When the developers of Sifu revealed their next game would be soccer-themed, I wanted to know more. Sure, the ReMatch reveal gave off Rocket League vibes, but I was certain this would be more in line with their last game. Instead, this is a complete 180. We have a live service game that is light on content, which is asking people to pay to play.
Highlighting the worst aspects of online sports games
Yes, I currently work for Electronic Arts. So, every time I talk about a sports game, I want to clarify that. But I know how to be fair. I got into this industry in large part because of my love of sports video games. At the same time, I know how to be critical when I don’t like something. In particular, I don’t like online sports games where you play as one player on a team with others. Which is funny because I love Be-A-Player single-player modes.
There are ways to get it right. But that usually means knowing the people you’re playing with. If you can play with friends, where you’re familiar with each other, then you can have fun. You know that you won’t have a teammate who will hog the ball or do stupid things. On the other end of things, if you’re playing with strangers, it can be the worst experience possible.
ReMatch is a small-squad soccer game. You can play 3v3, 4v4, or 5v5. Matches are set for about six minutes, but there is a mercy rule that ends the matches if the lead gets to four goals. This isn’t simulation soccer. The focus is on flash and futurism, so this draws more inspiration from Rocket League than FIFA Street.
You play every position
While the focus is on offense, there isn’t a lot you can do on the pitch. There are only a few basic moves available. On offense, you can sprint, rainbow flick, dribble, pass, or shoot. There is a knock-forward and lob pass option, but that is part of passing/dribbling. On defense, you can sprint, slide tackle, or normal tackle. Then if you’re in goal, you can slide or jump to save. That’s about it.
Every player in the game is the same. Yes, there are some player customization options. But you can only unlock them by playing the game or buying the game’s season pass. When it comes to how you play on the pitch, everyone is the same. The only thing that stands out is your skill. If you’re familiar with these types of games, then you’ll have a clear advantage.
What I do like in ReMatch is that they cycle positions after every goal. So, that means that you’ll almost always spend a bit of time in goal. The lack of dedicated positions is nice, but it also has its own set of drawbacks.
Like watching elementary school kids play
If you’ve ever watched kids under 12 play soccer, you’ll notice that there is very little coordination. These kids all have one focus: get the ball. Every match I played in ReMatch feels the same way. Everyone is running towards the ball and hoping they can get it. There is no strategy or teamwork. Even if you try to play smart soccer, you can’t rely on your teammates to do the same.
Because of the hero-ball mentality, matches can go in one of two ways: either a complete blowout or a one-goal game. When it’s a blowout, it’s because people aren’t playing in position and giving up stupid goals. A close game happens because people can’t grasp the game’s controls. This leads to shots going nowhere near the net and everyone scrambling to gain control of the ball.
The game is camera-relative. What that means is that the direction your camera is facing is where the ball will go. If you’re not facing the net and you try to take a shot, your ball won’t go in that direction. This can be a problem if you’re not looking at the ball. You have to manage both your player with the left stick and the camera in the right so you can keep track of everything.
An Early Access Release that’s not calling itself one.
ReMatch lacks content. Outside of Quick Play, the only other mode is “Ranked”. You only unlock ranked play when your character reaches Level 5. With the lack of content, I don’t know if people will get that far to unlock it. There is a practice mode, but it only has two mini-games other than the tutorial that you play at the start of the game. You can’t even restart the mini-games. Once you finish them, you get thrown back into the main menu. What’s worse, there is no option to even quit midway if you aren’t happy with your performance.
Heck, there isn’t even the option to remap the controller. There is a note in the options menu that says this will come in the future. To be fair, the default controls aren’t bad, but they do take some time to adapt to. As someone that played eFootball and EA SPORTS FC over the years, this is a very different control scheme.
This game is asking users to pay to gain access to the game. It’s also asking you to pay to unlock its version of a season pass. They are calling this Season 0, so I don’t know how they could be asking for money. This is currently available on Xbox’s Game Pass, so you can bypass the initial start-up costs. If you’re not playing it there, then I don’t know why you’d spend over $35 on Steam or another platform.
My opinion would be different if this were free-to-play
I can’t stress it enough, ReMatch feels like an early access game. Sure, if you have friends to play with, you can have fun. The matches are quick, but it doesn’t hide the blatant omissions. This lacks content. It’s missing quality of life options. In another 6-12 months, it could improve with more content and better options. But, like so many other live-service games, I don’t know if it will last that long.
