MultiVersus, the new platform fighter from Warner Bros. Games, may take Smash Bros. crown as the most popular fighting game on the market today.
MultiVersus, the new fighting game published by Warner Bros. Games, may turn out to be a legitimate rival to the iconic Super Smash Bros. MultiVersus is similar to Smash Bros. – its multiplayer gameplay offers a roster of characters that can fight one another in two versus two, one on one, or free-for-all combat. However, MultiVersus has hit the market with record-breaking momentum, and has been enjoying a higher number of players than other PC fighters, despite still being in open beta.
MultiVersus is one of the most highly-anticipated fighting games this year, having been officially announced in 2021 but rumored to release since 2019. So far it’s had limited availability; its closed beta launched on July 19, with playtesting being made available to people who had either purchased a Founder’s Pack, watched 60 minutes of MultiVersus gameplay streamed on Twitch, or to professional players trying out MultiVersus‘ smart competitive angle by participating in the Evolution Championship Series. Having been closed to the general public for a week, the open beta release on July 26 has brought MultiVersus an unprecedented number of new players.
According to Event Hubs, the 13 most popular PC fighting games had a combined average of 28,902 players online the past month. Data collected on Steam Charts shows that MultiVersus has averaged 37,649 PC players through Steam in the past 30 days, and has an all-time peak of a whopping 128,636 players online at once. The hype surrounding the Warner Bros. title has many believing that MultiVersus will overtake Smash Bros. as the most popular platform fighter to date.
MultiVersus’ concept is exactly on trend, with many recent films bringing the idea of the multiverse into the pop culture zeitgeist. As its name suggests, MultiVersus‘ open beta characters come from numerous Warner Bros. properties such as Adventure Time, Rick and Morty, Game of Thrones, Looney Tunes, and the DC Universe. Players can jump between the worlds of different franchises, with current maps including Jake and Finn’s Treefort, Scooby’s Haunted Mansion, and the Batcave. Developer Player First Games has confirmed 19 characters thus far, but with ongoing free updates there is currently no telling how many characters will be revealed over the course of MultiVersus’ open beta and release.
Another aspect that sets MultiVersus apart from other platform fighters is that it offers cross-platform play and progress compatibility across Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and 5, and PC. As a result, players have unrestricted access to hundreds of thousands of opponents online. MultiVersus is also free-to-play. While Smash Bros. requires a paid Nintendo Online membership to access online play, MultiVersus‘ local multiplayer, online matchmaking, and single-player are available to all, making the game highly appealing to casual players and newcomers to the fighter genre.
Smash Bros.’ legacy cannot be challenged. From its first release in 1999 to its fifth installment for Nintendo Switch selling close to 30 million units, Smash Bros. carries prestige within the fighting game genre. However, MultiVersus’ incredibly varied range of characters and franchises, as well as its availability and cross-platform compatibility, may well see it rise above Super Smash Bros. as one of the most widely-played platform fighting games today.
Maya Schultz is a literature graduate and Game Features Writer based in Stockholm, Sweden. She is well-versed in science fiction and often writes about off-planet literature, films and games that may or may not feature human beings. Her favourite games are Elden Ring, Klonoa 2: Lunatea’s Veil, Gitaroo Man, 428: Shibuya Scramble, and Taiko no Tatsujin (which she considers a sport as much as a game).
