Rocket League is a sports video game, available in both single-player, co-op (split-screen), and multiplayer. At release, YouTube and Twitch streamers picked it up, leading to immense popularity in a short time. To prove a point better, it is estimated that within just over 2 years, more than 34 million people played Rocket League. Also, it is widely rated as one of the easiest games to get into, but hardest to master. This is the reason for our guide to getting better at Rocket League and why it is gradually becoming one of the top esports games in the world.
| Rocket League | |
|---|---|
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| Developer | Psyonix |
| Publisher | Psyonix |
| Platforms |
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| Release Date | 07 July 2015 |
| Genre | Sports |
| Mode | Single-player, Multiplayer |
Gameplay
A Rocket League match is similar to a game of soccer, with a field and two goals on each side. However, instead of humans, players get to control rocket-powered cars, also known as Battle-Cars. Each team spawns at opposite sides as either Blue or Orange team. When the timer starts, both sides rush to kick the ball that drops in the center of the field. Also, the edges of the field aren’t cut off but instead turned into ramps you can use dynamically – do acrobatics in the air, gain speed, dodge an opponent, pass the ball to a teammate, or shoot your shot toward the enemy goal. Once a player scores, both teams are back in starting positions and rush toward the center again. The team with the highest score wins.
Playlists
There are currently 7 Rocket League game modes, also known as playlists:
- Duel (1v1)
- Doubles (2v2)
- Standard (3v3)
- Hoops
- Dropshot
- Rumble
- Snow Day
The first three are also the most-played and used for competitive gaming. The last four are extra modes for casual players.
Single-player
The offline mode isn’t as popular but allows players to play alone for practice (Free Play) or with and against AI e.g. bots. Both modes are a great warmup, while the latter is a great starting point for newcomers. Eventually, when you become skilled enough, you’ll have no problems soloing multiple bots at once. You’ll either get bored or start itching to join multiplayer.
Multiplayer
We’ll talk about Multi-player mode in greater detail in our Rocket League review. For now, here are 4 main ways to play Rocket League online:
1. Custom Games
These include Exhibition, Season, and Private Match, and allow you to play with or against friends online or locally, with or without AI.
2. Casual
This mode will match you with random players across the globe in Unranked matches. You can queue solo and form a team with random players, or join with a group of friends, and face another pre-made team.
3. Competitive
Although it uses the same principle as Casual, for every match you win or lose in Competitive, you gain or lose MMR (Matchmaking Rate). After the first 10 ranked games, you’re assigned one of 22 rated ranks. Afterward, every loss or win affects your position on the rank board. The ranks are split into 7 tiers (Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Champion, Grand Champion) with 3 sub-tiers each (Gold I, Gold II, Gold III, etc.) and a top, single rank named Supersonic Legend. Also, each playlist uses a separate ranking.
4. Tournaments
Official Rocket League Tournaments are free and happen multiple times a day. Players of all ranks can join and the Tournament sorts them into one of 32 teams. Queueing solo matches you with opponents of a similar rank. In Doubles and Standard, the tier is determined by the highest-ranked player in the group. Up until the Semifinals and Finals, which are “best of 3”, you play one round only.
FAQ
For more than 5 years since the initial release, it wasn’t. However, since 23 September 2020, the game’s Epic Games Store release date, Rocket League is free.
The short answer is: check the official game system requirements. The longer answer is: it depends on the graphical settings you want to achieve and whether you want to reach 30, 60, or more frames per second. Ideally, you want to match the refresh rate of your screen. For example, 144 Hz = 144 FPS.
Yes. Rocket League works cross-platform. To double-check the option is enabled, go to Main Menu > Options > Gameplay tab, and put a checkmark in front of Cross-Platform Play if it isn’t there. This applies to grouping up with or against players on platforms other than yours. You can also, sync your progress and inventory cross-platform if you link separate accounts to the same Epic Games account. To do so, visit the game’s Account Activate page.
Getting regular credits in the game requires a form of paid currency. One way to obtain it is the Rocket League Pass, which is an optional way to unlock new challenges as you play. Another way is to purchase a credits bundle in the in-game store’s Garage menu. Unique credits, such as Esports Credits and Tournament Credits, are earned through their respective activities.
Yes, but with limitations – you cannot use voice chat cross-platform. For example, if you’re playing on Xbox, you can only voice chat with fellow Xbox players. The only exception is the Epic Games version, where neither platform-only nor cross-platform voice chat is enabled.
Trading items within Rocket League works the same as in the real world. The demand, rarity, and visual appeal dictate the price, and the item doesn’t need to have the same price on all platforms. Consequently, there are multiple websites for analyzing the in-game market. Our favorites include Aoeah, RocketPrices, and RLexchange.
There are more than 65 Battle-Cars or vehicle bodies at this time. 7 categories define rarity: Common, Exclusive, Very Rare, Import, Exotic, Limited, and Premium.
Yes, you must have a competitive rank, even the lowest one (Bronze I), and be Level 10 to join the official Rocket League Tournaments. In contrast, you might be able to join private Rocket League Tournaments if they choose to allow Unranked players.
