Sound also plays a key role in timing catches. Every action, be it a hit, knockout, catch, collision, or special ball, has its own distinct sound that can be easily picked out among the chaotic soundscape of jazzy tunes. Sound design is carrying a lot of the weight here, too. The basic rules of dodgeball naturally create comeback scenarios where I'm repeatedly catching/throwing/catching/throwing until I'm the last one standing. Even when I'm ganged up on in a 1v3, I have the opportunity to either dodge or catch every ball sent my way. Balance appears to be a major consideration for developer Velan Studios. Obviously there's depth here, but I'm impressed with how harmoniously Knockout City's mechanics gel together. Now match point, I tag the last enemy and then alley-oop my own ball to chain into a second hit (knockout).The're now stuck in ball form long enough for me to toss them in a pit (knockout) An opponent throws a Cage ball at me, but I catch it and send it back.My teammate quickly follows up for the knockout. I reclaim that same ball, fake a throw with F and then tag another opponent.I catch it with perfect timing, overcharging the ball with more speed in my next throw (hit, knockout) They reclaim my ball and throw it back.I open with a deliberate half-speed lob to bait out an early catch (hit).
Annoyed that some kid just ducked behind a wall before you finished charging your throw? Put some spin on it with E and watch the ball take a hard left around the block like a heat-seeking missile. Though, instead of slightly altering the ball's trajectory to the same general strike zone, curveballs and lobs are extreme maneuvers that can challenge opponents completely out of reach.
The 1v1 dynamic is pretty similar to a baseball pitcher's bag of tricks: you've got your standard fastball and a few variants like the changeup (slow ball), curveball, and high-arcing lob (features producer/baseball expert Chris Livingston tells me this is similar to the rare Eephus pitch (opens in new tab)). Fights aren't a matter of pinpoint aiming or movement trickery-each showdown is a test of wits, fakeouts, and reflexes. In fact, Knockout City has a surprisingly deep combat language that has more in common with Chivalry's back-and-forth duels than the games it resembles (remember Rocket Arena (opens in new tab)?). I guess I should've been reading closer, because Knockout City isn't a kid-friendly shooter at all. Memories of being actually kinda good at dodgeball, on top of a fascination with weird shooters, inspired me to give Knockout City a shake despite Tyler's unimpressed preview (opens in new tab) from back in February.
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