‘Not even close’: Why NICKMERCS tips battle royales to overthrow esports like CDL, HCS before long

Another day, another instance of Nicholas “NICKMERCS” Kolcheff praising Apex Legends at the expense of Call of Duty.

This time, however, the battle royale king was a little more discreet.

Rather than compare them outright, he claimed that battle royales, in general, are more competitive than standard modes in CoD, or even arena shooters like Halo and Gears of War.

So much so, in fact, that he seems to believe it’s only a matter of time before battle royales overthrow esports like the CoD League and Halo Championship Series.

“I think battle royales are way more cracked than traditional CoD, Halo, or Gears of War,” he said during his Twitch stream on Dec. 5. “There’s so much more that goes into a battle royale than maybe like a Hardpoint game or like an S&D.”

It’s not that he doesn’t appreciate those games and modes. Instead, it comes down to the fact that “there’s just not as much that goes into the process” of competing and winning them.

“It’s not even close,” the star Twitch streamer added.

NICKMERCS’ view isn’t all that surprising considering he’s now a full-fledged Apex pro. But he also played Gears of War and Halo at the highest level, so his opinion bears some weight.

And when push comes to shove, the 32-year-old star believes the thrills and spills of a battle royale makes it the pinnacle of gaming and a roller coaster ride of a spectacle.