With the dozens of "DotA-clones" flying around, what has Petroglyph's Rise of Immortals done to beat them all down? We tried out the game to find out!

Rise of Immortals also has one more unique feature: a social hub. Because the game pushes players to focus on one specific immortal, there is also a physical location where all immortals are placed as they wait for their game queues to fill up. In other words, think of a giant lobby where everyone wanders around aimlessly while in between games, and that's the basic premise of the social hubs. This allows for premade games to happen faster, as players can simply look around to find potential gaming partners, whereas games like League of Legends typically requires players to meet friends outside of the game or after a game has taken place.

In the end, Rise of Immortals plays, and feels, like a DotA game with some minor graphical upgrades. It's worth mentioning that the game is in open beta and could, therefore, undergo some big changes, but right now it tends to feel a bit clunky in execution, and the graphics are reminiscent of games made in the early 2000s. I can't even begin to remember the number of times I've missed certain abilities because of delays, or the times my immortal has gone off in an odd direction because of certain game glitches. However, for most DotA enthusiasts, graphics are rarely an issue, and while gameplay bugs can be problematic, laggy gameplay is not something that can break an experience.

Unfortunately, Rise of Immortals does suffer in the one category that most MOBAs really excel in: presenting a really exciting lineup of characters to play. Each immortal in Rise of Immortals just feels like a really bland archetype that Petroglyph wants to fill, like Tatiana, the scantily clad female mage, or Balak, the gruff Dwarven sniper. Usually when I'm introduced to a new DotA-style game, I get quite excited about checking out the new heroes, and I love spending hours just reading into their specific strengths and weaknesses, but each immortal in the game is so lacking in real personality that I had difficulty picking even one to play with (I ultimately went with Aislynn, the scantily clad female tank).

As mentioned, Rise of Immortals is still in open beta. If Petroglyph picks up their game on their next few immortals, players can get more excited about the fundamental act of choosing a character to play, which will help them enjoy the rest of what Rise of Immortals has to offer.

Christopher "Pwyff" Tom, Senior Staff Writer