Highlights
- Multiversus is not trying to be a 'Melee Clone' but stands out as its own unique platform fighter game.
- Aerial combat is heavily incentivized in Multiversus with air combos, chargable aerials, and lighter gravity.
- The game introduces unique mechanics like the Dodge Meter, charge attacks, parrying, and a slower combat speed compared to Melee.
The free-to-play Warner Bros platform fighter, Multiversus has been out for a few weeks now at the time of writing this. The game takes characters from all sorts of different franchises and IPs and mashes them all together into a colorful, chaotic, & pretty unique platform fighting game. Platform fighters, in general, aren't incredibly rare.
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After the Super Smash Bros series basically created this sub-genre of fighting games, tons of games have come out that easily fit into this category. Multiversus is one of those games, but it's not exceedingly similar to its peers. Rather, Multiversus does a lot to separate itself from the rest of the pack as a platform fighter, regardless of whether these decisions are to the game's benefit or detriment. So, in particular, let's look at some of the biggest examples of how Multiversus stands out in a sea of other platform fighters and Melee clones.
7 It's Trying To Do Its Own Thing
Multiversus Isn't & Will Never Be a 'Melee Clone'
First and foremost, Multiversus is obviously taking inspiration from Super Smash Bros Melee, like all platform fighters do, but it's not trying to be a clone of it. A lot of other aspiring platform fighters make their games play incredibly similar to Melee, and then at the end of the day, people fall off of their game and go back to Smash.
Multiversus is aware of this and has a lot of stuff that differentiates it from Melee pretty clearly. A lot of the stuff it has that makes it unique is also mentioned further down this list, so in general, just know that Multiversus is very aware of its own identity.
6 Aerial-Centric Combat
Air Combos, Chargable Aerials, & Lighter Gravity
While it's not strange for a platform fighter to have a lot of aerial combat, most of them don't put the main focus on it. In Multiversus however, especially in the open beta state of the game, aerial combat was heavily incentivized. In the full release of the game, there are more reasons to stay on the ground, but a lot of the gameplay of Multiversus still takes place in the air. This is where the 'floaty' combat of some fighters, including Multiversus can be both a benefit and a boon.
On one hand, having the game be a bit 'floaty' makes air combos and battles in the air, in general, a lot more commonplace. On the other hand, it can also make characters who are heavier or have a stronger ground game feel like they're at a severe disadvantage for a large part of the match.
5 Perk System
By Far One of the Most Unique Things About Multiversus
The Perk system in Multiversus is one of the most obvious ways that this game has separated itself from most other platform fighters. On the surface, a system where players can equip different Perks sounds like something that would be a nightmare for character balance, but in the full-release version of Multiversus, the Perks don't seem to make nearly as much of a difference as they did in the open beta (outside of Airwalker, of course).
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That isn't to say that Perks have no impact in this game, as a different Perk loadout can vastly change how someone plays their character of choice, but in general, Perks don't quite give the clear advantage or disadvantage that they used to give back in the days of the Multiversus open beta.
4 Dodge Meter
A Unique Way to Prevent Overly-Defensive Play
Another aspect of Multiversus that's different from most other platform fighters is the Dodge Meter. This is something that wasn't in the open beta version of the game, and it basically stops players from being able to dodge through opponent attacks infinitely. As a player dodges more and more, their Dodge Meter gets lower, and when it runs out the bar turns white. While it's in this state, players can still use their dodge animation, but they no longer have the I-frames they typically have, making it pretty much impossible to dodge attacks that they otherwise would've been able to avoid.
Typically, platform fighters rely on a shield system or slowing down dodge animations as a way to punish overly evasive/defensive play. They'll either give players a shield they can use that can be depleted and/or broken after a certain amount of time or damage or they'll give them the ability to dodge but will make these dodges slower with fewer I-frames the more a player uses them in a short span of time. Multiversus is one of the only ones that give this mechanic an actual meter, and it's one of the only ones where it basically eliminates the dodge's I-frames entirely while the Dodge Meter is depleted.
3 Charge Attacks & Momentum-Based Attacks
Basically, More Unique Mechanics for Fighter Movesets
It's pretty common in a platform fighter to follow a system where each fighter has 4 attacks (one in each direction) and 4 specials (one in each direction). From there, different games will introduce tilt attacks, charge attacks, smashes, and even dash attacks. With Multiversus, they have a couple of different unique integrations. For one, a lot of characters have attacks or specials that can be charged that players wouldn't typically expect.
In something like Melee, characters really only charge their smash attacks and maybe a rare special here or there. In Multiversus, most characters can charge their neutral attack, a couple of their specials, and even their aerial attacks. Aerial attacks being chargeable, in particular, really separates Multiversus from a lot of the other platform fighters because it raises the lethality of aerial attacks by quite a bit and makes being knocked into the air by an opponent a whole lot scarier than it typically would be.
2 Parrying
Neutral Dodge at the Perfect Time To Parry
Plenty of other fighters, let alone platform fighters, have some form of parrying or countering an opponent's attack. For example, in the Super Smash Bros games, tons of characters (typically Fire Emblem characters) have a down+special that allows them to automatically parry and counter an opponent's attack if they're hit during the special's small window. However, not a lot of platform fighters give every character the ability to parry, and they especially don't typically let players parry their opponents as a result of a well-timed dodge.
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Essentially, if players neutral dodge in Multiversus right as an attack is about to hit them, they can parry it, which will freeze their opponent in place for about a second, allowing a player to instantly turn the momentum against their opponent if used correctly. Of course, neutral dodges cost more Dodge Meter as a result, but that's a small price to pay for giving players the ability to completely stop an opponent's attack, especially if the character they're playing is especially difficult to fight against.
1 Combat Speed
It's Pretty Slow Compared to Melee
Lastly, one of the primary ways the Multiversus is different from the average platform fighter is that the pace of combat is pretty different. A lot of platform fighters try to capture the lightning in a bottle that was Melee's pace of combat, and one could argue that Multiversus tried to do the same with its combat in the open beta. However, the pace of combat on release is a lot different, and this change has been very polarizing among the people playing the game.
In general, Multiversus is pretty slow-paced compared to most other platform fighters, which means players need to be a bit more intentional with their inputs and reactions to opponents' attacks. At the time of writing this, it's not entirely clear if the developers at Player First Games are going to increase the speed of Multiversus' combat, but overall this pace is one of the most identifiable things that makes Multiversus unique as a platform fighter outside of it's PvE Rifts Mode.
MultiVersus
- Platform(s)
- PC , PS5 , PS4 , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S
- Developer(s)
- Player First Games
- Publisher(s)
- Warner Bros. Interactive
- Genre(s)
- Fighting
