In more ways than one, Beastieball feels like Wishes Unlimited's latest challenge to the status quo. Whether it's Wandersong's singing-first conflict resolution or Chicory's direct involvement of the player in the creative process, Greg Lobanov and his team of incredible creatives find ways to embrace what people love within established genres and narrative tropes while pushing past expectations to deliver something brand new.
Their latest target? Creature-collecting RPGs. Beastieball is here to provide a sports anime-tinted take on the Pokémon-like with a focus on environmentalism and companionship — and there's a lot to love about Wishes Unlimited's unique take on Early Access.
Just the Facts |
Developer: Wishes Unlimited |
Publisher: Klei |
Platform(s): PC |
Price: $24.99 |
Release Date: November 12, 2024 |
Review key provided by developer. |
Early Access unlike any other
Beastieball is the first game released under the Wishes Unlimited label, the formal studio name for the games made by Greg Lobanov and pals, a crew who'd previously made Wandersong and (VGG Game of the Year) Chicory: A Colorful Tale.
After being revealed during last year's Day of the Devs, the crew has been aggressive in getting feedback from the community in the leadup to launch. With playtests that gave players unfettered access to entire chunks of the game's world, demos that let players loose in the world enough for there to be a full-on tournament hosted by the publisher, and appearances at events all over the world like PAX West, Wishes Unlimited has done all it can to get this game in player's hands to make it the best it can be.
And now the team is redefining the usual Early Access launch by giving players access to an in-development version of the full game. The story is complete, there are full-fledged side quests, an entire open world to explore, and post-game content that'll eat up hours of your time. But the game isn't finished. Placeholder assets for both Beasties and environments are scattered about, some locations and further side content are yet to be added — but you've got a full narrative and a fairly candid and inspiring look at the game development process to experience if you dive in now.
Throughout my review experience, I saw Beasties go from lightly puppeteered literal sketches to fully hand-animated creatures right before my eyes. I was watching this game get built around me in a way that never got in the way of my enjoyment. If anything, it added to it to see how and where Beasties were implemented and improved.
More than anything, Wishes Unlimited wants folks to get their hands on this game. If you're willing to overlook a few rough edges (there are some odd glitches and a few crashes) and agreeable to seeing some in-progress designs — which I personally think is so cool — then hopping in with this Early Access launch is an easy recommendation. But if you want the fully polished product out the gate, if you're the kind of person to scoff at a low-res tree in a Pokémon game, wait for launch a year or more down the line.
Sports really are about the power of friendship
In Beastieball, you play as the assistant coach to the former Beastieball legend Marlin from your hometown of Rutile. Marlin's a bit of a has-been, and your role as assistant coach is almost entirely symbolic, bequeathed thanks to your love of the adorable Beasties that roam the land and the volleyball-like sport they play.
One day, while relaxing with your dear friend Riley in the local nature preserve, a construction crew rolls into town with plans to build a brand new Beastieball League gym. Plans that threaten the local Beasties and their natural habitat. So, in an effort to take matters into your own hands, you decide to officially join the Beastieball League, become a ranked coach, climb your way to the top of the ranks, and affect change at the top with your newfound influence.
If it sounds like the kind of half-cocked plan that usually accompanies anime plots, don't worry. Beastieball knows it. When Marlin sets you off on your grand adventure, he warns you pretty clearly. "You best start believin' in anime, kid. You're in one."
Beastieball's narrative setup starts pretty familiar: you have to challenge ranked coaches in each town, traveling through themed regions as you go, collecting Beasties and making friends along the way. You've got rivals you face off with, you've got bonds that develop between Beasties, and amidst the competition, something sinister bubbles underneath it all. But as it progresses, Beastieball begins to challenge and question the tropes of the genre. It wonders aloud why the protagonist is the only one trying to fix things, how heroic their journey really is, and why any of what's happening happens at all.
For a game about cute, cuddly creatures playing volleyball, it ends up being a more grounded experience. Instead of god-beasts threatening reality and shady organizations doing lightly mischievous things, you're dealing with environmental decay and corporate meddling.
The heart of this adventure is there and its ultimate message about community feels necessary in today's world.
Where Beastieball really earns its keep is in its world-building, particularly when compared to its contemporaries that have devolved into nonsense over the years. The Beasties are based on actual animals, and their behaviors, animations, and lore are all tied to their connections to their environments.
Every new detail you learn from the denizens of this world fills out the lore in a fulfilling and logical way, and it never feels bland. Being able to interpret these Beasties' roles in their environment, to better understand why they even bother with this sport at all, makes for a more interesting and obvious connection to the world than the other game that has resorted to creating beasts that are... trash bags and key rings.
Beyond the Beasties, Beastieball offers a cast of characters that's just as interesting. In the ranked coaches roster, you'll meet a streamer; a fanfic writer; a pirate acting troupe; a jaded, foul-mouthed, sponsor-ridden champ; and a literal dance-until-he-drops club enthusiast. These characters don't remain one trick ponies either, as your bonds continue through planned hangouts (that require a charged "social battery" to schedule, rechargeable through beastieball matches) that fill out their place in the world and your relationship to them.
