Beastieball Impression

It doesn’t take too long to get into the basics of how Beastieball’s matches work, and it also soon becomes interesting to see how players can be quickly put on the back or front foot by their strategic choices.

While there are a good number of creature-collecting RPGs out there, few have attempted to mix the sport-based nature with an actual sport. Wishes Ultd.’s Beastieball absolutely takes that route, however, as its critters and populace adore its take on volleyball. RPGamer was able to check out the first few hours of the game and witness how its implementation of the sport provides some fascinating strategic twists to traditional creature battling titles.

The game puts players in the role of a young Beastieball fan in the village of Rutile, which is next to a Beastie reserve. However, the Beastieball League has decided to build a new arena in the reserve. With the village’s reputation within (and thus influence over) the league currently in the gutter, the player sets out to become a top Beastieball coach to try and put a stop to the project.

The traditional first Beastie choice.

Beastieball is more based on the beach variant of volleyball, with two active participating Beasties on each side from a roster of five. Each side of the court is split into a two-by-two grid, with each side starting out in the back row. Each Beastie has three skills, plus a set of general actions, split between attack and defence. Each point begins with a serve, which can be an attack skill or a free ball that does no damage, that is always targeted at the back row. After that it goes in turns of attack and defence. The side receiving the ball is given three actions with which they can use skills or actions to pass the ball or apply buffs and effects, before sending the ball to the other side with an attack or free ball. In that turn, the side without the ball has one action to try and defend, including moving to an adjacent square or swapping out with a sideline Beastie.

Each Beastie has a maximum of 100 HP, which gets reduced as they are on the receiving end of attacks. If the attack reduces that Beastie’s HP down to zero, then the attacker wins the point. Attacks either target a column or row. If there is no Beastie within that area when the ball goes over, the attacker also wins the point. In addition to ensuring the court is covered against potential attacks — players are always able to see what skills opposing Beasties have as well as their stats — players will also need to consider that those at the front will both deal and take more damage from attacks. Regular encounters against wild Beasties are usually a single point, while games involving other coaches or signed Beasties are first to two points, and ranked matches are first to three. Meanwhile, Beasties with zero HP are not automatically removed from the match, but also cannot defend so there’s an interest trade-off in strategising between winning by going for points or wiping out opposing Beasties.

Beastieball provides some fascinating strategic twists on regular creature-collecting RPG battles.

The implementation and strategy of volleyball effectively replaces the usual elemental weakness systems found in most creature-collecting RPGs. Rather than elements, each attack is divided into Body, Spirit, or Mind. Each Beastie has their own attack and defence stat for each type, so strategic decisions are based against these attributes. It doesn’t take too long to get into the basics of how Beastieball’s matches work, and it also soon becomes interesting to see how players can be quickly put on the back or front foot by their strategic choices. The main question at this stage is whether there is enough depth to keep players thinking and engaged as the games goes on.

There are some friendly anti-frustration features available. All Beasties that have been involved will always receive XP at the end of a point whether they win or lose. If a match is proving particularly tricky to get past, the game offers the option to instantly win that match. As they level up, Beasties learn new moves, while certain ones can transform into new species, with the game readily including its own Pokédex equivalent. Recruiting wild Beasties requires having spare jerseys amongst one’s possession and fulfilling a condition when playing against them, which is revealed after facing them in a certain number of turns. Teammate Beasties can also generate relationships, such as buddies or rivals, which will see them learn moves from each other, perform better together, and unlock combo moves. Players can also play against others online as well as send out reserve Beasties to gain experience on their own.

The cartoonish art style works well with the lighthearted sports anime story and setting.

The story elements are fairly light, unabashedly and self-referentially leaping into the tropes of sports anime. Players can build up their relationships with other coaches and characters they meet on their journey, getting to know them more through some fun events. It feels at home with the colourful, cartoonish graphical style. The environment and Beastie designs are pleasing to look at, while the animations and effects during matches work nicely at making the matches appear exciting. The music and sound effects so far are also very enjoyable.

Beastieball makes a strong first impression. The blending of creature-battling and volleyball works surprisingly well and lends itself to some fascinating strategic options. The Beasties themselves are very endearing, and the lighthearted story and presentation give a good overall fun feeling to the game. Quite how deep and long-lasting its systems manage to be remains to be seen, but there’s lots to like from its opening portions.

Disclosure: This article is based on a build of the game provided by the publisher.