Rumbleverse is the newest entry in a seemingly Endless list of free to play battle royale games. However, this latest spin on the old format is more creative and fun than I expected, like Rumbleverse ditch the regular SMGs, shotguns and grenades for grappling, combined melee and high-flying elbows. The real secret here is that this is actually a fighting game, which might explain why I really enjoyed it. But as a testament to how much fun I am having, I want to be better.
Rumbleverse hits consoles and PCs on August 11 after a few rounds of beta testing. Although published by Fortnite developer Epic Games, Rumbleverse developed by Iron galaxya studio with a long and respected history in making really good fighting games like Acrobatic and Killer Instinct. And with that in mind, it makes sense for Iron Galaxy to be in a battle royale animated movie that chooses fists and kicks over sniper rifles and RPGs.
On paper, it all sounds a bit odd, like a weird experiment might not work. But after playing Rumbleverse In the past few weeks since its launch, I’m really enjoying the game more and more, even though I still haven’t won a single game.
The basic setup should be familiar to anyone who has played any other battle royale game. A large number of players (40 in this case) drop onto an island covered with buildings, tunnels, open areas, and loot. They then scavenge for supplies while battling other players to survive and eventually be the last one standing.
Big difference in Rumbleverse are you not looking for guns or armor or ammo. Instead, you find new moves to equip while also looking for melee items like chairs and stat boosters that allow you to deal more damage, take more damage, or run faster and longer. .
When you finally stumble (or jump) on another player, the game’s battle shines through, even if it has a larger learning curve than most shooters. In Rumbleverse You can block, smash, punch, grab, access, charge and dive. All these moves have priority, and moves with higher priority will win moves with lower priority. For example, if you grab someone and take out a special someone, and they chop you in the chest with a basic smack, they win that fight. But if they try to block and you keep grabbing that special again, you will break their block and throw them in the air or against the wall.
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You have to master this unusual dance of punching, dodging, blocking to get good at Rumbleverse, and while I’m able to win flights, I’ve not been able to stay alive long enough to win. (My best match result so far was second place, which was nice, but still not a win!)
Your instinct will be to immediately try to spam attacks or specials, but don’t do that. The key is to treat fights like wrestling matches that you might see on TV. There will be pauses as both enemies reevaluate the situation and decide what to do next. In these moments, the combat mechanics of Rumbleverse shine, and feel both really good and really different from what you find in Fortnite or PUBG.
Where Rumbleverse currently stumbles is in the bits surrounding the action. Dropping into a match, grabbing a chair, and slamming it down on someone from the top of a skyscraper is awesome. That part works wonderfully. But outside of matches, menus are a bit confusing and annoying to use, and the challenge system feels woefully slim vs. Fortnite. And while it may seem unfair to compare a brand new game with one of the standout games of the genre, it is clear that Rumbleverse inspired a lot from Fortnite in many ways. So hopefully as the game finds an audience and grows, the game’s challenges and missions will also get better and give players more to do in matches beyond the basics. like “climb a lot” or “heal a certain amount”.
Although I’m a bit bored Rumbleverse and I find its challenge system a bit lacking right now, I’m still happy to reload it and play some more. There are a lot of good (and bad) battle royale shooters coming out in 2022. But a really good, colorful, and fun wrestling-themed battle royale—with a variety of body shapes, no poor — is a great thing to have. I hope the game goes on and there are future seasons with more content, missions and challenges that can make the game even more enjoyable, even for crazy warriors like me.