If there's one aspect of Beastieball that feels most complete in its Early Access state, it's the game's story, and it's well worth experiencing in full in its current state. Beasties may be (literally) sketchy, some 3D models may not be totally polished, but the heart of this adventure is there and its ultimate message about community feels necessary in today's world.
When you think about it, all sports are tactical RPGs
Beastieball's gameplay is probably the next most complete piece of the puzzle in Early Access, anchored at its foundation by an incredibly versatile "combat" system that sees you fighting for points on a 2x2 grid-based beastieball court. It's all about positioning on the court, using shots that target the weaknesses of your opponents, and winning points. It takes some time to adjust — it plays so differently from any other creature collecting RPG with its positioning focus and point-based victories — but once you do, the layers of its brilliance slowly begin to show.
A big aspect of the Beastieball experience is its relationship system. Based on the "vibes" of each beastie and the ways they interact on the court, certain duos develop specific relationships. Rivals push each other to deliver devastating blows, Besties amplify each other with empowering support moves, and Partners use special volleys to heal each other and boost their upcoming attacks. It pushes the idea that each Beastie has its own personality, and that their teamwork is important to victory, no matter how it manifests.
While I'm sure meta builds and Beastie squads will eventually emerge, Beastieball's "combat" system feels like it allows for genuine experimentation and strategy so that any grouping of Beasties you choose and any strategy you latch onto remains viable from beginning to end. Each beastie has unique traits they take into each match, the relationships between your various Beasties make each moment of each match feel unique, and there are tons of small unexpected synergies that emerge over time.
It takes some time to adjust — it plays so differently from any other creature collecting RPG with its positioning focus and point-based victories — but once you do, the layers of its brilliance slowly begin to show.
Unlike its contemporaries, where battles often end up feeling boring and bothersome in the long term, Beastieball matches always feel tense. You can always grind for levels and overpower people, but if you and your opponent are within ten to fifteen levels of each other, matches can be won or lost with great strategic decisions instead of raw power. This requires you to constantly stay locked in and be wary about each new opponent. Some of the matches in the game's final hour felt as stressful as the climactic sports anime moments it hopes to emulate.
I may or may not have pumped my fist at a clutch Beastie shot that won me a match once... or twice. A few times, maybe.
Beastieball softens so many of the pain points of the genre that we've simply tolerated over the years and finds ways to enhance things we've let stagnate too:
Learned moves can be swapped in and out at any time, not requiring any special items or trips to "move teachers" so that you can change your build on the fly. And Beasties learn moves from each other.
Recruiting new Beasties isn't just about using the right item at the right time and hoping probability works in your favor. You instead have to fulfill specific requirements when you challenge them to matches (example: shift your Beasties around the court X amount of times) that makes the process infinitely more engaging.
Training gyms allow you to pump up specific stats for different Beasties, allowing you to either further specialize them or help balance against their weaknesses.
It makes for an RPG experience that feels even more equipped to be enjoyed by players of all skill levels, allowing you to get as nitty-gritty as you'd like and still come away satisfied.
Outside of the combat, there's a surprising amount of exploration to be done to both fill out your Beastiepedia and find some tucked away surprises in the world. Beastieball's adventure is open-ended and you're free to approach any of the ranked coach matches in any order you like — though there are some level requirements to meet in different regions of course — so you're encouraged and expected to test the limits of Wishes Unlimited's world design.
Balancing the Beasties will be the biggest thing the team does in Early Access, along with implementing new Beasties and moves and adding more side content as it goes, including an entire endgame region known as The Far Out. But again, what's there now is incredibly fleshed out and worth enjoying now.
The part where I gush about the soundtrack
Before I wrap up, I'd be remiss to not address Lena Raine's latest soundtrack. Her work on Beastieball might be her most sonically eclectic yet, as tracks rush to meet the vibes of each new region and each new coach you match up with. There's a driving energy to the various match tracks that meets the competitive and whimsical nature of this world. Each of the game's climactic matches has its own unique theme that gives each battle an undeniable identity.
I found my mind drifting to games like Super Mario RPG and Earthbound with some of the quirky and bouncy exploration themes, and then to Final Fantasy 8 with some of the bass-heavy grooves when you explore the caves. There are vocaloids, lofi beats, and disco tracks. It's wild how many places this OST goes.
By the time the game reaches full release, I can see this being Raine's biggest OST yet, and even then there are tracks here that have already lodged themselves deep in my brain for years to come.
That's Beastieball, folks
This write-up will eventually become our full-fledged review, but even with all I've written, I feel like there's so much more I can say about what the team has built here with Beastieball's Early Access launch.
Unlike the usual Early Access Check-In, where I ideate about where things can go and write out a laundry list of desires for the game's future, Wishes Unlimited is showing its whole hand here and only promising to polish it up and add to it over time. As it stands, Beastieball is one of the most exciting entries to the creature-collecting genre in years. And it isn't even finished yet.
Beastieball launches in Early Access for $24.99 and offers 15-25 hours of gameplay across the game's full story. It's planned to be in Early Access through at least the end of 2025 and will likely see regular updates in the year to come.
Beastieball is one of the most exciting entries to the creature-collecting genre in years. And it isn't even finished yet.
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