After a year-long hiatus, MultiVersus is back – and for some reason, the platform fighter has removed one of its best features entirely. I enjoyed the core gameplay of the Warner Bros’ IP brawler during the open beta, and I still think there’s a solid game in here somewhere. But some of the changes in the full launch version just don’t make any sense, and many players online agree.
The return of MultiVersus may have seen over 100,000 Steam players flock to the free-to-play fighting game on its first day back, but not everyone is entirely pleased, myself included. While we have new characters like Joker, Jason Voorhees, and Agent Smith to sink our teeth into alongside plenty of new progression options, some of the open beta’s best features are nowhere to be found.
Removing the option to play as characters you don’t own in local matches and training is the biggest offender. During the open beta, I got to try out Batman to my heart’s content (albeit not in proper online modes), and now I can’t even throw a solitary Batarang in training. Letting players at least try out the entire MultiVersus roster was the perfect way to find out which characters you liked the most – and the entire reason I ended up maining Harley Quinn.
“This feels like a pretty massive blunder,” u/Philiard says on Reddit. “The ability to play as any character to lab or get a feel before you purchase them was really nice and huge for the game’s offline viability,” and I can’t help but agree. The try-before-you-buy aspect of the open beta has been removed entirely, so why would you want to chance your money on a new character?
It’s also unclear how the MultiVersus tournament scene will react to this change. During the beta, tournaments could be played in offline mode, allowing them to choose from every character. Now though, in order for tournaments to operate and to allow competitors to use their preferred fighters, all the characters will seemingly have to be purchased.
The co-op versus AI mode, free-for-all with items, leaderboards, and end-of-match stats have all vanished too, and I’m not sure if or when they’ll be back. In combination, all of these removals just seem odd, with the game now focusing entirely on rifts, the battle pass, and online play.
I’ve also seen reports that the camera zooms in far too much during matches, and after jumping back in myself I’ve got to say that I don’t like this change at all. I appreciate the idea, but I prefer having full spatial awareness in a platform fighter, especially in the midst of a hectic 2v2.
“The gameplay does not feel significantly better,” u/ChestnaughtZ says, “This is mind-boggling.”
You also no longer get passive battle pass XP, with it only being rewarded from challenges. This means that once you’ve done your daily challenges and everything else you need to wait to get more XP.
None of this is to say that these features won’t return or MultiVersus won’t undergo any changes, as I’m sure Player First Games is listening to feedback and putting together a plan of action. That said, I can’t wrap my head around why some of the open beta’s best ideas and modes have just been outright removed.
Ranked isn’t in the game yet either, but I’d chalk this up to Player First Games making sure online functionality is in top shape before it rolls out.
As you dive back into the Warner Bros IP fighter, we’ve got all the MultiVersus codes you’ll want to redeem alongside a MultiVersus tier list of all the characters if you’re unsure who you want to main. We’ve also got all the info on the MultiVersus server status as it happens.
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