Fall Guys came out at the peak of the COVID 19 lockdowns, and thanks to a mix of multiplayer silliness and everyone being stuck at home. It did really well straight out of the gates. So well in fact, that Epic Games bought Fall Guys. Now they’ve given it the Fortnite and Rocket League treatment. Free to play, cross-play and cross-progression.
I didn’t get on the Fall Guys bus the first time around. But now it’s free-to-play, I have no good excuse to not give it a go.
Gameshow chaos
I think the best way to describe Fall Guys is like that TV show Total Wipeout. A fun-filled and chaotic gameshow where your physicality only counts for so much.
Playing as a little bean dude with limited movement options, you’re thrust into a whole host of obstacle course-style levels. Competing against 59 other people, you trudge, jump and dive your way through the arenas.
Fall Guys isn’t complicated, it’s just good, clean fun.
As you move around an arena, the floors move, walls rise and drop, gaps appear in the floor and doors open. There are a lot of environmental elements in Fall Guys that put you in dire straits. You can deal with the other contestants, mostly. But when gravity and circumstance are your enemies, you often find yourself on the losing end.
Each round is a randomly selected game/map, and as you progress you either make it to the next round or you get eliminated. All presented as being a contestant in a gameshow. Fall Guys knows exactly what it is and it’s been built within the constraints of that, to a level of mastery that a lot of games could learn from.
Custom beans
As is the fashion, there are plenty of customisation options. I’ve seen countless crossover events with big franchises like Halo and Assassin’s Creed.
All in the name of making your little bean dude look different to everyone else’s. I mean, who doesn’t love a bit of customisation? Here Fall Guys gives you a nice blank canvas and lets you earn and buy all the bells and whistles you want. That’s how you separate yourself from the crowd.
It’s not aggressive, none of it is necessary or game-changing. It gets the whole battle pass system right, just like it’s brothers and sisters in the Epic Games stable.
Looks and sounds
Honestly, Fall Guys hits the mark perfectly with the visual style. Bright, bold and colourful. Highlighting the silliness and the chaos with bean people being tonked-about by swinging hammers and moving platforms. Bouncing on bouncy floors and diving off ramps to hit the finish line.
The cartoonish stylings are a great compliment to the slapstick action taking place on your screen.
Audio-wise there’s no real voice acting to consider, just bashes and boinks. Mixed with an upbeat, high-tempo soundtrack to set the scene for each game.
I said it previously…..Fall Guys knows what it is and delivers that in spades. Sights and sounds included.
Fall Guys Overall
Fall Guys isn’t a big game. It isn’t a narrative-heavy story game with technical prowess. Fall Guys is a silly, fun gameshow game where fun is the order of the day.
Here, you have 60 people racing to be the last person standing over several rounds. No latency issues online, no graphical issues or mechanical problems or anything that makes you feel like you’re just playing a free online game.
This is a well-crafted party game that’s just good, clean fun. Perfect for all ages, fun at any time. This isn’t a game I’ll play every day, or focus heavily on clearing a battle pass. However, it is a great time that I’ll keep installed and updated just for when I need some cheery chaos, and not needing to think too much about what’s going on.
