Always remember the five D's of dodgeball: dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge. Sounds pretty simple, but it's another thing in practice. Thankfully, Brazillian game studio Pocket Trap has announced its new sport RPG Dodgeball Academia, so you can put that theory to the ultimate test.
Announced during this year's PC Gaming Show, Dodgeball Academia is a sports RPG about Otto, a rookie dodgeball student who—in true main character form—wants to be the ultimate dodgeball champion. Who doesn't love an underdog story?
To get crowned dodgeball champ of the school you'll need to fight your way to the top. Matches are a mix between RPG elements and real-time combat, then during your downtime you'll need to run around and explore the academy to recruit team members. When you've got the ultimate team you can duke it out on the court against your opponents.
Dodgeball matches look like a 3v3 affair, but from the trailer there looks to be some other challenges mixed in, like boss fights and time trials. Characters in your party can be levelled up through RPG-style progression and gain unique skills like the ability to heal other players, unleash powerful beams of energy, and (my personal favourite) smack talk your opponents on the court. It's not made obvious if you're controlling just the main character or the team as a whole, but it looks like you'll have control over how players use their abilities during matches.
I'm really loving the look of Dodgeball Academia. The matches look fun and energetic, and the cartoony visual style mates the chaotic nature of the sport. Together with the recent release of EA's new multiplayer game Knockout City, it looks like dodgeball is the sport of the hour.
Dodgeball Academia will be bouncing onto PC, PS4, Xbox One and Switch August 2021.
