'MultiVersus' First Impressions: The WB Fighter Has Lots of Style, Pizzazz, and References

There's a lot of vision and ambition that goes into a game like MultiVersus. The upcoming platform fighter features a wide assortment of WB characters duking it out in a Super Smash Bros.-style game. These characters are fully voiced, with celebrities like Maisie Williams and Matthew Lillard reprising their live-action roles as Arya Stark and Shaggy, respectively. We're all too intrigued to see how this game could live up to the hype. Luckily, we got a little preview.

Distractify was able to participate in the closed alpha for MultiVersus, meaning we got to try out the game ahead of its official release. What we've got so far is an exciting and tight gameplay experience that's both charming and tons of fun to play. Check out our first impressions of MultiVersus below.

MultiVersus is a platform fighting game that stars a playable cast from all across Warner Bros. Characters from Looney Tunes, Scooby-Doo, DC Comics, and even Game of Thrones all participate in a colorful and vibrant brawl. The game places a heavy emphasis on 2v2 team matches. To that end, players can cooperate with each other by providing backup or using tethers to keep teammates from falling off the stage.

You probably know how the rest goes. Players must knock each other out of the arena and rack up points to win a match. All characters have both normal attacks and special attacks, most of which are inspired by actual moments in their respective series.

As a free-to-play game, the alpha provides previews of many typical freemium features like a Battle Pass and player experience. Characters can also be leveled up to earn new perks and personal enhancements to adjust their style.

We got to play the closed alpha on the PlayStation 5. Even in its current state, the game already feels tight and gratifying. Advanced mobility isn't difficult to get a handle on, and there are some snappy attack combos to be had with the cast. Learning how different characters work is a fun experiment in both understanding the mechanics and seeing if your favorite Steven Universe scene made it into the game.

The game's emphasis on co-op play is one of the most unique things about MultiVersus thus far. While most platform fighters encourage a free-for-all, there's so much you can do in MultiVersus by cooperating with another player. Partners can save each other, gang up on an enemy, or even throw each other around to attack their opponents. The game also features a 1v1 and free-for-all mode for more traditional platform fighting fans, but the potential for some tricky and rewarding co-op combos is very enticing.

Gameplay itself is rewarding on its own, but the game's artistic presentation is certainly something to behold. In the official reveal back in November 2021, game director Tony Huynh promised to bring these classic characters to life "with as close to one-to-one representation as possible." The team at Player First Games has not disappointed in that regard.

These fully voiced characters bring a whole new layer of charm to the experience. Certain characters will even smack talk each other in the middle of a fight. If you listen closely, you may hear Bugs Bunny teasing the Tasmanian Devil during a match. Even the live-action characters fit surprisingly well with the cast. Arya Stark's unique animated design helps the fan-favorite character blend seamlessly with the cast of cartoons.

If there were any gripes we have with the game thus far, it would have to be the UI. There are too many meters and numbers following your character as they move around on a chaotic battlefield. Damage numbers constantly rack up, making it difficult to keep your eye on who is at what damage percentage. That's exacerbated by the cooldown meters that accompany characters' special moves. With so many things to keep track of, we want to be able to still see our characters properly.

A UI fix is a considerable ask, but when so much about the rest of the game works as well as it does, we can let that one slide for a bit. Thus far, our first look at MultiVersus has made us even more excited for the game to come out in full.

MultiVersus is expected to release in 2022 on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC. An open beta will be released in July 2022.