Brawlhalla

Brawlhalla
Developer(s)	Blue Mammoth Games
Publisher(s)	Ubisoft
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
Release	Microsoft Windows, macOS, PlayStation 4 WW: October 17, 2017 Xbox One, Nintendo Switch WW: November 6, 2018
Genre(s)	Fighting
Mode(s)	Cooperative gameplay Multiplayer video game Single-player video game

Brawlhalla is a free-to-play fighting game developed by Blue Mammoth Games and published by Ubisoft for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and PlayStation 4. The game was first shown at PAX East in April 2014, and went into alpha later that month.^[1] An open beta was released in November 2015, the game was released in October 2017.^[2]

On March 5, 2018, Brawlhalla developer/publisher Blue Mammoth Games was acquired by French video game publisher Ubisoft, and as a result of this, it was announced that Rayman would join as a guest fighter on November 6, 2018, the day the game would be released for Nintendo Switch and Xbox One.^[3][4]

Gameplay

In all of Brawlhalla's gamemodes, the goal is to knock one's opponent off the stage, comparable to Super Smash Bros. This can be done by applying damage on them repeatedly. Damage can be seen on the color display around the opponent's character icon, which goes from white to red as the player continues to get hit. The closer the color is to red, the further the player will be knocked back, until they eventually get knocked out. Getting knocked off the stage will result in the player losing a stock or life. Either the last player standing (the one who still has at least one stock) or the player with the most points wins the match.

The game supports both local and online play. Competitive players can compete 1 on 1 to climb through the rankings. They can also find a partner to play against other duos to increase their collaborative rank. Brawhalla also has several casual modes: Free-For-All, 1v1 Strikeout, Experimental 1v1, and a new unique mode every two weeks. Free-For-All is a chaotic mode where 4 players knock each other out to gain points. In 1v1 Strikeout, players pick 3 characters which they play for 1 stock each. Experimental 1v1 allows players to test out upcoming features against each other. Custom games can be hosted online and locally, and they support up to 8 players per match, experimental maps and region changing. You may join groups of your friends to create a clan, with multiple promotions within the clans. Clans gain experience from all members.

Brawlhalla features simpler controls and one-button special moves. This allows new players to pick up the game quickly. Controls include movement keys and buttons for attacking, performing special moves, picking up or throwing weapons and dodging. Keys can be rebound for keyboard and a large variety of controllers.

Players can move by running left, right and jumping. Players can perform up to 2 quick consecutive dodges, either sideways or vertically. It is also possible to dodge right after an attack to keep pressure on the opponent. Once in the air, the player has the option to perform any combination of: three jumps, a directional air-dodge, a grounded move in the air by using a "gravity-cancel", and "fast-falling". It is also possible to hold on to the sides of stages, similar to the style in Mega Man.

During a match, weapons fall from the sky randomly and can be picked up by the players. All of Brawlhalla's characters can use 2 weapons out of 11 to fight each other. Weapons include Blasters, Katars, Rocket Lances, Swords, Spears, Cannons, Axes, Gauntlets, Hammers, Bows, and Scythes. Blasters, Bows, and Spears perform well at a distance from the opponent, while Katars and Gauntlets are more effective up close. Rocket Lance allows for quick traversal of the stage. Axes, Cannons, and Hammers all do large amounts of damage. Swords and Scythes are fast and damaging. All characters have unarmed attacks, should they be disarmed. Gadgets like bombs, mines and spike balls are also used. Weapons can also be thrown to interrupt the enemy's moves or to make it difficult for them to get back to the stage. Each character has 3 special or "signature" moves per weapon, for a total of 6 per character.

Four stats are assigned to each character: Strength, Dexterity, Defense and Speed. The combination of these stats determines the strengths and weaknesses of a character and affects how it's played, and can be slightly modified using stances.

Purchases

Every week, Brawlhalla has a rotation of 6 selectable characters for newer players to use for free. To fully purchase characters, Brawlhalla offers an in-game shop, giving a chance for players to use the in-game currency earned through matches, daily missions, and level ups.

Other products are also available to purchase here, using a currency called Mammoth Coins. This currency is gained by purchasing them with real money. Mammoth coins can be used for products such as character skins, weapon skins, and taunts that can be used in matches. Also in the shops are skin chests, being updated every few weeks. These chests offer many of the skins purchasable within the shop at a discounted price, while offering 2 to 3 skins exclusive to the chance. These chests cost 100 mammoth coins to purchase, and when purchased, the chest will randomly give the purchaser one of the skins offered.

2016 World Championship

The Brawlhalla World Championship is an official $50,000 tournament held by Blue Mammoth Games at their end of the year event, BCX (Brawlhalla Championship Expo). There were over 400 people in attendance. Developers, streaming personalities, community artists, esports fans, and competitors all came together for a weekend of Brawlhalla fun.

The event took place at the Cobb Galleria in Atlanta in the United States. Players from around the world competed locally from November 11–13.^[5] The World Championship was separated into two separate open tournaments (1v1 and 2v2), each of which had a prize pool of $25,000, adding up to a grand total of $50,000.

Professional competition

While minor events have been held by the community since its closed beta launch, Blue Mammoth Games now hosts their own official competitive events.

In May 2016, they led off with the Brawlhalla Championship Series or "BCS". It was a series of 21 weekly online tournaments starting on June 18.^[6] The tournaments were held on both North American and European servers, where players competed in 1v1 and 2v2 modes. For each tournament, a prize pool of $1,000 was divided among the top eight players. Placements in each BCS event earned players a ranking which was used at the end of the series to seed them into the World Championship tournament. Additionally, Regional Qualifier 1v1 tournaments were held, where the winner of each regional event earned a plane ticket and hotel room for the World Championship.

In early 2017, Blue Mammoth Games announced the Brawlhalla Circuit, a worldwide circuit of official competitive Brawlhalla tournaments hosted by several organizations sanctioned by Blue Mammoth Games. Players who compete in Brawlhalla Circuit events will be awarded Circuit Points. Players with the highest points from each region at the end of the season will earn a spot in the $100,000 32 player Brawlhalla World Championship in November. A player can also earn a spot in the Brawlhalla World Championship by winning a Regional Qualifier, or placing Top 3 in the BCX Open tournament at BCX.

References