REMATCH PS5 Review. There’s a dash of craziness when you consider that the developers of the latest arcade footie title REMATCH are responsible for the excellent martial-arts caper Sifu from a few years ago. That’s right, Sloclap has returned with a pumped-up footie title that fuses elements of FIFA/FC and Rocket League together into a fresh new title. REMATCH bursts with style and finesse, but can it really compete with the juggernauts that inspired it, or will you want to rescind this rematch?
REMATCH Review (PS5) – Matching Up Well With The Competition
Let’s get this elephant with its deely boppers and roller skates out of the room first: REMATCH is an online-only football title with 3v3, 4v4 and 5v5 options, so if you’re looking for some single-player sustenance here, you’re better off looking elsewhere for it. As a multiplayer-centered affair, REMATCH is indeed a competitive football experience, where you participate in 5-minute matches and work together with your team to claim victory. REMATCH sticks to the basics in order to achieve a pleasurable arcade football game that’s simply to pick up and play, but hard to master-which is where the game’s allure shines.
Adding to the aforementioned allure, is the fact that the typical football rule book has been jettisoned for the sake of pure and proper uninterrupted play. No yellow or red cards, no fouls, and no penalty shootouts or free kicks; it’s all about working together to score goals and achieve victory. REMATCH is predicated on providing players with accessible footie, and in that vain it deserves to be commended and appreciated.
If you’re expecting something on the level of Rocket League with REMATCH, it’s a bit hit and miss. The appeal and challenge of Rocket League was in utilizing these turbo- blasting RC-like machines to punt a huge ball and poke it through the goal post before that goal post blasts your little car into the air to herald an explosive celebration.
REMATCH doesn’t have machines you can drive, nor does it include a gargantuan ball to knock about. REMATCH is therefore a semi-traditional football game, where the rules are stripped out for the betterment of cohering with its physics-heavy leanings. If you’re looking for the simplistic thrills of Rocket League you won’t find them here, but if you enjoy teamwork and strategic play-then come on in!
A Well-Pitched Game of Football
Before you embark on your quest at becoming a legend in REMATCH’s online arena, you’ll take part in tutorials to get yourself comfortable with the game’s controls. You’ll learn how to shoot effectively, utilize boost, pull of tricks and initiate slick passing manoeuvres. This tutorial is quick and helpful, though you might yearn for more single-player content, though the multiplayer action is still very much worth playing for all the intricacies you’ll find.
Considering that REMATCH can only be played with other humans over an internet connection, tactics and strategy can only truly be done on the fly, so close communication on a headset is the ideal way to approach each game. Going without verbal chatter makes matches much more unpredictable and you’re far more likely to concede goals and find yourself on the losing end.
A typical game in REMATCH starts by selecting whether you want to be at home or away, and choosing the attire you’ll be playing with during the match. When the match commences you’re either going to be dropped in at a key position on the pitch, or you’ll play as a goaltender trying your hardest to slap balls away and grabbing them desperately when the opportunities present themselves. Your position is randomized, so you can get on with the match instead of scrolling through options that take you out of the game.
Where REMATCH delivers zest is with its unorthodox control system. On the pitch, the ball physics are less predictable than you’ll find in a Fifa/FC title, as the ball can loosen from your possession easily if you aren’t careful and be quickly swiped into the clutches of the opposing team. This may seem aggravating at first, but with a nuanced boost and tricks system, you can frustrate your pursuers, and this shows that REMATCH encourages mastery of its mechanics.
Every time you manage to slip by your opponent’s offensive, attack is very gratifying and momentum-boosting. They’ll try tripping you up and barging into your way to take the ball from you, but a quick button tap can help vault you over the slippery tactics of foes capably and reliably. Successful defense gives you a satisfying jolt of momentum, which can pull the direction of a match-up back in your favour – although your opposition are open to the same tactics as you. You can choose to become a nuisance and attempt to block another player in a similar fashion to an NBA game, and the payoff for this tactic is worthwhile when you find yourself stealing the ball and hurtling down the pitch to get your own shot on goal.
Goalkeeping is unsurprisingly more straightforward than playing far out on the pitch. All you need to be concerned about are balls launching in your direction and either diving to retrieve them or catching them before they shoot into the net. Swatting away balls as a goalie is definitely easier than scoring goals because all it takes is good positioning and timing, and you don’t need to worry about players tackling you while you try to aim and blast the ball into the net. Saves are satisfying due to their simplicity, and you may feel you don’t want to be out there on the pitch tangling about with other players as the feeling of control is strained by comparison.
With every matches taking five minutes, they waste no time getting you moving and getting goals on the scoreboard. Matches may seem short and along with the lack of traditional rules, it can seem like there isn’t depth to sink your football boot treads into, but when it comes to quick bursts of play, REMATCH has an alluring pick up and play appeal when you just don’t have the time for long-winded bouts.
The Art of Football
The art style of REMATCH reflects Sloclap’s previous effort with Sifu, with a sharp animated style that echoes arcade simplicity, but just like Sifu the bold art style belies complexity and nuance that provides more challenge and depth than you’ll initially realize. It is somewhat a shame that the art style doesn’t get the chance to flourish more as the cutscenes are restricted to tutorials, yet they still light up the game’s presentation in a unique and eloquent way.
On the subject of eloquence, the variety of scenery surrounding you during games is a luscious highlight that really makes REMATCH stand out. Pitches based on desert terrain, or surrounding by majestic natural beauty inside forests dotted with trees is splendid to behold. If you play a game in outta space, you can score a goal that opens up a black hole too-which is a fantastic touch. In terms of arenas, REMATCH should set an example for other football games to follow because the pitch designs are superb.
If you’re in the mood for some solid multiplayer football, REMATCH is certainly a good effort that you’ll be happy to attempt to master thanks to intricate controls, and the bite-sized sessions that throw the rule book away for the sake of fluidity and fun. The pitch designs are fantastic as well, and really give REMATCH more of a personality than you may initially assume. It’s disappointing that REMATCH doesn’t contain a single player career mode, and ball physics can be frustrating, and the learning curve can be tough for the newly initiated. However, when you get into its groove, REMATCH shows itself to be a pleasing footie title that’s worthy of a kick about.
REMATCH is available now on PS5, Xbox Series S/X and PC.