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Rivals of Aether

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Rivals of Aether
Developer(s)Dan Fornace
Designer(s)Dan Fornace
Programmer(s)
  • Trevor Youngblood
  • Ampersandbear
Artist(s)
  • Ellian
  • Alex Mcdonald
Composer(s)flashygoodness
Engine
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
  • WW: March 28, 2017
Xbox One
  • WW: August 22, 2017
Nintendo Switch
  • WW: September 24, 2020
Genre(s)Fighting
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

Rivals of Aether is a fighting game created by Dan Fornace, and released for Microsoft Windows in March 2017, for Xbox One in August 2017, and for Nintendo Switch on September 24, 2020.[1] It received positive reception from critics, who commended its deep gameplay. A spin-off game, Creatures of Aether, was released for iOS and Android on September 28, 2020.[2]

Gameplay

Rivals of Aether is the spiritual sequel to Super Smash Land, a fan-made remake of Super Smash Bros., and therefore its gameplay mechanics are heavily based on the latter game.[3] Each character must try to knock the others out of a two-dimensional arena.[3] In addition to fighting game-style moves, characters can also use elemental-based attacks or passive abilities that also affect the stage.[4] This creates a meta game of not only attacking other players but also affecting the arena itself.[4] Gameplay in general favors offense more than defense compared to Smash Bros.; attacks can only be blocked by executing a timed "parry" rather than holding up a shield, and characters cannot safely grab edges when returning to the stage.

Characters

Each character represents a natural element, and this element is central to their play style.[5] The playable characters are Absa (lightning), Etalus (ice), Forsburn (smoke), Kragg (earth), Maypul (plant), Orcane (water), Wrastor (air), Zetterburn (fire), Ranno (poison), Clairen (plasma), Sylvanos (forest), Elliana (steam), and guest characters Ori and Sein from Ori and the Blind Forest, and Shovel Knight from the series of the same name.[6]

In Smash Bros., many characters possess only close-combat attacks, with most projectiles being very short-lived. By contrast, all Rivals characters have at least one move with a long-lasting effect on the stage itself, such as bubbles that trap enemies, ice that lets the user move quickly, or a water puddle that can either power up the user's attacks or act as a point for the user to teleport to. Some even create platforms that change the physical makeup of the stage. Cecilia D'Anastasio of Kotaku described Smash Bros. move sets as being more "reserved" compared to those of Rivals of Aether.[7]

On January 17, 2018, Maypul and Ranno received crossover skins based on the characters Ragnir and Wu Shang from Brawlhalla. The Definitive Edition release includes additional skins that transform the fighters into different characters. The development team has also released two characters via the Steam Workshop: the panda Guadua, and the April Fool's Day joke character Sandbert.

Plot

The game's characters are animal champions from different warring civilizations, who battle to stop a shadowy force from threatening the world.[4]

Development

A focus in the development of the game was making it faster and more combo-oriented than Super Smash Bros.[8] On August 22, 2017, Ori and Sein from Ori and the Blind Forest were released as downloadable content (DLC).[9] On October 17, 2017, Fornace released two more DLC characters, Ranno and Clairen. Likewise, on April 2, 2018, Fornace released another two DLC characters, Sylvanos and Elliana. On September 14, 2018, Shovel Knight was released as the second guest character and final playable character.[10] In 2019, the official Rivals of Aether Twitter account confirmed that the Steam workshop would be available for players to create their own characters and stages.[11] In January 2020, Rivals of Aether: Definitive Edition was reconfirmed as a complete version of the game containing all the DLC characters.[12] Later that year, on April 1, the full features of Definitive Edition were announced through an online presentation, confirming features like new unlockables and a new mode based around tetherball. Definitive Edition was ultimately released on September 24, 2020.

Reception

Rivals of Aether was positively received by critics. Nick Valdez of Destructoid scored the game 90/100, saying it is a fully fleshed out fighter that adds additional depth to the Super Smash Bros. formula.[4] Di Stefano Castelli of IGN Italia rated the game 81/100, saying that it lacks originality, but is a technically proficient remake appealing to hardcore players.[13] Alice O'Connor of Rock, Paper, Shotgun said that she enjoyed the game's character design, and that it was reminiscent of Pokémon.[3] Megan Farokhmanesh of Polygon called the game "beautiful" and "the indie answer to Super Smash Bros".[8]

References

  1. ^ "Rivals of Aether". Nintendo Japan. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  2. ^ https://toucharcade.com/2020/09/15/creatures-of-aether-release-date-ios-android-pre-order-free-rivals-of-aether/
  3. ^ a b c "Rivals of Aether wavedashes to a full launch". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on August 13, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  4. ^ a b c d "Review: Rivals of Aether". Destructoid. Archived from the original on September 13, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  5. ^ "Steam Fighting Game Takes Risks That Super Smash Bros Won't". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
  6. ^ "Ori of Ori and the Blind Forest joins Smash Bros-style brawler Rivals of Aether". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on November 9, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  7. ^ "Rivals of Aether Makes The Smash Bros. Formula Feel New Again". Kotaku. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 5, 2017.
  8. ^ a b "Rivals of Aether is like a beautiful, indie version of Super Smash Bros". Polygon. Archived from the original on August 11, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
  9. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-11-15. Retrieved 2019-05-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2018-09-27. Retrieved 2019-05-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  11. ^ "Steam Workshop is coming to Rivals of Aether". Jack of All Controllers. Retrieved August 28, 2019.
  12. ^ Life, Nintendo (2020-01-28). "Rivals Of Aether - Definitive Edition Arrives On Switch This Summer". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  13. ^ "Rivals of Aether - La Recensione". IGN Italia (in Italian). Archived from the original on October 22, 2017. Retrieved July 23, 2017.
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