HYPER GUNSPORT
Could volleyball with guns be the next esports hit?
Developer Necrosoft Games
Publisher Hitcents
Format PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series
Origin US
Release TBA 2022
Dotemu’s fabulous Windjammers 2 might have seemed to have the title of ‘year’s best quasi-sports game’ sewn up by the end of January, but this enhanced edition of 2020 Stadia release Gunsport might just give it a run for its money. Certainly, this early build has us similarly oscillating between fury and fist-pumping delight, and likewise shuffling ever closer to the edge of our seats during extended rallies.
The pitch is simple: two-on-two weaponised volleyball. Set in a cyberpunkadjacent world, presented in crisp, nicely animated pixel art, it’s a future sport that at times seems conceptually counterintuitive. Isn’t technology supposed to make things more efficient? Here, you shoot the ‘ball’, which is actually hexagonal, with guns that, while capable of automatically reloading, carry limited ammunition. Static Keepers sit at the back of either side of the court, firing more frequently and with a wider shot radius. The more mobile Strikers can move around – and jump – but need to time their shots carefully.