Footy Bash – New Arcade AFL Game Like NBA Jam and Super Blood Hockey

[berisha]

Hey all!

For anyone who was at PAX Aus on the weekend you should have seen Footy Bash, an arcade AFL game that looks and plats like an AFL mix of NBA Jam and Super Blood Hockey. It's super fun and brutal, I had an absolute blast playing it a couple times at PAX. Amazingly, what they showed took them just six months of work (very long days apparently). Launching (hopefully) round one next year on PC and Switch, and hopefully PlayStation and Xbox.

Here's an article I wrote about the game: Footy Bash Is A Brutal And Incredibly Addictive Arcade Aussie Rules Game Coming In 2024

We also posted the game's first trailer:

 

[Runnin Blue]

Being honest, not trolling.

This looks terrible. Slow. Shit graphics.

Gameplay looks like NES Aussie Rules Footy with a 2020s (shithouse) aesthetic slapped over it.

6 months? Yeah, I can tell.

 

[berisha]

Being honest, not trolling.

This looks terrible. Slow. s**t graphics.

Gameplay looks like NES Aussie Rules Footy with a 2020s (shithouse) aesthetic slapped over it.

6 months? Yeah, I can tell.

Ouch. Hopefully if you give it a play it can change your mind.

 

[Runnin Blue]

Ouch. Hopefully if you give it a play it can change your mind.

I’ll give anything a shot. If it’s good, I’ll give it it’s fair due. I’m just giving an honest opinion of someone who has been playing games for 36+ years. This looks very amateurish.

And the NBA Jam reference is ridiculous. Looks and plays nothing like it. I haven’t played Super Blood Hockey, so can’t judge on that.

 

[HirdyLannister]

Little bit harsh the first comment, as someone who prefers retro games I like the look of this.

 

[berisha]

I’ll give anything a shot. If it’s good, I’ll give it it’s fair due. I’m just giving an honest opinion of someone who has been playing games for 36+ years. This looks very amateurish.

And the NBA Jam reference is ridiculous. Looks and plays nothing like it. I haven’t played Super Blood Hockey, so can’t judge on that.

NBA Jam is an outlandish arcade spin on basketball, this is an outlandish arcade spin on AFL. Nothing more to it than that.

 

[tastiger]

We may get an AFL game that's fun to play

On VOG-L09 using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[dav3]

I’ll give anything a shot. If it’s good, I’ll give it it’s fair due. I’m just giving an honest opinion of someone who has been playing games for 36+ years. This looks very amateurish.

And the NBA Jam reference is ridiculous. Looks and plays nothing like it. I haven’t played Super Blood Hockey, so can’t judge on that.

If you've been playing games for 36 years you should have some understanding of games back in the era of NBA Jam, Metal Slug, TMNT, Double Dragon, etc........arcadey, pixelated, simple, fun. They're just trying to recreate something like that, not every game has to be 4K 144fps raytraced and ultra realistic.

 

[Runnin Blue]

If you've been playing games for 36 years you should have some understanding of games back in the era of NBA Jam, Metal Slug, TMNT, Double Dragon, etc........arcadey, pixelated, simple, fun. They're just trying to recreate something like that, not every game has to be 4K 144fps raytraced and ultra realistic.

I never said anything like your last sentence. You pulled that out of your arse.

I said the graphics look shit. They do. They don’t invoke a sense of nostalgia as they don’t look anything like retro games of that era. I would know as I was there and gaming.

I also said that it plays nothing like NBA Jam and the like, judging by the footage. And it doesn’t. NBA Jam was FAST. The game was all about speed. This game is slow as shit. Like I said, the gameplay appears to be slow, it’s a clone of Aussie Rules Footy on the NES. I loved that game…in 1991. But, it was slow.

If they had made the claim that “the game plays like Aussie Rules Footy for Nintendo Entertainment System” then I would have said “I agree, but it has ugly graphics”.

 

[Xtreme]

Looks fun and that's what I want from my games!

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

No competition so the game should do well!

I hope there's a demo.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Being honest, not trolling.

This looks terrible. Slow. s**t graphics.

Gameplay looks like NES Aussie Rules Footy with a 2020s (shithouse) aesthetic slapped over it.

6 months? Yeah, I can tell.

Yeah, does look like shovelware or some flash browser game.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

I never said anything like your last sentence. You pulled that out of your arse.

I said the graphics look s**t. They do. They don’t invoke a sense of nostalgia as they don’t look anything like retro games of that era. I would know as I was there and gaming.

I also said that it plays nothing like NBA Jam and the like, judging by the footage. And it doesn’t. NBA Jam was FAST. The game was all about speed. This game is slow as s**t. Like I said, the gameplay appears to be slow, it’s a clone of Aussie Rules Footy on the NES. I loved that game…in 1991. But, it was slow.

If they had made the claim that “the game plays like Aussie Rules Footy for Nintendo Entertainment System” then I would have said “I agree, but it has ugly graphics”.

Yeah, the animations look awful, it's not aesthetically pleasing, nor interesting from a gameplay stand point. There's already a long list of Aussie Rules games that are simply kick, mark, goal, including AFL 23.

