When a franchise dominates a genre for so long, it surely makes it difficult to justify adding a game to that space.

In this case, i’m of course talking about FIFA – or EA Sports FC as it’s now known. Since the 90s, it’s been the go-to football game, even when it was facing its fiercest competition from PES (which also goes by another name these days).

And while other football games have emerged, they’ve often been fun spin-offs like Mario Strikers or managerial efforts that focus more on the technical side of the game like Football Manager.

So in this unusual period of turmoil around licenses and identity crises and games not evolving much year on year as prices go up, developers are perhaps feeling more emboldened than ever to try their hand at things. Which brings us to Rematch.

It comes from an unexpected place, no doubt. If you remember the excellent Sifu a few years back, it was an isometric roguelike kung-fu brawler that had a really satisfying combat loop, seeing you fight back against waves of enemies and bruising bosses. So imagine hearing their next game is going to be a sports-fest.

But here we are, and the result is a footballer that also has an extremely satisyfing loop. There’s good flow to the passing, manouervability, as well as shooting. It’s less of a FIFA beater, sure, there’s not really any off-side rules here. Less fouls or red cards, it’s just fast-paced, non-stop up and down the court to score as many goals as you can in the time limit.

In 3v3, 4v4 and 5v5 settings, you play one footballer rather than bouncing between teammates with a Rocket League style vibe that’s just unrelenting as it is entertaining.

It’s more arcade-like, similar to classics like Virtua Striker or Super Sidekicks, then. And as such there’s definitely gap in the market for a game like this to come in, with some focus on skilled striking but also a great emphasis on actually relying on your online or local teammates. People are not always going to get it right and often that’s where the magic / frustration comes in with Rematch.

Though most games I played online people still try to show off their skills and run the length of the pitch to score to try and score themselves, proving they don’t need teammates. You’ll also find some folks really do get the essence of the game and unselfishly do want to work together. The game at least tries to mitigate this somewhat by alternating your position on the pitch after each goal is scored, sometimes plopping you in goal or in midfield.

But the thing about Rematch is, you can never really be out of position, so if you were so inclined you could have all five of you in goal at one time. Its chaotic and brilliant in that regard and really means each match can play out so differently from the last.

As someone who adores football games in general, this is a fun change in pace. Will it replace FC for me? No. But it’s also not meant to, and there’s plenty of content to come with the seasonal updates which I’m looking forward to.

That said, the game is limited. With no cross-play, you are immediately stuck within the eco-system of the platform you’re playing on. At least with GamePass, you’re guaranteed to always have a large base to draw from but it is a real shame that you can’t play with others on PS or PC. Though this is apparently going to be added in a future update, so Slocap are aware of it.

You can also play locally but only in the game’s free-play and practice modes for now, which one wonders if that might also change in future updates.

And I think that ultimately determines the game’s future in just how much Sloclap will invest in it. Rematch, at its core, is a fairly simple experience with it mostly being an online game and the small amount of modes, and the apparel for your team members, but you feel like this game’s evolution will be massively determined by how much Sloclap put back into it.

What we have for today, though, is a distinct blend of animation and immersion with a beautiful visual style which really gives the game its unique level of realism, though not to the quality you’ll find in the bigger titles. It fits the gameplay loop well and the game runs mostly smoothly, though there are some hiccups during online matches.

Rematch is some of the most fun I’ve had with football in years, though. EA Sports FC isn’t always a joy to play anymore and its a game that often feels bogged down with microtransactions and an overwhelming amount of modes and data. It’s nice to just…go back to basics, switch off but still have a degree of control over your shot-taking and gameplay, working together as a team.

Rematch is a game I can’t wait to see continue to evolve and grow and hope it gets a chance to do that. It’s not always perfect and there’s elements of improvement needed, but it has a solid, enjoyable foundation with a wealth of potential and really is the most interesting football experience to come along in years that genuinely offers something a bit different. And most importantly, fun!

Verdict

Rematch is the most interesting football game to come along in years and plays with the rules in a fast and loose way that creates an enjoyable, easy to dive into and tricky to master loop. As an online only experience with no cross-play for right now and some hiccups, there’s definitely some challenges, especially as the core of the game is played with others and relying on them, depending on the teammates you end up with. But the long term potential is vast and we’re excited to see how each season unfolds.