About 10 or so days ago I was made aware of this beta that was then floating around the PSN. A beta for a game called Rocket League. It's a RC car based sports arena game where you take your car and ram a ball into a goal while also trying to defend from the other team doing the same to you. It's soccer on wheels. Mini-wheels. Made by Psyonix, Inc, who also made the similar game Super Sonic Acrobatic Rocket Powered Battle Cars.
I got my hands on it and decided, eh, I've got nothing else to do until Witcher 3 gets here, so I might as well. Boy, to say I was blown away is an understatement. It's a very, very simple game. Simple, but endlessly fun. It's soccer, but instead of people, you control a little RC car and you have to use your momentum and limited use boosts to take control of the ball and knock it around until you get it into the other team's goal. There's really not much else. The arena you are in during this particular beta is encased in glass, giving you walls to drive on and a roof so you can keep the ball in bounds.
The modes in this beta were 1v1, a duel mode where you can go mano-a-mano and prove your Rocket League MLG status. 2v2, which is a very tactical game where setting up shots for your buddy can be crucial. 3v3, which seems to be the standard way to go and what I ended up putting the most time into. The final mode was a chaotic 4v4 game mode that was just so busy and intense that I played one game and decided, welp, I'm not good enough for that.
The controls are simple as well, R2 is forward, L2 is reverse, X is jump. Jumping into the air and pressing X again allows you to slam in any direction that you push. Forward will jet you towards whatever you are aiming at, and holding the boost button will allow you to fly a short distance, left or right is a corkscrew type maneuver. Circle is your boost, which you can refill by driving over the many boost pads that are spread out across the field. The square button is a powerslide, allowing you to quickly and rather stylishly reposition your vehicle, and triangle is your "ball cam" a camera angle you can toggle that allows you to lock your camera onto the ball at all times.
Depending on how fast you hit the ball and where, you can send it flying across the field or rather just give it a little love tap. The trick is to learn the momentum behind your vehicle and choosing your moments. Sometimes you'll fly off the handle all excitedly and only end up scoring a goal in your own post, earning the other team a big fat +1 and leaving you to the sneers of your team mates. And that timing can be tricky to nail. It seems like the players of the game Super Sonic Acrobatic Rocket Powered Battle Cars are right at home with this game, as ever time I was dominated, the players pointed out how they were pros at the previous game.
And it shows. In my short time with the game I went from bumbling idiot that could barely even drive right to somewhat proficient enough that I could do alright. While I was pretty good at getting goals, I was piss poor in playing defense. Those guys knocked that shit straight into our goal time after time. But honestly, the game itself is so fun losing doesn't mean much. A "GG" here, a "Nice shot!" there, regardless of the team, sent through the in-game chat system, builds a sense of camaraderie. The games biggest feat was making it feel like you're all just a group of friends sitting down to play a game together, no matter the results, no matter who wins. No enemies, no strict competitors, just a bunch of friends having some fun.
I spent countless games thinking, okay, after this I'll be done for the day. Just one more game. And then I'd look at my clock and realize it's been 4 hours and I don't know where I am. But then reality sets back in and I sit down to play just one more game.
Speaking of that, games are quick, lasting just 5 minutes. So you can continuously churn out "one more game" after "one more game" at a steady pace.
It's addicting. Getting the goals, hearing the crowd cheer during a critical goal, reacting with the ebb and flow of the game. Electrifying. This game is just a beta and yet I'm already hooked. So disappointing is it then that the beta ended a few days ago, and I can feel the withdraws already. This was a game that at first I wanted to play only because I had nothing else, but it quickly became the nightly routine of my life for about a week or so. I made a lot of friends, I certainly made a lot of enemies, and I even made an epic save or two and felt like the cock of the walk(Only to screw up and score a self goal and feel like a huge idiot for a game or two).
The full game is set to have more modes, more arenas and a ton of customization for your little cars. It doesn't have a release date yet, but they are at least planning on it being out by Summer.
I can't wait to get my hands on the game. I recommend everyone keep an ear out for this thing.
Hello, I'm N7. I write shit from time to time at my website. I usually post them to Giant Bomb as well but I felt like I was spamming the joint and got a little self conscious so I stopped. But this Rocket League game is something truly special so I thought I just had to share my thoughts with people, especially because the Rocket League page is pretty barren. So I hope you enjoy my thoughts as much as I enjoyed the beta! But probably not because my thoughts are kinda shitty and that game is kinda awesome, so it's not fair to compare them.
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