Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure
Top Critic Average
Critics Recommend
Critic Reviews for Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure
Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure Deluxe fully deserves a place among Nintendo Switch's already amazing line up of local multiplayer titles. It's accessible yet deceptively deep twin stick-based mechanics make for a decent amount of challenge in the solo campaign, even if it's a little on the short side. Even with no online, using bots or getting up to five other friends involved, multiplayer matches are a joy and always thoroughly entertaining. Striking a great balance between cooperative and competitive play styles, It's combination of charming presentation and witty retro humour are sure to keep the laughs coming regardless of player demographic.
Stikbold finally gives the sport of dodgeball a credible representation in a video game. It nails the simplicity and mastery of the sport while remaining fun and humorous, but it lacks online capabilities and is just a bit too short.
At its heart, Stikbold’s a fairly simple game of hitting people with balls, but it has a bunch of fun and silly ideas alongside that which turn it into a manic little party game to while away a few hours.
Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure is a nostalgic throwback to the heyday of local multiplayer, when groups of buddies gathering around a couch was the predominant method by which people played games with others. Its wacky sense of humor and chaotic gameplay are best enjoyed through the cacophony of laughter that only good friends can bring, and the ease by which you can pick it up and just start playing will be sure to draw in reluctant living room holdouts. The appeal might not last forever due to a lack of content and depth, especially in the game’s story mode, which doesn’t fully explore all the great wacky ideas it seems to have. Even so, this is a standout indie that will bring a lot of people back to the couch — both the literal one and the figurative one of their past.
Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure takes a sport that few get the opportunity to play anymore and infuses it with a more action oriented approach that surprisingly works quite well.
Stikbold! may not be as serious as the typical sports title to which we have become accustomed, but the game is easy to pick up and provides equal amounts of challenge, fun and off-the-wall ridiculousness. The lack of online multiplayer seems like a major oversight from the developer and the short story mode and limited numbers of stages might put players off who are looking for something to play by themselves for an extended period of time. However, if you get a few friends together, Stikbold! becomes the ideal party game that is just a good bit of fun.
Fresh and frantic, Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure is a pleasant surprise, with moreish multiplayer and a beguiling, unique style that sets it apart in a crowded genre. Slight performance hiccups crop up when matches get too busy, but they're rare, and you'll be having too much fun to really notice. A couple of extra modes or online multiplayer would've made this easier to recommend, but it's fun, snappy, and full of character nonetheless, and if you're looking for a little light-heartedness in your multiplayer gaming sessions, don't dodge this.
The concept of Stikbold! seems simple enough. Play dodgeball, hit people, don’t get hit, and ultimately come out on top.
