"Struggling To Stay Afloat"
"Knockout City" is a unique casual/competitive dodgeball arena game with an assortment of special balls and a high skill cap. What seems to be a fun, casual dodgeball game has slowly become more of a pseudo-competitive battle arena for groups of friends to fight each other, and this has led to a bit of a disappointment for this game's life cycle so far. The game sports some fun combat, nice customization options and quirky visuals, but lacks a bit in gameplay diversity/content and a a lesser focus on casual players, which has led to a quick drop in playerbase numbers to boot.
The dodgeball mechanics are really good for the most part. Like dodgeball itself, you can throw, pass, dodge, and catch balls. In this game, throws consist of straight shots, wide angle sidewinders, and high arcing scoop shots with the ability to adjust speeds for each. Passes are conducted with the click of a button, and cause the ball to increase in charge for a successful pass (I will elaborate on charging throws/passes in the next section). As for dodging, it is used simply to dodge (obviously), leap for balls out of reach, to disrupt opponent moves, and to occasionally block an incoming ball with the correct timing. Lastly, catches are conducted with another simple button click, and help you avoid damage with the ability to time a "perfect catch" to increase the ball's velocity upon throwing it back at the opponent. All in all, some really solid mechanics with some great depth and nuance in terms of active gameplay.
However, there is a flawed mechanic that takes center stage in "Knockout City" - charging balls. Charged balls travel faster than normal balls, making it harder to react to particular throws and team maneuvers. Charges are conducted in two ways: catching repeated throws (up to six charge levels) or passing between teammates (only one charge level). While I think this mechanic is neat, I have my problems with charges gained through passes. It specifically endorses a style of play that is just not encouraged enough in this title, but it also can be abused extremely easily by teams who are coordinated enough. There is no exhaustion effect for passes, so teams can spam passes forever and keep a charge going until the opponent eventually tires of the nonsense and makes a mistake, leaving them open for damage. I believe this mechanic was included to endorse team play, but I do not see non-three stack teams use this mechanic very often and ultimately think it serves no purpose in the game at all at its current point. It exposes too much of a coordination gap between players, and really makes some matches into stomp-fests that, for a more casual player like myself, just aren't as enjoyable. This is especially highlighted by the fact that the main types of players left are high in skill and have organized teams.
Consequentially, this causes matches to feel repetitive more often than not, which is surprising considering the solid base of combat mechanics that are at play. There is a good amount of customization content to play around with, but nothing really affects gameplay. There is planned content coming very soon and in the future (new balls and maps), but I think the passing mechanic limits the variety of gameplay quite a lot. I also think this game has an identity crisis in that it portrays itself as a casual dodgeball game for your friends, but ends up playing like a hyper-competitive and reactive arena title instead. I honestly have not checked out the competitive mode for lack of personal interest, but if it is anything harder than the quick play matches I have come across it certainly will be something I continue to avoid (that is, if anyone is even playing it in the future).
The title has quickly started to lose its playerbase due to these mechanics (as well as network issues, though I personally haven't faced these myself), and I believe something besides a new ball and map must be done in order to keep this game alive. At this rate, there are two fates for this title: it remains a competitive title with a niche audience, only ever adding new content every 3 months until players move on to a new competitive title and the game eventually dies; OR the developers clean up some of the non-casual systems, make this game free-to-play, and promote more casual-friendly party modes and mechanics while SEPARATING the still-solid competitive format from the quick play modes. Right now the game is in a very vulnerable spot, and as someone that found themselves delighted by the charm and mechanics of the title, it would be a shame to see it die a quick death.
Overall, I enjoyed "Knockout City" and its good dodgeball mechanics at its core, but I have lost interest in its competitive focus and unfriendly casual mechanics. The game's $20 price point doesn't help its lifespan much and it would benefit this game to go free-to-play, but until the game's passing mechanics and focus on competitive action are figured out it will not make a difference. I think these are easy problems to fix for the developers because they have clearly shown their skill and love for dodgeball mechanics, but it will have to be done fast if this game wants any chance of surviving with a relevant audience. I can Not Recommend the game despite its solid core since I have to voice my concerns for the future of the game as a casual title. These types of titles don't come around too often, and it would be a shame for its one chance at glory to be wasted.
