‘MultiVersus’ Preview: A Possible Smash Successor Enters The Arena

Games ‘MultiVersus’ Preview: A Possible Smash Successor Enters The Arena Kris Holt Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. I cover all things video games and esports. May 19, 2022, 05:44pm EDT | Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Shaggy in MultiVersus Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment MultiVersus is a new platform fighter from Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and Player First Games. Before the closed alpha got underway today, I got early access to the game, and it’s shaping up pretty darn nicely. This is Warner Bros’ spin on the likes of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Brawlhalla . Also like SSBU (and WB’s own Space Jam ), it’s a crossover extravaganza. MultiVersus pulls together characters from across various WB, HBO and DC franchises and pits them against each other. So, you’ll see the likes of Superman taking on Steven Universe, Harley Quinn fighting Scooby Doo’s Velma and, perhaps most bizarrely of all, Tom and Jerry not fighting each other but instead working as a team controlled by one player. The core controls are similar to Smash as well, with attacks and specials each tied to a single button and directional inputs. But to call MultiVersus a straight-up Smash clone would be doing it a disservice, I think. It has a unique flavor and its own layers of complexity. The core mode is a 2v2 battle where teams race to knock their enemies off of the map a total of four times. There are 1v1 and four-player free-for-all modes as well. It’s clear that 2v2 is the focus, especially given the interplay between teammates and their abilities. Wonder Woman, for instance, can lasso away a teammate who’s in trouble. Shaggy heals an ally by hurling a sandwich at them (or damage an enemy in the same way). Reindog, the sole original character in MultiVersus thus far, curls into a ball for their partner can throw for projectile damage. MORE FOR YOU ‘Demon Slayer’ Season 2 Finally Has An Actual 2021 Release Date Netflix’s ‘Squid Game’ Season 2 Not A Sure Thing, Says Director ‘Genshin Impact’ Still Refuses To Increase Anniversary Rewards, Despite Fan Outcry I think there’s going to be a bit of a learning curve as players learn each of the characters’ moves and how they can combine. That’s not a big issue, though, since anyone who takes any competitive game seriously is going to put a lot of time into understanding the intricacies of each fighter. MultiVersus offers chaotic, colorful platform fighting action for four players. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, a fighting game expert. But I really enjoyed the five or so hours I’ve spent with MultiVersus so far. I can see what Player First Games is trying to do, and I think they’ve executed well on that vision at this point. Matches can get a little chaotic with so much going on at once. I found them difficult to follow at points (especially in free-for-all). Still, I wound up with the most damage and ringouts in most of my games, so I must have been doing something right. Button mashing. I did button mashing right. I spent most of my playtime in the training mode (the lab) to try and learn each character’s moves, but when it came to playing against human opponents, I mashed buttons and hoped for the best. It usually worked out for me. It’s a bit of a blow that some of the characters people will be most excited to try, like Superman and Batman, aren’t available at the outset. You’ll need to unlock them with currency, which you can earn by playing. At least you can practice with locked characters in the lab, so you can familiarize yourself with their move sets just in case you run into one on the opposing team. (By the by, The Iron Giant wasn’t available in the preview at all, which was a bummer.) The initial roster is solid, with a nice blend of big names and some more unexpected characters. I played a few matches with Taz, but didn’t feel I was able to get the most out of his enjoyable, offbeat move set (he can turn enemies into a defenseless cooked chicken). I really liked Velma’s detective-y move set, and as annoying as Bugs Bunny can be, he has a ridiculous, ACME-heavy kit as well. Ultimately, I opted for Harley Quinn most of the time. She’s an all-rounder who has a nice blend of close-quarters and ranged moves, and she’s effective in the air too. Though I didn’t get around to testing her out properly, I’m looking forward to learning how to play Arya Stark as well, given her wild face-stealing mechanic. Harley Quinn in MultiVersus Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment There’s a deep, deep well of IP for the developers to pull from to build out the roster. Rick and Morty seem like pretty safe bets for future character additions, but I hope things get even weirder. Fingers crossed we’ll see the likes of Beetlejuice, Ace Ventura, Wicked Witch of the West, Gizmo and Daenerys Targaryen down the line. MultiVersus is free-to-play, which means there are microtransactions. There’s both a free and a premium battle pass. There’s going to be an array of cosmetic items you can kit out the characters with, as well as custom explosion effects when you knock an enemy off the screen. The customization also extends to a perk system and levelling up each character. Warner Bros. is already investing in the game’s esports scene, which is an encouraging sign. It’s ponying up a $100,000 prize pool for a 2v2 tournament at EVO in August. Player First Games has built a really solid foundation for what has the potential to become a top-tier platform fighter in the coming years. It’s already fun for me, a relative newcomer to the scene. I’m curious to find out what pros in the FGC make of it, particularly given the effective use of server-based rollback netcode. In the meantime, MultiVersus is off to an impressive start, and I’m excited to see what’s ahead. MultiVersus will be available on PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S with full cross-play support. The closed alpha will run until May 27. An open beta will commence in July. Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn . Check out some of my other work here . Kris Holt Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions