If you are familiar with the world of Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) games, then you’ve probably heard of Predecessor. If you haven’t heard of it, then you might know about its predecessor, which was the Epic Games title, Paragon.
Although Paragon would suffer the great fate of cancellation in 2018, its assets remained free for those working in the Unreal Engine Marketplace. While many might have written off the game’s demise and moved on, content creator Robbie Singh knew better. He had a passion for this project and was unwilling to let it go. This would lead to the founding of Omeda Studios, where he would become the CEO and start to build out Predecessor and the community.
The day after the title officially went into free open beta, I had the chance to squad up with Robbie and Head of Marketing, Eric Neigher, to play the game. It was a great joy to experience their love for the title, and it also challenged me to ask the right questions without looking too bad on the scoreboard. I look forward to watching the continued success of the game, especially now that I have seen firsthand the care and community that surrounds it.
Robbie Singh Sees a Great Future For Predecessor
Thank you for taking the time to talk with FandomWire Robbie. For our readers who aren’t familiar, can you tell me a bit about yourself and Omeda Studios?
Robbie: I’m Robbie Singh. I’m the CEO of Omeda Studios. I started a long time ago, actually. Around 2016, I was making content on YouTube, and the game I was making content on was a game called Paragon, which was a MOBA made by Epic Games. I became the biggest content creator for that game. And then when Fortnite took over the world in 2018, Epic kind of shifted across and shut down Paragon.
But I thought there was something really special there. And so when they released the Paragon assets that anyone could use on the Unreal Engine Marketplace, I spent about two years working with the community, live streaming it on Twitch and YouTube, building what I think could be an extremely successful third-person MOBA, but really iterated on by the community.
We had about 100,000 people sign up when we did our playtest. That was really successful. Grew the team from just a few of us to about 25 people. We raised about 2.2 million in funding at the time. And then we continued iterating with our community. We’d do playtests every few weekends, just validating the gameplay, the idea.
This is the genre that really got me into gaming and so I really want to build a MOBA that’s going to be here for years to come.
And then we raised 20 million the following year, that was in 2022. And we’ve grown the team to about 80 people. Continued iterating our product, and launched paid early access on PC in December 2022. Then the following year, we launched PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 in closed beta on PlayStation in December 23. And we have now launched Xbox, PlayStation, and PC in an open beta, and the game is fully cross-play, cross-platform.
Predecessor is now available for gamers to try and there must be a lot of information you need to fully realize to make the best version of this game. What do you hope to learn by giving players open beta access?
Robbie: Yeah, I think we’ve always been really community-focused and player-focused, even from when it was just three of us making a game on Twitch and YouTube. And so the idea behind open beta was we feel like the game is in a really good spot, and we want to get as much feedback as possible from a wide variety of players. And so really, that was one of the focuses of going into open beta.
We had a lot of feedback from our players as well that they felt the game was in a really good spot, and they wanted to play with their friends on other platforms, and we really wanted to give people that opportunity as well. So, it was important for us to get the game out there and really gather as much feedback as possible. I think MOBAs and live service games are really an iteration process that you’re constantly refining, and so that was just one of the kind of key things that we were looking for going into open beta.
Do you see Predecessor as being something that you’ll work on for several years and continue to build out as sort of this extended project? Or do you see it as something that you will safely launch and then move on to a new game?
Robbie: Yeah, no this is something that we’re going to continue to develop, iterate, we’re adding more heroes every six weeks, we ship a new update every three weeks. And so this is something that we want to continuously support. This is the genre that really got me into gaming and so I really want to build a MOBA that’s going to be here for years to come.
It can be so different across studios. You know, some studios just want to put a game out and then move on. And then others want to put the time and care into one product they really believe in. What do you think makes Predecessor different from other MOBA games?
Robbie: I think there’s a lot of unique elements that we’ve introduced. Speaking of which, by the way, should we jump into a game and then continue? Yeah, cool I was just waiting on Eric.
Eric: Yeah, absolutely. Sorry Ezekiel my name’s Eric. I’m on the marketing team. I’m here to help out and for Robbie to beat up on me in the game. We’ll party up. It’s all good.
Robbie: So what kind of games do you play? Any preference on, like, I’m asking because I’m like, maybe I could suggest a character. Is there any preference on, like, ranged characters, like melee characters?
Probably ranged.
Robbie: Okay. Carry is a good shout. And then I think I would recommend, someone like Twinblast can be a lot of fun.
