It’s easy to view MultiVersus’ insatiable need for corporate synergy through a cynical lens – to write it off as a microtransaction-fueled cash grab that pits beloved characters from DC Comics, Looney Tunes, Game of Thrones, and more against each other in PvP battles. But dismissing it like that isn’t entirely fair, as MultiVersus is also one of the best feeling platform fighters out there, with deep gameplay and a unique 2v2 focus that rewards the time you put into mastering it. Unfortunately, yes, it also rewards those who put money into it as well, leaving it an ambitious and well-executed platform fighter that fumbles many of the hooks meant to keep players invested and entertained for the long run.
Each character in MultiVersus takes on the role of either Bruiser, Mage, Assassin, or Tank, which acts as a suitable guideline when choosing your fighter. Bruisers like Scooby Doo’s best friend Shaggy are typically more straightforward to play as and are great for learning the basics. On the other end of the spectrum, Mages such as The Joker or Assassins like Stripe from Gremlins tend to have more tricks up their sleeve, like ranged attacks or moves that require some setup, making them very fun to attempt to master.
Team-centric moves are a cool wrinkle to consider as well, like Wonder Woman’s partner shield buff or Bugs Bunny’s ability to dig a quick-traveling tunnel that either character on your team can use. Other fighters may not be team players, but they all still find creative ways to dole out punishment to multiple opponents. For instance, Jason Voorhees traps one of his victims in a sleeping bag and can slam them into their partner for a brutally satisfying two-for-one attack. I’ve had a blast queueing for 2v2 battles with a friend, piecing together our strategies on the fly, and adding devious new plays to our repertoire.
Whether duking it out in 1v1 or 2v2, MultiVersus shines in a competitive setting. Matches can get as sweaty as they are exciting. I’ve spent evenings grinding out wins with friends and random players online, modifying my loadout of equipable Perks to suit my strategies better as I go. Standard Perks grant effects like adding armor-shattering capabilities to attacks or increasing the damage your team deals, which can stack with a partner’s bonuses when choosing the same Perk. Character-specific Signature Perks can drastically change how you play. For instance, I love to use The Iron Giant‘s Afterburners, which deploy walls of fire wherever his Blast Radius move scorches the ground. Perks offer a layer of depth and customization that’s pleasing to mess around with and fun to optimize to support your style of play.
Along with the full release of MultiVersus following its beta period comes reworked netcode, which I’m happy to report felt great in most of my matches; it was almost as if I was playing in the same room as my opponent. Of course, your results will vary based on your connection and that of your opponents, and while there was some minor slowdown here and there or graphical glitches that need to be addressed, I have to chalk up the vast majority of my losses to a skill issue rather than a technical one.
Despite its time away, not much has been done in the way of adding features from its stint in open beta – to the contrary, it’s actually missing the co-op versus AI mode that used to be available. While it may return in a future update, this mode’s removal does a disservice to introducing new players who’re looking to learn the ropes in low-stakes battles. Aside from a couple of cool new stages like The City of Townsville and Dexter’s Laboratory, which introduce Mojo Jojo’s interfering in matches and a controllable scrolling stage, respectively, there isn’t anything that instills chaos and fun into play sessions like you see in the best games in the platform fighter genre, such as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s item saturated brawls and transforming stage shenanigans. Sure, it’s great to cater to the competitive scene, but what’s the point of getting a big, weird cast of characters together if there’s not a dumb-fun way to share it with people who don’t want to get too serious?
The best way to goof around in MultiVersus right now is a PvE mode called Rifts, which has its heart in the right place, even if my initial impression wasn’t entirely glowing. It’s a series of fights and other challenges that often add fun mutators: One grants infinite jumps, letting you soar through the stage unfettered, while another has you avoiding Joker-themed items raining from the sky. Rifts also throw you into other activities, like makeshift shooting galleries and target-breaking challenges. These new mission types aren’t always enjoyable and feel chintzy at times, but they manage to break up the monotony of regular battles enough that I’m looking forward to seeing more in the future.
What I enjoy much more consistently are the boss battles that cap off each rift. One put me up against an extra-strong Stripe as gremlin eggs spawned other Stripes around the stage, and another was a battle with Joker in a hot air balloon that challenged the cannon-shooting skills I’d acquired from the bonus levels. Both boss encounters are fun and novel, and I hope more of that style of fight are sprinkled throughout Rifts in the future rather than being reserved as a treat at the end of a tedious chore.
My biggest issue with Rifts, though, lies in its progression system, which is done through collecting and leveling up equipable items called Gems. Not to be confused with the character perks you earn and equip in online PvP matches, Gems are exclusive to Rifts and, when equipped, provide balance-breaking abilities that would only fly in this PvE mode. Some Gems boost basic stats like attack power, while others trigger abilities of characters (like summoning Black Adam’s lightning), and each of them makes Rift battles easier to manage while making you feel more powerful. Completing Rifts grants new Gems and levels up existing ones, which allows you to progress through the single-player events. That is… until the Gem leveling becomes time- or money-gated. That’s where frustration sets in.
This and MultiVersus’ various other progression systems have proved to be monotonous and, at times, confusing. For instance, to rank up enough in the current Agent Smith-centric event and earn access to that character early, I have to defeat 20 Rift bosses. Those are fun fights, but in order to get to them, I have to grind each of a Rift’s five difficulties, which are in turn gated by the average level of my Gems. To level up Gems, I have to complete missions in Rifts that I haven’t done before or have a daily reward. If I run out of those ways to power up my Gems, I have to either wait until rewards reset daily to scour for minor XP gains, a new Rift becomes available, or (you guessed it) open my wallet and pay real money for the Gleamium currency to buy Gem XP in the store, which fast tracks the leveling process and provides access to every difficulty level – and even then you still have to play through each Rift after that. Or you could just wait until the character releases for the masses and buy him like any other character. There are an annoying amount of hoops to jump through for certain rewards. It’s especially frustrating when, despite free ways to obtain something exciting like a new character, it feels almost like torture not to throw money at the problem instead.
That’s just one example of how obtuse MultiVersus is, but there are unfortunately more. The UI buries simple but important menus, like personalizing my profile with new portraits or ring-out animations by hiding it in the character select screen. Ongoing events, which should be fun goals to log in for and work toward, are a burden to keep track of and offer meager rewards – oh boy, Wonder Woman can wear a Batman t-shirt? Be still my heart! Not to mention, claiming these event rewards requires navigating to a separate tab from where you can see quests that need to be completed, which are on yet another tab from where you see your progress in that event.
The overcomplication has spread to the in-game currencies as well. Gleamium can buy characters or various cosmetics and bundles in the shop, but by playing and completing quests you can also earn the aptly-named Fighter Currency and Perk Currency to spend on the specific category of item they’re named after. On the bright side, they’re dispensed at a healthy clip so it doesn’t feel like you’re grinding for weeks just to unlock Rick Sanchez. Along with these is the Prestige Currency, which is earned solely by collecting cosmetics, and it’s used to buy even more skins and other personalization items. The economy doesn’t feature the simplicity of Fortnite’s V-Bucks but it’s also not unmanageable. Still, it all makes the traditional premium battle pass, which also exists in MultiVersus, feel simple and refreshing by comparison.
