Rumbleverse is the last entry in an apparently Endless List of Free Battle Royale Games. However, this latest twist on the aging format is more creative and interesting than I expected, as Rumbleverse ditch the usual SMGs, shotguns, and grenades for wrestling grappling hooks, melee combos, and high-flying elbows. The real secret here is that this is really a fighting game, which might explain why I really suck at it. But as proof of how much fun I’m having, I want to get better.
Rumbleverse Coming to consoles and PC on August 11 after a few rounds of beta testing. thought posted by Fortnite epic Game Developers, Rumbleverse is developed by iron galaxya studio with a long and respected history of making really good fighting games like dive kick Y Murderous instinct. And with that in mind, it makes perfect sense that Iron Galaxy’s version of a cartoon battle royale would choose punches and kicks over sniper rifles and RPGs.
On paper, it all sounded a bit strange, like a strange experiment that might not work. but after playing Rumbleverse intermittently for the last few weeks since launch, I’ve really liked the game, even if I haven’t won a single match yet.
The basic setup should be familiar to anyone who has played any other Battle Royale. A large number of players (in this case 40) drop onto an island covered in tunnels, open building areas, and loot. They then scavenge for supplies while battling other players to survive and ultimately be the last one standing.
The big difference in Rumbleverse is that you are not looking for weapons or armor or ammunition. Instead, he finds new moves to equip as he searches for melee items like chairs and stat-boosting potions that allow him to deal more damage, take more damage, or run faster and longer.
When you finally trip (or jump) over another player, the game’s combat shines, even if it has a bigger learning curve than most shooters. In Rumbleverse he can block, punch, punch, grab, counter, charge, and dive. All of these moves have a priority, and higher priority maneuvers will win against lower priority ones. For example, if you grab someone and land a special, and they slice your chest off with a basic hit, then they’ll win that fight. But if they try to block and you try that special grab again, you’ll break their block and throw them into the air or into a 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 compared to Fortnite. And although it seems unfair to compare a new game with one of the giants of the genre, it is clear that Rumbleverse is heavily inspired by Fortnite Of many ways. So hopefully, as the game finds an audience and grows, its challenges and quests will also improve and give players more things to do during matches beyond basic things like “climb a lot” or “heal a certain amount”.
Even though I suck at Rumbleverse and I find its challenge system a bit anemic at the moment, I’m still excited to reload it and play some more. There are so many good (and bad) Battle Royale shooters in 2022. But a really good, colorful and exciting wrestling-themed Battle Royale, with a solid diversity of body shapes, is a nice thing to have. I hope the game sticks around and has future seasons with more content, quests, and challenges that can help make the game even more fun, even for shitty fighters like me.