Eric: So, I’m playing support, so I will stick with you and that’s kind of what the support role is. I usually hang around to carry and help out there, so you won’t be all alone.
Robbie: So, yeah sorry. You asked, like, the differences. So, I think there are quite a few. I think just in general with the MOBA genre, it’s dominated by two really great games in League of Legends and Dota. I think we’re bringing something really unique to the MOBA genre where those games are top-down, and our game is obviously your third person, and we focus much more on the moment-to-moment action and really immersing the player in that action.
On top of that, that game takes place on a single plane, but as you can see in our game, it’s very much like you’re in the world. It’s a 3D environment. There are different levels of elevation. We have heroes that fly. And so, we’re bringing something very different to the MOBA genre.
So would you say that the third-person perspective is something unique to MOBA?
Robbie: Yeah. I mean, I think when you look at the market, there’s like League of Legends, Dota, and Smite, and our game is the only third-person MOBA. And so, I think it’s just a much more immersive experience. You can play with your friends, how we’re playing, and you’re on PlayStation 5. I’m on PC.
You can also play with your friends on Xbox. And so, there’s that other element as well. And we’ve also added in kind of unique mechanics into the game where we have heroes that can fly and such that previously wasn’t possible in the MOBA space because of how the core kind of gameplay was set up and a lot of those games being kind of top-down or 2D.
Do you see Predecessor as a game that you want to introduce into competitive markets like esports?
Robbie: Yeah. Definitely. I think the coolest thing for us was when we launched the game in paid early access, like, week one, people were doing community tournaments. And one of the things that I really loved about it was we didn’t have a replay system in the game at the time, so people were on Discord. Like the teams would stream Discord, and then the commentator would restream their Discord onto Twitch. And we were like if that isn’t validation that people want to play competitively and watch competitive Predecessor, we don’t know what is.
It’s a MOBA, and the thing that I really love about a MOBA game is that you can have a variety of characters from across the universe, and I feel like you can make them fit inside of a MOBA.
So we built the replay system inside of two months, and now we have people hosting tournaments every weekend. It’s really awesome to watch. There’s I think this weekend they’re doing a Nations League where it’s community run, and you sign up for your country, and then they make teams of countries, and all the countries play against each other.
And then, I think the week after that, they have the competitive tournament where all the competitive teams are competing with each other. And so, yeah, the community has really created some awesome events, and they’ve shown us that they really want to compete in Predecessor. We’ll also be adding a ranked mode shortly to help players kind of improve their skills and really grind for that competitive aspect.
Have you played competitively yourself?
Robbie: I have. Probably not at like the highest level because I don’t think I was very good, but I am a competitive gamer, and people on our team have played competitively at a much higher level than I have. I try my best.
Eric: He’s being pretty humble. Robbie’s a very, very good player. So, you’ll notice a couple of things. You’re leveling up when enemies are dying near you or when you’re killing them, but when you kill enemies at a certain point or if you kill enemy heroes, you get gold, and that’s kind of another level track.
Gold is used to buy items, but you have to go back to base to do it. And so, it’s really important to get as much as you can to level on that other track, and then, also, if you die, you lose most of your gold to the other enemy, the one who killed you. So, it creates a nice balance between risk and reward. You know, how long do you want to stay out, and try to push it and get more gold and fight enemies? And how much do you want to go back and level up and get stronger?
So, you guys were talking about the different playable characters. What went into the design of the characters, and what is sort of the thought process when giving characters variety? How do you sort of decide how many of each character you want in every class?
Robbie: So some of the assets here were from the original Paragon, and when Epic released the IP. We took a lot of that IP and put it into the game, but we also reworked a lot of the character design. So, while they might look the same, we made a lot of different design choices, and a lot of our design choices were just how do we make these heroes feel more fun, more engaging, and more interactive to play while also making sure that they’re balanced for the MOBA experience.
And then also, we’ve introduced our own characters, and part of that is thinking kind of what you said is, like, what are the things that we think would be really cool to introduce into the game? What do we think is missing?
I like to play a lot of heroes, but I think at the moment, I think Twin Blast, the hero you’re playing is one of my favorites.
It’s a MOBA, and the thing that I really love about a MOBA game is that you can have a variety of characters from across the universe, and I feel like you can make them fit inside of a MOBA. And so, yeah, we try to go kind of wide with our design.
