Warner Bros. Games’ MultiVersus officially launched in open beta this week. The game has received a significant amount of attention since, even ranking as the most played fighting game on Steam. However, there are some significant flaws in the game. Chief amongst them is the terrible support for MultiVersus local multiplayer gameplay.
MultiVersus is a straight-up Super Smash Bros. clone. Just like last year’s well received Nickelodeon All Star Brawl, MultiVersus never once tries to shy away from the fact that it is simply applying a new cast of characters to a very familiar template. The difference here of course, is that MultiVersus is a free-to-play title, including ‘premium’ editions, Battle Passes and all that jazz.
Of course, unlockable characters and stages is par for the course. The same exists in both full price and free-to-play titles. There’s some debate about the lengths players have to go to in order to earn new rewards in MultiVersus, but that’s an article for another time. One of the key issues however, is a lack of any rewards for local multiplayer matches. Which certainly is worth discussing here.
The local multiplayer in MultiVersus feels like an afterthought. It’s true that Warner Bros. Games needs to recoup their investment, and as such dolling out rewards in local multiplayer (wherein, technically, someone could play against controllers without anyone behind them) could well dampen that ability. However, a better plan should’ve been thought-out long before launch. As it stands, there are no rewards for local multiplayer matches. None whatsoever – and that includes progression in your Battle Pass or daily missions.
How to Play MultiVersus Local Multiplayer
This however, is just the tip of the iceberg. Even gaining access to the MultiVersus local multiplayer is a frustrating exercise at present. In order to access it, you must go through the following steps:
- On the Main Menu, hit the Play Button
- Scroll to Custom on the tabs at the top of the screen
- Select Local Play
Sounds simple enough? In practice, it a strange button press heavy process. Especially when you consider that, on the main menu, there already is a ‘Custom Game’ function, yet this doesn’t grant the ability to switch to local multiplayer! It’s almost as if the design team new they had to offer MultiVersus local multiplayer, but wanted to push it to the back as far as they could in the hopes we all forget about it.
And the pain doesn’t stop here. Once you’ve managed to find the right places to access and set-up your MultiVersus local multiplayer match, you must ensure you have an even number of players present. That’s even when playing in Free For All mode! There’s no allowance of bots, despite being present in online modes. No mixture of local and online players in a single match. You’re simply allowed two or four local players; never three.
With MultiVersus performing well currently, and from what has been seen so far offering a decent enough Super Smash Bros. clone, we certainly hope Warner Bros. Games will look into fixing these issues sooner rather than later. What’re your thoughts on MultiVersus local multiplayer? Have you been stumped by the game? Noticed any issues we neglected to mention? Let us know in the comments below!
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