Rocket League’s strong supply of free post launch content continues as Psyonix is releasing a brand new game mode next month. Titled Rocket League Rumble, it brings the most drastic addition to the game since the Mutators update. In Rumble, all arenas will be filled with random power-ups. There are 11 in total, some standard while others are intuitive.
The most useful power-ups are the ones that change how you interact with the ball. The Grappling Hook will pull you towards the ball, Spike will attach the ball to your car and Freezer simply freezes the ball in its current position. However, the more interesting ones can be utilised to annoy the enemy team. The Boot will kick your opponent’s cars, the Disrupter will make driving uncontrollable and Swapper will change positions with your opponent.
All of these power-ups sound fun in theory, but we aren’t sure how they will gel with the rest of the game. The Mutators update tried too hard to change the core gameplay of Rocket League, and was not favourably received by most fans. The power-ups seem to have been built upon that idea, however with the standard mode still being the core of Rocket League’s offering and given its eSports nature the game won’t change too much and this will just serve as another fun addition.
The reaction to other game modes, such as Snow Day and Hoops, was positive because they took a single concept and applied it to the Rocket League formula. While there is a lot to be excited about with this Rumble update, it moves too further away from the simplicity of Rocket League. Available as a free update to all PS4, PC and Xbox One owners, Rocket League Rumble will launch sometime in September 2016.