We released a human demon hunter, but then we released, like, a lizard gladiator, and so we like to introduce a variety of characters, and it’s mostly just trying to fill out different design spaces that don’t currently exist in the game. So, we don’t want to release two characters that are too close to each other, and that’s kind of how we like to work.
In the initial creation, and until now, what would you say you’ve drawn inspiration from, or your team has drawn inspiration from? Would you say it’s some of the MOBAs that already exist like Dota 2 and League of Legends?
Robbie: I think you’re inspired in general by a whole host of things. Obviously, a lot of the team has played League of Legends, Dota, Paragon, and a variety of games, but then you also get inspired from, like, TV shows and movies and such, and so I think it’s just about taking inspiration from all different aspects.
And also things we like to take inspiration from are our players and our community. They have some really great ideas, and we like to be super open with feedback, so in our Discord, we have a feedback section. People can post feedback, they can post ideas, and so we also like to take inspiration from our players.
Out of curiosity, are there any movies, TV shows, or other properties outside of the gaming world that you or the community have pulled from specifically?
Robbie: Yeah, no, it’s interesting because the way I think about it is the game is not inspired by like, one thing, but what I do is when we come up with character ideas, it’s like, oh we’ve seen this that’s really cool. Or this movie is really dope, and that’s really inspiring. So, I think that’s what inspired this particular character.
And also skins, I’ve been watching a bunch of pirate films, and so we have a skin line that’s coming out that’s, a pirate skin line. That wasn’t just inspired by the films, but yeah we like to take inspiration from everywhere, and then maybe it’s inspiring a specific character, or maybe it’s inspiring a skin.
I noticed in 2022 you were a Forbes 30 under 30 in Sports and Games. The development of Predecessor is credited in your bio. Do you feel now that there’s added pressure to make sure this title is successful?
Robbie: I don’t think because of that. I think the pressure for it to be successful is because I think for me, I know what it feels like to lose a game that I really love, and I don’t want that to ever happen to people who play my game. And I also play my game a lot. And so the pressure to make it successful is just the pressure I put on myself versus like other things and achievements.
Like it’s super awesome, and it’s really great to be recognized. The thing that I really want to please are the players. And so, I want the game to be extremely successful, because I think that a lot of people really enjoy the game. And I do too, and I play it with my friends. And so that’s the kind of pressure I feel.
So how will the in-game rewards sort of work in Predecessor in terms of skins, bundles, battle passes, etc. looking down the line?
Robbie: So, when you play a game of Predecessor you earn XP and then you also earn what we call Amber, which is the soft currency. And you get small amounts of Amber every time you play a game. And then every time you level your account, you get large amounts of Amber. And you can use Amber to buy things like heroes.
We just introduced Amber, but in the future, we’ll add more things for players to purchase simply by playing the game. We also have an affinity system, which is kind of like a battle pass system that exists for each character. There’s a free track, and then there’s a premium track. The free track is automatically activated whenever you play the character. So you’re always adding XP towards your character.
So, for example, you’re playing Twinblast now, you’re earning affinity XP. And each time you hit a milestone, like level, there are 10 levels, each time you hit a level, you’ll earn something for Twinblast. On the free track, that’s like affinity banners and then icons you can equip on your loading screen. And then you also earn a skin for that character.
If you get the paid version, the premium version, you get additional rewards like a crown for your hero. And so, your hero will have a crown, and the crown scales depending on the level of affinity. And then we have the usual store that you would expect from any MOBA where you have a variety of skins that you can purchase. There are bundles for new players, which will unlock characters and skins, and sprays. And we’ll have a lot more coming soon. We get a lot of feedback from players that think the game looks beautiful and so they want really cool skins or really cool ways to customize characters.
And something we’ve done in the past and will continue to do is just these events where simply by playing the game and as a community completing a challenge, you will unlock a skin. So when we did our PlayStation closed beta, we told the community, “hey, if you refer X amount of people we’ll give you some skins, we’ll give you some icons and such.”
And so, we do those kinds of events and then also when we release new heroes, we may do a crossover event. Like we released a character called Kira, who was Countess, who’s another character in our game’s rival. And then whichever team got the most kills, we gave a skin to everyone. But it was the skin was based on who won.
When you’re playing the game, who do you like to play as and why?
Robbie: I like to play a lot of heroes, but I think at the moment, I think Twin Blast, the hero you’re playing is one of my favorites. I really enjoy him a lot. He’s got a dash, he’s got grenades, feels really cool. I used to play a lot of shooter games, so he feels like really nice. And then I also play Argus, who is the newest character that we just released. And he’s the mage. I think I like him because he’s very unique and he’s not something that I’ve ever really seen before in a MOBA.