Final Verdict: 5/10 (Average)
"Knockout City" is a unique casual/competitive dodgeball arena game with an assortment of special balls and a high skill cap. What seems to be a fun, casual dodgeball game has slowly become more of a pseudo-competitive battle arena for groups of friends to fight each other, and this has led to a bit of a disappointment for this game's life cycle so far. The game sports some fun combat, nice customization options and quirky visuals, but lacks a bit in gameplay diversity/content and a a lesser focus on casual players, which has led to a quick drop in playerbase numbers to boot.
The dodgeball mechanics are really good for the most part. Like dodgeball itself, you can throw, pass, dodge, and catch balls. In this game, throws consist of straight shots, wide angle sidewinders, and high arcing scoop shots with the ability to adjust speeds for each. Passes are conducted with the click of a button, and cause the ball to increase in charge for a successful pass (I will elaborate on charging throws/passes in the next section). As for dodging, it is used simply to dodge (obviously), leap for balls out of reach, to disrupt opponent moves, and to occasionally block an incoming ball with the correct timing. Lastly, catches are conducted with another simple button click, and help you avoid damage with the ability to time a "perfect catch" to increase the ball's velocity upon throwing it back at the opponent. All in all, some really solid mechanics with some great depth and nuance in terms of active gameplay.
However, there is a flawed mechanic that takes center stage in "Knockout City" - charging balls. Charged balls travel faster than normal balls, making it harder to react to particular throws and team maneuvers. Charges are conducted in two ways: catching repeated throws (up to six charge levels) or passing between teammates (only one charge level). While I think this mechanic is neat, I have my problems with charges gained through passes. It specifically endorses a style of play that is just not encouraged enough in this title, but it also can be abused extremely easily by teams who are coordinated enough. There is no exhaustion effect for passes, so teams can spam passes forever and keep a charge going until the opponent eventually tires of the nonsense and makes a mistake, leaving them open for damage. I believe this mechanic was included to endorse team play, but I do not see non-three stack teams use this mechanic very often and ultimately think it serves no purpose in the game at all at its current point. It exposes too much of a coordination gap between players, and really makes some matches into stomp-fests that, for a more casual player like myself, just aren't as enjoyable. This is especially highlighted by the fact that the main types of players left are high in skill and have organized teams.
Consequentially, this causes matches to feel repetitive more often than not, which is surprising considering the solid base of combat mechanics that are at play. There is a good amount of customization content to play around with, but nothing really affects gameplay. There is planned content coming very soon and in the future (new balls and maps), but I think the passing mechanic limits the variety of gameplay quite a lot. I also think this game has an identity crisis in that it portrays itself as a casual dodgeball game for your friends, but ends up playing like a hyper-competitive and reactive arena title instead. I honestly have not checked out the competitive mode for lack of personal interest, but if it is anything harder than the quick play matches I have come across it certainly will be something I continue to avoid (that is, if anyone is even playing it in the future).
The title has quickly started to lose its playerbase due to these mechanics (as well as network issues, though I personally haven't faced these myself), and I believe something besides a new ball and map must be done in order to keep this game alive. At this rate, there are two fates for this title: it remains a competitive title with a niche audience, only ever adding new content every 3 months until players move on to a new competitive title and the game eventually dies; OR the developers clean up some of the non-casual systems, make this game free-to-play, and promote more casual-friendly party modes and mechanics while SEPARATING the still-solid competitive format from the quick play modes. Right now the game is in a very vulnerable spot, and as someone that found themselves delighted by the charm and mechanics of the title, it would be a shame to see it die a quick death.
Overall, I enjoyed "Knockout City" and its good dodgeball mechanics at its core, but I have lost interest in its competitive focus and unfriendly casual mechanics. The game's $20 price point doesn't help its lifespan much and it would benefit this game to go free-to-play, but until the game's passing mechanics and focus on competitive action are figured out it will not make a difference. I think these are easy problems to fix for the developers because they have clearly shown their skill and love for dodgeball mechanics, but it will have to be done fast if this game wants any chance of surviving with a relevant audience. I can Not Recommend the game despite its solid core since I have to voice my concerns for the future of the game as a casual title. These types of titles don't come around too often, and it would be a shame for its one chance at glory to be wasted.
Final Verdict: 5/10 (Average)