## 2025-03-16 I think **Beastieball** might be one of the best games ever made? Don't get me wrong, I've technically only played it for 8 hours, and it's still in early access. But I'm back on it right now while I try to get some distance from [[Monster Hunter Wilds]] and I just can't stop thinking about it. I've mentioned before that I love me a good [[Rounding Up Some Little Guys|Creature Collector]], but it's not a surprise that **Pokemon** has remained the undisputed king of the genre. That's mostly because it built the foundation that all the other games have spun off of.[^1] **Beastieball** transcends **Pokemon** to become its own amazing thing though, and its freshness just astounds me. It's one of those games that's so inventive and clicks so seamlessly that I can't help but go "how has no one ever thought of this?" as I play it. Normally I don't give much context about a game's mechanics because I'm lazy and also because it tends to be self-explanatory, but **Beastieball** requires some explaining because of how unique it is. It's turn-based volleyball! You have two beasties against two of your opponents with a net in-between. Each side of the net has four tiles that you can move back and forth between. The goal is to either knock out the opponent's beasties with a ball, or have the ball land on an empty space to win. ![[Beastieball-1742150886463.png]] Pretty simple, right? WRONG!!! When a beastie receives a ball, they can only volley it to a team member - unless it was an easy receive, which means they can shoot the ball back at the team. Each beastie tends to specialize in one of three move types, and a defense stat for one of those three move types - no super effective situations here. Then you have status effects and all that jazz too of course. And to top that all off, each beastie has moves that are based around this system to create unique strategies. You might have one that can volley to a partner and then move up to the net, where they use a spike that can only be used in front of the net but deals extra damage. Sure, you can volley a received ball, but what if that volley also *healed* the team member that's getting passed to? What if you had one beastie use a move to push the opposing team to the back line, then had the other use a horizontal attack to have the ball land on an empty space for an easy win? ![[Beastieball-1742151110925.png]] I joke about the game not being simple - which is true - but **Beastieball** has an incredible mix of "easy-to-learn, hard to master" balance, on top of everything being clear and well-explained. It won't take long for you to start theory-crafting some extremely cool plays for your own beasties. Plus there's an unbelievable amount of QOL. Your beasties can swap between moves anywhere when you're not in combat, and send your reserve beasties to "away games" where they passively gain EXP even when they're not on your team. In a stroke of absolute genius, the game also lets you find your reserve members out on the field and fight them, giving *everyone* on your team EXP. ![[Beastieball-1742151086345.png]] I'm not done!!! There's also a friendship mechanic that occurs when two beasties play together often - this unlocks different powerful combo moves, and the ability for beasties to learn moves from each other, to further customize their kit. I'm gonna stop there - the point is that there's a ton of mechanical complexity in **Beastieball** that makes my [[Goopy Goblin Gamer Brain]] very very very happy. Every match is exciting and involved to some extent, which is important when you're going to be doing it more than anything else in the game. ![[Beastieball-1742151012411.png]] Even when you're not fighting, though, **Beastieball** excels. This game is by the same team that worked on **Chicory: A Colorful Tale**[^2], and it shows in the writing and storytelling. I'm not super deep in, but I love the cast. The "Gym Leaders" have all been cool and in-depth in their own ways, and everyone is so interesting. **Beastieball** approaches the idea of sport and competition in ways you don't normally see in games of this caliber. Some characters care about winning more than anything. Some of them are bad at the sport but can't stop playing. Some of them don't care about the game at all and mostly see it as a side-gig! The game has lots to say about competition and the joy that comes from playing a sport with your friends, almost like a sports anime. You don't even have to win any of the games to advance the plot, and get unique dialogue for doing so. I could go on for a thousand more words. If **Beastieball** sticks the landing in its ending - which is available despite being in early access! - then it might be one of my favorite games ever. I even want to get into the game's PvP, even though I know I'll get destroyed...well, maybe I'll just watch it. Anyways please check out **Beastieball** if you like creature collectors even a little bit. It is more than worth your time. [^1]: Yes yes, **Dragon Quest V**, I know, you know what I mean [^2]: *Please* play this game I'm begging you