''MultiVersus'' is a 2022 free-to-play crossover fighting video game developed by Player First Games and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. The game is a platform fighter, featuring characters from Warner Bros. Discovery franchises, and is available for Microsoft Windows,

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

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, Xbox One and Xbox Series X, S. Officially announced in November 2021 following online rumors and leaks, early access and open beta versions of the game released in July 2022.

Gameplay

''MultiVersus'' is a platform fighter, with players battling on different stages and attempting to knock the opponent beyond the stage's boundary by dealing sufficient damage. While 1-vs-1 and free-for-all options are available, the game emphasizes battling in teams of two characters; most attacks in the game are designed with this in mind, including other players passively strengthening the move's effect. ''MultiVersus'' features a perk system, which allows players to customize their characters with passive abilities that will also affect their partners in Teams. These include Signature Perks, which are exclusive to a respective character and directly affect their attributes and abilities. If players in the same team equip the same perks, those perks' effects are enhanced.

Currencies and Season Pass

''MultiVersus'' features two currencies: Gold, which is primarily used to purchase characters and train perks; and Gleamium, a premium currency that can be used to buy variants, taunts, banners, and Premium Season Passes in addition to characters. Gold is obtained by normally playing the game through various means, while Gleamium is purchasable with real-world currencies. During certain events, specific tokens can be earned by playing in any mode and playing with specific character variants doubles the amount. These currencies can be used to purchase cosmetic items or, in the case of candy during the Monster Mash event, traded for Gold, with 10 Gold for every 500 candy units. The Season Pass contains two tiers: Normal, which is free for all players; and Premium, which requires Gleamium to purchase. In both tiers, players earn points by completing daily and seasonal missions. Obtainable items include gold, toast and cosmetics such as banners and ring-out effects. Progress in both tiers is tied; if the Premium tier is purchased after progress is made on the Normal tier, all rewards will retroactively be obtained.

Playable characters

, ''MultiVersus'' features 23 playable characters. With one exception, Reindog, these characters originate from the intellectual properties of Warner Bros. Discovery. Voice acting is prominently emphasized, and several voice actors reprise their respective roles from other media. Characters can be any one of five classes—Assassin, Bruiser, Mage, Support, and Tank—and are best suited for covering a specific direction, these being horizontal, vertical, or hybrid. Every character has at least one playable variant, some of which have different voice actors or dialogue from the default variant. Characters can be unlocked through gameplay, or purchased using gold, Gleamium, or Character Tickets included with the Founder's Pack content packages; four specific characters are also playable for all users on a rotating basis. The game's open beta initially launched with 17 characters, with new characters frequently added in subsequent updates.

Development

The game is developed by Player First Games. Dedicated servers, rollback netcode, and voice acting have been promoted as prominent features, and the team intend to release new content and characters via constant updates. The game held a closed alpha test from February 25–March 8, 2022.

Background and leak

Prior to its announcement in November 2021, the existence of ''MultiVersus'' was leaked and rumoured to exist by multiple sources online. Initially, a user on the subreddit r/GamingLeaksandRumours claimed that the game came about early 2019 as a result of the release of '' Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' and Warner Bros. workers being aware of the " Ultra Instinct Shaggy"

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. They had claimed the idea of a crossover influenced the filming of '' Space Jam: A New Legacy'', although the validity of these claims for both products have yet to be confirmed or denied by Player First Games or Warner Bros. On October 27, 2021, professional ''

Super Smash Bros. Melee ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'' is a 2001 Fictional crossover, crossover fighting game, fighting video game developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the GameCube. It is the second installment in the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series. I ...

'' player Juan "Hungrybox" DeBiedma shared an image on

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containing what he alleged was the character selection screen for an upcoming Warner Bros. platform fighter called ''MultiVersus''. DeBiedma claimed that he had received secret inside information about the game. The image was later deleted after Warner Bros. submitted a DMCA takedown request, which DeBiedma stated was a "hard confirm" of the photograph's veracity. The leak included

Gandalf Gandalf is a protagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. He is a Wizards (Middle-earth), wizard, one of the ''Istari'' order, and the leader of the Fellowship of the Ring (characters), Fellowship of t ...

from ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 c ...

'' and Rick Sanchez from '' Rick and Morty'' as playable characters instead of Arya Stark and Garnet. Superman and Steven Universe's designs were updated to be shown in the trailer. Jeff Grubb, a gaming insider, confirmed that '' Space Jam'' series iteration of LeBron James with would be playable. Internal game design documents for the game were leaked on ResetEra. Following the tech test, gameplay footage was leaked online. On May 26, 2022, the same leaker who leaked the game before its announcement revealed that the game had more characters such as Daenerys Targaryen, Ted Lasso, Morty Smith, and Marvin the Martian.

Early access and open beta

An early access version was released on July 19 for those that participated in the game's closed playtests and/or competing in the game's first 2v2 tournament at the 2022 Evolution Championship Series, and via Twitch's Drops reward system and/or purchasable founder packs, which are available for a limited time. During the 2022

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event, Rick and Morty were both announced together to appear in the game; LeBron James was also announced at the event. Shortly after, the game's open beta was released on July 26, 2022, which was confirmed to serve as a soft launch for the game. The limited-time Founder Pack distribution for PC is done via

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and Epic Games Store, as well as the Microsoft Store for Xbox consoles and the PlayStation Store for PlayStation consoles. There are three versions: Standard, Deluxe, and Premium. During the game's open beta period, Bugs Bunny players held the number-one ranked slot in both 1-v-1 and 2-v-2 leaderboards. The character's prevalence among top-ranked 2-v-2 players was notable, and nerfs to the character have been scheduled to be implemented after

EVO 2022 The 2022 Evolution Championship Series (commonly referred to as Evo 2022 or EVO 2022) was a fighting game event held in Las Vegas from August 5 to 7, 2022 as part of the long-running Evolution Championship Series. The event offered tournament ...

. Buffs to Wonder Woman were also announced. The first season of the title was originally scheduled to launch on August 9, 2022, but was delayed and rescheduled for August 15.

Patches

Since the game's release, various characters' abilities have been frequently modified. A notable instance is one of Velma Dinkley's abilities; the police car featured in that move was replaced with the Mystery Machine.

Reception

The game received generally positive reviews during its open beta. '' IGN'' wrote "''MultiVersus'' may not be a must-play at social gatherings, but its refreshing team-based battles make it a great platform fighter online." Play summarized that it was "full of love for the characters, and crunchy to play, you owe it to yourself to give this a go – though the monetisation methods are off-putting." Its launch on Steam was the most successful for a WB Games title, and the biggest launch for a fighting game released on the platform. The game topped the American sales charts for July 2022, falling to number 5 the following month. It was the most downloaded game on the US PlayStation Store for the same month, and number 2 in Europe. It also topped the sales charts in Australia. It was the most popular title on the Steam Deck platform. By August 2022, the game had reached 10 million players. By September, it had reached 20 million.

Notes

References

External links