Rocket League

Genre: Racing / Sports (Soccer / Basketball / Hockey / Misc.)

Players: 1-4 Team-Based Competitive (Local Split-Screen), 2-8 Team-Based Competitive (Local Wireless, Online)

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Review:

(Note: This is an outdated review. You can find the updated review here.)

WARNING: THIS GAME HEAVILY PUSHES MICROTRANSACTIONS AND LOOTBOXES (Note: While the game will retain its microtransactions, the developer claims it will be removing randomized lootboxes by the end of the year)

Rocket League is a game that is most easily described by saying that it’s playing a game of Soccer, but with cars. Or alternately, depending on the game mode, hockey with cars, or basketball with cars, or the unique “drop shot” sport with a focus on slamming the ball down onto the opposing team’s turf. Basically, it’s a Racing / Sports title that combines various sports with cars.

It’s a formula that works surprisingly well, and adds a new element to sports games. Aiming the ball (or puck) is a simple, straightforward process of bumping it in the right direction, yet it is nevertheless difficult because your movement is limited to the way that a vehicle can move around. Players are given a few moves to assist with this, including a useful double-jump, brief speed boosts, and the ability to drive along walls and ceilings, although it takes some practice judging these moves when you’re using them for the purpose of precision aiming instead of winning a race.

If you can get past that initial awkwardness, the game plays like a dream. It is immensely satisfying to line up a successful shot at the goal, or to steal the ball away from an opponent and pass it to a teammate for the win. And the jumping acrobatics are tricky, but that just makes it all the more thrilling when you can manage to jump up and thwack the ball juuuust right. And for those who have the inclination and aptitude, combining boosts and jumps to literally rocket around the arena makes for all sorts of tantalizing opportunities.

The game has a wealth of modes and options, as well as tons of customization options to deck out your car. At the moment, some of these options are behind paid DLC, and some of them are tied to lootboxes, although the developer claims these random lootboxes will at least be done away with later in the year. In the meantime, it’s easy enough to earn these bonuses on your own, and thankfully none of them affect gameplay performance – all cars in the game run the same.

Visually, the game looks great, sticking to a solid 60fps, although the resolution has dropped from the 1080p of other versions to 720p on the Switch in docked mode (and even less in handheld mode, and of course things look even worse in split-screen as well). The loss of resolution here is noticeable, but not enough to really hinder the gameplay, and even with the lower resolution the game still looks great. Honestly, I think that visually this is the best that fans of the game could hope for in a Switch port.

There is one small hitch in this version of the game not related to graphics, however. Like other versions of the game, this version of Rocket League allows up to four players to not only play in split-screen, but to compete with others online this way. However, on the Switch, there’s the caveat that all players must be signed into their own profile, and that profile must be signed up for Nintendo Switch Online to participate in these online matches. This might be a bit of a disappointment if your Switch is a family game system – you’re not going to want to get four Nintendo Switch Online memberships just to be able to play this game online with your family.

Still, even with the reduced graphics and a little online frustration, Rocket League is an absolutely fantastic game that is one of the best multiplayer experiences on the Switch, both online and off. Even if you don’t enjoy sports games all that much, this game is fun enough that it could still thrill you. Definitely give it a try.

tl;dr – Rocket League has players using cars to play soccer, hockey, and basketball, and it is an absolute blast to play. It still runs smoothly on the Switch, albeit with reduced resolution, and it’s loaded with options and a wealth of multiplayer features… albeit with a few added hassles thanks to Nintendo Switch Online implementation. Still, minor gripes aside, this game is a blast to play, and even gamers who normally don’t enjoy sports games should give it a try.

Grade: A

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