. While these adjustments aimed to improve the overall gaming experience, they did not fully reverse the trend of declining player engagement.
Announcement of Closure	In a surprising turn of events, in January 2018, Epic Games announced that Paragon would be shutting down. The decision shocked many players who had hoped for continued improvements and growth. Epic Games stated that it had struggled to maintain the game’s balance and quality while also addressing the declining player base.
Refunds and Sunset of Paragon	In response to the closure announcement, Epic Games took steps to ensure fairness to the Paragon community. They offered full refunds to players who had made in-game purchases, ensuring that players were not financially impacted by the game’s closure. Additionally, Paragon’s servers remained online until April 2018, allowing players to continue enjoying the game until its final moments.
Legacy and Assets	Following the closure of Paragon, Epic Games took a unique approach by releasing the game’s assets and development tools for free. This decision was celebrated by the gaming community and developers alike, as it allowed others to make use of Paragon’s impressive assets and technology for their own projects. This release led to the creation of various fan projects, game prototypes, and experiments that continued to showcase the potential of the Unreal Engine.

Table of Contents

Competition

Paragon was Epic’s attempt to cash in on the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) subgenre.

However, the game struggled to establish a significant following in competition with titles such as League of Legends and Dota 2.

Fellow Epic title Fortnite: Battle Royale was arguably the most significant competitor to Paragon.

Updates to Paragon were slow as game developers jumped over to Fortnite to help manage its unexpected and rapid growth.

In a candid admission on Reddit, developers noted that:

“Our efforts have always been focused on growing the game. While each of these incarnations has been beloved by a core community, none has been large enough to achieve mainstream success. This, combined with the humbling success of Fortnite has caused us to question if we have a good path to grow Paragon and make it thrive.”

Player retention

The game also suffered from player retention issues, with new players seldom sticking with the game after their first month.

Like its developers, many Paragon players took to Reddit to voice their concerns. Some of the major reasons behind a lack of retention include:

Card system and itemization – some players found the card system confusing, with some suggesting Paragon developers were being different for the sake of it. While the vast majority of MOBAs have active and purchasable items, Epic’s card system lacked the flexibility of peer systems and made effective counter-play almost impossible.
Stability – since the game never progressed beyond the beta phase, it tended to crash frequently at the start of matches.
Lack of ranked mode – many players, also lamented that there was no ranked mode in Paragon with season rewards. Without this crucial feature, the game lacked a competitive edge because there was less incentive to succeed or win.
Lack of depth – Paragon gameplay was too simplistic and shallow, with no depth to combat exchanges or duels. Heroes, or the playable characters in Paragon, had too few active abilities or too many targeted abilities. This allowed their capabilities to be easily mastered.

Content release

In September 2018, Epic Games released $17 million worth of Paragon content and assets for free to Unreal Engine 4 creators.

In the years following the demise of Paragon, this content has spawned several new games, including Predecessor, Fault, and Project CORE.

Predecessor was developed by Omeda Studios with a $2.2 million grant, with the company being comprised almost entirely of members of the Paragon community.

Ultimately, Paragon was a game with huge potential that found itself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Thanks in part to a devoted following, elements of the original game appear likely to live on for the foreseeable future.

Key takeaways:

Paragon was a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena game produced by Epic Games. After initial success, the developer announced it would shut down the game after failed attempts to make it sustainable.
Paragon struggled to gain traction in the MOBA subgenre amongst established titles such as Dota 2, League of Legends, and Epic’s own Fortnite Battle Royal. This lack of traction was no doubt exacerbated by poor player retention caused by multiple perceived game deficiencies.
Paragon content was given away for free by Epic Games in September 2018, with many of its most prized assets forming the basis for several other games.

Quick Timeline

Paragon was a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game developed by Epic Games and powered by Unreal Engine 4.
The game was released in March 2016, and the free-to-play version became available five months later. It gained initial success, with over 800,000 active players in January 2017.
Despite early success, Paragon faced tough competition from established MOBA titles like League of Legends and Dota 2, as well as Epic’s own Fortnite: Battle Royale.
Updates to Paragon were slow as many developers shifted their focus to Fortnite, which experienced rapid growth and success.
Paragon suffered from player retention issues, with new players not sticking around after the first month. Complaints included confusing card system and itemization, lack of stability, no ranked mode, and shallow gameplay.
In January 2018, Epic Games announced that Paragon would be shut down due to the lack of a clear path to sustainable growth.
After Paragon’s shutdown, Epic Games released $17 million worth of content and assets for free to Unreal Engine 4 creators. This content formed the basis for several new games, including Predecessor and Fault.
Paragon’s demise was attributed to factors such as tough competition, poor player retention, and a lack of depth in gameplay. However, elements of the game’s original content continue to live on in other projects.

Year	Event
2016	Epic Games launches Paragon, a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game powered by Unreal Engine 4. The game enters early access in March and becomes fully free-to-play five months later.
2017	Paragon sees initial success, with over 800,000 active players reported by January. Successive seasons are released, featuring profitable skin additions.
2018	In January, Epic Games announces the closure of Paragon, citing a lack of a clear path to sustainable growth. The game had not progressed beyond the beta phase. Despite efforts to revitalize the game, including significant updates, player retention remains an issue.
2018	Epic Games releases $17 million worth of Paragon content and assets for free to Unreal Engine 4 creators in September. This move leads to the development of new games by the Paragon community, such as Predecessor and Fault.