Sloclap has only put out two games prior to this, but they’ve made their focus abundantly clear. They’re interested in exploring bodies in motion. Physicality. The clashing of flesh and bone. Absolver was the inception and Sifu was an evolution of that concept, which saw great results. So then, what’s the next step? Football of course. Or soccer, depending on where you live. Enter Rematch.
Rematch is unlike any sports games I’ve ever played, though granted, my exposure to sports games is pretty limited to several bouts of NBA 2K and FIFA. Unlike your conventional sports game where you look over the field or court from a top-down view and switch between your teammates, Rematch takes you straight into the heart of the action. The game is played from a third-person perspective, and you only ever play as your one avatar.
That’s pretty insane. And that seemingly small change alone has completely shifted the way I’m looking at Rematch as a sports game. Gradually, I began to realize that Rematch is less about football, and more about a bestial dance of physicality. And there’s also a ball involved.
Fluidity on the Field
First, let’s talk about the ball movement in Rematch. It’s completely fluid and dependent on your approach. It’ll go wherever you want it go, and it’ll fly as far as you can kick it. There’s a reticle in the center of your screen that lets you aim your shots and passes, and you can rest assured that the ball will always go where you direct it to.
It sounds simple, and to be clear, the controls are indeed very simple. There are a few different types of passes and receives, sure, but for the most part, controls are limited to a couple of face buttons and the shoulder buttons, which let you sprint or go into a defensive stance.
Where it gets tricky is in how you handle the player character. Everything moves quickly and with such force in Rematch. It’s what makes matches feel so fast-paced and intense, but it’s also what makes the game challenging. Sloclap has opted to go for an “easy to pick up, hard to master” approach here, where anyone can learn the game within minutes — as evidenced by the very short, but compelling, tutorial — but it takes real skill to get good, or even proficient.
If you’ve played any of Sloclap’s games before, this shouldn’t come as a surprise to you. Absolver and Sifu were also similarly self-assured, offering you the tools you need to play, but leaving it to you to master its ins and outs. The good news is that Rematch feels significantly easier to get to grips with, I think primarily because it’s a PvP game where everyone is on an even playing field. There are no tough Souls-level bosses here like in Sifu that will leave you banging your head against the wall for hours. Lose a match in Rematch? Learn from it and queue up for the next one.
Over time, you’ll start to get a much better sense of the weight of the player character, how they handle, how long it takes for them to change directions. Once you have a better handle on things, Rematch feels much more manageable, though it may take you a while to get there.
I’m pleased to report that there’s fun to be had in playing the goalkeeper as well, despite what all the flashy striker-focused trailers will have you believe. You hold down a shoulder button to enter a defensive stance, and you press a button while pushing the left stick in a certain direction to jump and try to deflect an incoming shot. Like with dribbling and shooting, there’s a lot to consider when goalkeeping as well. You need to be able to identify the speed and trajectory of the ball, and also calculate how long it’ll take your player to react and get into position.
Let me be clear, though. While Rematch is much more approachable than Sloclap’s other titles, it is by no means an easy game. Football fans can’t just hop into this one thinking it’ll tide them over till the next EA FC comes out. Rematch requires a certain degree of dedication, and that steep learning curve could put off a lot of players.
The Sci-Fi Aesthetic
I think what makes Rematch so appealing as a decidedly nonchalant sports game observer is the fact that it doesn’t feel like a sports game at all. As I’ve alluded to previously, Rematch is more akin to a melee combat game, a dance between 10 players to see who can outwit the other with their fancy legwork.
It helps that this is one of the most visually appealing games I’ve seen this year. Rematch is a little light on the story, but it takes place in the not-so-distant future, as evidenced by its sci-fi and futuristic elements like cybernetics and Zanarkand-like football field domes.
The character models, as you might expect, are beautiful. They’re done in that signature Sloclap graphical style of chiseled, well-built caricatures that just look so good both still and in motion. Even if I wasn’t playing it myself, I could certainly spend hours just looking at it or watching someone else play it. It’s a good-looking game.
The Not-So-Pretty
Despite all my praise for Rematch, I’d be remiss if I didn’t at least mention some of the issues that players have been experiencing at launch. It’s worth pointing out that Sloclap is already aware of these problems and are working on fixing it, but here are the highlights anyways.
While most of my matches played out just fine, I did notice that there would be the occasional instance of server lag or desynchronization. This is problematic for a game that wants to be somewhat competitive and has based its entire identity around being a multiplayer joint. The ball would just freeze midair, which is a shame, considering how beautifully it controls in normal circumstances.
There are a lot of little kinks to iron out as far as server sync is concerned, but when it does work, it works very well. I don’t know if Rematch will be able to sustain a dedicated player base to keep players coming back, but even if it doesn’t, Sloclap has also confirmed that they’re working on AI game modes that will allow players to enjoy the game solo. That sounds like my kinda jam.
Rematch is one of the most unique and innovative games you’ll play this year. It provides a creative, refreshing spin on the football game genre that’s well worth experiencing despite its flaws.
A review code for the game was provided by the publisher. You can check out our review policy here. Reviewed on PC.