Yeah, I think that’s part of the character design that you were talking about. It’s like we want to make sure people who are coming from different genres also feel like there’s something that they relate to, right? If there were like all these magical heroes it might be difficult for you to kind of get into the game, but because there’s something for everyone, it feels familiar and easier to get into the game.
I know a lot of games have whole histories of characters that build out the lore. Are there bios on each individual character?
Robbie: I think there’s some bits of information, but we’ll definitely be adding to it. We really want to build out the lore for the game. Our focus today has mostly been on the gameplay, but as we continue to grow, we’ll definitely be filling out the lore. We’ve started to introduce more stories for our newer characters, and then we’ll go back and add more stuff for our kind of older characters as well. I think the main question everyone has is like, why are they here, right? Why are they fighting?
So you’re in open beta now. How long do you expect open beta to last and do you have a timeline for it?
Robbie: Yeah, I don’t want to say we have a definitive timeline just yet because I think the goal of open beta for us is really to gather a lot of feedback from players. And if everyone’s like, hey, this game is awesome, and a lot of the things that we need to change are very minor things and fairly easy to do, then maybe our open beta is extremely short.
So we have a new hero that will launch on like the 11th of April and we’ll be launching a new game mode very shortly after that. And that’s on the brand new map.
But if there are things that we feel like, hey, we need a bit more time to change these things or gather some more feedback, then we’ll take our time. I think the key is just making a really great game. And, you know, the game is free. So people are welcome to come in and try it right now as well. The ranked mode will be here soon as well and so there’s a lot of content. There are 34 heroes for people to play. So there’s still a lot for people to enjoy, even though it’s open beta.
How often do you guys get to play the game? Are you playing it pretty consistently, or is it to the point where it’s on the players to be the test subjects at this point?
Robbie: I mean we obviously have a lot of players already playing, and we also have an internal testing group made of some of our live players. And we’ll play with them. That happens most evenings. And then, I’ll also like yesterday I was streaming for a couple of hours playing on the live game.
So I would say I play most nights to be honest, at least 3-4 games. I have made like really good friends, like lifelong friends that played Predecessor and so they’re always playing. And so we’ll just play a couple of games every night. And then internally we also do company playtests where the whole company will play together at least once a week, and so I would say we’re playing pretty often.
Will there be additional maps in the game?
Robbie: Yeah I guess I can talk a little bit about now that we’ve released open beta and what’s coming next. So we have a new hero that will launch on like the 11th of April and we’ll be launching a new game mode very shortly after that. And that’s on the brand new map. That game mode is about 12-13 minutes long, so much shorter than the traditional 5v5 mode and it is much more focused on just the moment-to-moment action and less about the full MOBA experience.
It’s easier for players to get more familiar with the characters and I think players are really going to enjoy that. It’s a different experience compared to the 5v5 mode, but I’m really excited for players to try that and it’s on a brand new map.
Eric: It’s about 13-15 minutes per match, not the entire length of it, it’s not like a single one-and-done thing.
Robbie: And then we have the ranked mode coming shortly after that and I’m really excited for the ranked mode as well. I know a lot of players even in our early access and PlayStation closed beta, people were really into asking for ranked mode.
They’ve been asking for ranked mode they claim they’ve been asking since the game launched in paid early access, so it has been a while now. I’m really excited to get that out because we have a lot of people who want to play this game competitively.
And I also think that’s one of the areas where this game really shines is the 5v5 competitive experience is really fun, I personally enjoy it a lot. And so we have that coming out shortly after. So we have a good few key beats coming right after the open beta starting with the new hero on the 11th of April.
Eric: Yeah and just to add to that about ranked mode, Robbie was talking a little bit about Paragon and the history of Predecessor. It’s worth pointing out that our ranked mode will be the first time that games in the legacy of Paragon have had ranked mode because Paragon itself did not have a ranked mode.
So, it’s a pretty exciting thing for people who are big fans of Predecessor, as I am. But also for people coming from kind of legacy games to be able to play the kinds of games they love in a totally new way that hasn’t been available before. So, we’re pretty excited about it.
Predecessor’s Open Beta is available now, so be sure to check it out, and don’t hesitate to check out our other interviews with gaming’s hottest talent!
