Paladins Finally Leaves Steam Early Access on May 8

25 Million Players and Counting

Although it has been criticized as an Overwatch clone initially, Hi-Rez Studios‘ Paladins now boasts over 25 million players world wide. That is more than twice what it was just on May 2017. The team-based shooter is free to play for anyone with a Steam account since its September 2016 launch. It is under the Early Access program, but is now finally launching as a full game officially starting May 8th.

Paladin’s Executive Director Chris Larson says in a statement:

“Even now, with Paladins a million times more polished than it was at the start of Early Access, we do not consider Paladins a truly “finished” product.” He adds: “We know there’s still work to be done. We are going to keep polishing, keep refining, keep fixing bugs, and keep putting out awesome new content on a regular patch cycle.”

Is the Game Still Free To Play After the May 8 Launch?

Yes, the game will remain free and they will not start charging. As usual, the company will make their money through the in-game add-on purchases.

In addition to the launch celebration, they are also giving everyone who played the Beta 200 Crystals for free. That is equivalent to about $100 million if users pay for it out of pocket. The only requirement is to login from May 8 to 31 to claim it. Users will also receive a special Beta avatar.

To download and start playing, visit its official Steam page here.