MOBAs get a bad rap. When was the last time you heard anyone say anything good about League of Legends that wasn't "wow, I really liked Arcane"? Even in my own experience, most modern MOBAs tend to be weirdly byzantine, rules-heavy experiences all about trying to optimize your build with fifteen different interlocking systems mid-match and getting called a colorful string of slurs by your teammates when you inevitably fail to figure it out.
Enter Sirocco with the steel chair. If you remember the time before Warcraft was just an MMO and a middling animated movie, you may also remember the Battleships mod for Warcraft 3, a fan-created mode that transplanted the game's strategic action to the high seas and resembled the MOBAs we now know and tolerate. Sirocco, a promising-looking indie game announced just today, seeks to pick up where Battleships left off 15 years ago, going back to basics to try and inject some fun back into the genre.
Honestly, it looks like that endeavor a success, even if there is no way to know for sure ahead of the game's full launch. Flexibility is the name of the game here – it's light on rules and heavy on player on freedom, and apparently even works in a roguelike aspect to ensure no two matches play out the same (and – crucially – probably also to prevent a rigid meta taking form the second the game releases). If you liked Warcraft 3 back in the day, it's a good bet Sirocco will scratch that same itch… and as luck would have it, there's a demo out right now as part of Steam's Next Fest. Good luck out there, Captain!
