![]() ![]() A thrower has the option to curve it left, curve it right, or lob it-which you'll need to do in case your homing-aimed shot would otherwise hit a wall or barrier.Įveryone gets a "catch" button, which temporarily opens your hands to catch (and can be done while already holding a ball). Once you have line-of-sight on a foe, you can hold down the "throw" button, see your reticule hover over them, and launch the ball as if it were a homing missile. You have to die and respawn to get both of your hit points back. (The first team to score 10 knockouts wins a round first to two rounds wins a match.) Players can never heal their hit points, not even when they catch a ball thrown directly at them. Most dodgeball attacks take one hit point some special ones take two hit points and instantly kill. "Knockouts" require whittling down a foe's two hit points or shoving them off a level's edge into a bottomless pit. I should clarify a few details before explaining how a suped-up, pass-crazed duo doesn't guarantee victory. And you can't tuck a second dodgeball into your back pocket, either. ![]() New balls spawn in a few predetermined spots on each map, though these vary enough that you can't necessarily rely on muscle memory to immediately stock your team up. There's a downtown hub full of cars, a construction site, or an empty diner full of rotating doors and platforms. But instead of a flat gym broken up by a halfway line, Knockout City's arenas are large, asymmetrical, and resemble various city zones. Each player starts out empty handed and must immediately rush to find a ball. Matches in Knockout City begin similarly. A mad dash upon a ref's whistle to rush forward, grab "ammo," and begin pummeling each other in earnest. If you can't remember (or if your PTSD prevents you), check out the classic Freaks & Geeks scene in the above video. Knockout City is a lot more fun than this, I promise.Ĭonsider how a classic, phys-ed dodgeball game starts. The default mode, "Team KO," is a three-on-three fight to the dodge-death, and its weapon-and-ammo proposition instantly feels different than most other online combat games.įreaks & Geeks' classic dodgeball scene. Knockout City focuses on team-based deathmatches in a cartoonish metropolis. ![]() Let's start with all the fun, depth, surprises, and innovations packed into Knockout City, because you might not assume a game about bubbly teenagers throwing dodgeballs has any of that stuff. So I'm left with two obstacles: convincing you that Knockout City is worth your time, and convincing you that EA isn't going to get in the way of its success. But as I've learned over the years, a great online game can fail without a boisterous playerbase, an adept publishing hand, or good reasons for friends to keep playing with each other. I wish describing an online game like that was enough to guarantee its success. And the game elevates this familiar format all under the guise of family-friendly dodgeball. It celebrates and elevates the genre's roots in ways that make me think I've somehow reinstalled my old Voodoo2 GPU. Knockout City is the best team-deathmatch game I've played in years. Links: Origin | Steam | EGS | Microsoft | PSN | Nintendo | Official website Price: $19.99 (free, full-version trial until May 30 full game included in Xbox Game Pass, EA Play) Platform: Xbox Series X/S (reviewed), Win10 PC (reviewed), PlayStation 5/4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch ![]()
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