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Yeah, does look like shovelware or some flash browser game.

This is what happens when developers focus on things other than face scans and the like

 

[GoldbergsGold]

This is what happens when developers focus on things other than face scans and the like

Gotta have a developer who understands the sport, it's not just kick, mark, goal. Even if it were with simple graphics, you could get a game that adapted all the elements from the sport.

 

[Mootsy]

Thanks, will check this out, hadn't realised a new bash style game was coming out!

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Gotta have a developer who understands the sport, it's not just kick, mark, goal. Even if it were with simple graphics, you could get a game that adapted all the elements from the sport.

Yeah but this one is in no way a serious simulation, or even pretending to be one, like certain other games.

Go in expecting that, and you're gonna be disappointed.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Yeah but this one is in no way a serious simulation, or even pretending to be one, like certain other games.

Go in expecting that, and you're gonna be disappointed.

There's loads of way to make it more dynamic and less barebones in a arcade way. This should just be a free browser game or something.

 

[berisha]

There's loads of way to make it more dynamic and less barebones in a arcade way. This should just be a free browser game or something.

Whether you like it or not is your opinion, but to call it shovelware and a free browser game is pretty disrespectful. Unlike you, I've actually played it and I had a great time – a lot of people at PAX would agree. Games are quick and it's a fun arcade spin on the sport (not the simulation you perhaps want it to be). Also, I know the devs have been working hard on improving the game in the lead up to launch early this year.

Give it a try, maybe you'll surprise yourself.

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Whether you like it or not is your opinion, but to call it shovelware and a free browser game is pretty disrespectful. Unlike you, I've actually played it and I had a great time – a lot of people at PAX would agree. Games are quick and it's a fun arcade spin on the sport (not the simulation you perhaps want it to be). Also, I know the devs have been working hard on improving the game in the lead up to launch early this year.

Give it a try, maybe you'll surprise yourself.

Observably it's another kick, mark, goal style footy game, which is the majority footy games in existence, and it looks like a Newgrounds Flash game, that's my take away. Arcade style should actually give them more reason to try and make it a bit more different than the rest, rather than being just another kick, mark, goal footy game.

 

[Ambrose Burnside]

Whether you like it or not is your opinion, but to call it shovelware and a free browser game is pretty disrespectful. Unlike you, I've actually played it and I had a great time – a lot of people at PAX would agree. Games are quick and it's a fun arcade spin on the sport (not the simulation you perhaps want it to be). Also, I know the devs have been working hard on improving the game in the lead up to launch early this year.

Give it a try, maybe you'll surprise yourself.

Hey berisha got anything to share in terms of what they've been working on?

Keen to try it out when it's released. If it's anything like Speedball 2 I'm keen.

 

[berisha]

Hey berisha got anything to share in terms of what they've been working on?

Keen to try it out when it's released. If it's anything like Speedball 2 I'm keen.

Nothing that I can share yet but I am hoping to be able to soon.

 

[berisha]

Observably it's another kick, mark, goal style footy game, which is the majority footy games in existence, and it looks like a Newgrounds Flash game, that's my take away. Arcade style should actually give them more reason to try and make it a bit more different than the rest, rather than being just another kick, mark, goal footy game.

Isn't that what football is? Can you give me an example of something you'd want them to add?

 

[GoldbergsGold]

Isn't that what football is? Can you give me an example of something you'd want them to add?

No? There's a lot of contested play and zones that force players to hand pass around, chip kick around, get into a lot of tackling, fending off, run and chasing, harassing of the ball carrier. It's not a game where it's ultimately, kick, mark, goal. It's a lot of fighting and struggle just to get to goal most of the time. A lot of that stuff could be adapted into an arcade style, especially the tackling, and fending off stuff. I was more impressed with that arcade American football game Legend Bowl made by one guy, because he made the game actually like the sport but in an arcadey fashion, no Mickey Mouse stuff.

Footy Bash looks too much like a Newgrounds Flash game, plays too slowly, assets and animations look really off, they really should be changed to a better 2D aesthetic (ie Legend Bowl) and the gameplay would get old after 5 minutes of just "kick, mark, goal". I think the size of that field and it being 3D could work, but all the players are just in 1v1 positions, there's no zones, no out numbers, and there doesn't seem to be any multiple v multiple contested plays either. If you want it to stand out and make it replayable, there needs to be more advanced contested play mechanics, ie fumbling the ball when mark attempting, diving mark attempts, multiple v multiple tackling, fending off, spins, tunnel hand passing to self, custom formations, and playbooks like Legend Bowl, or else it'd be the same thing over and over again.

 

[DangerThumbs]

Hey everyone,

Just realised we were getting a bit of chatter on the Big Footy forums which is pretty awesome!
Let me just start by saying that we love all the feedback, both positive or constructive, we'd love to make a game that all Footy fans would love, but that's not always the case. In saying that, I'd love to clarify a few things:

1. Graphics and animations: Since releasing that alpha gameplay trailer we have overhauled the graphics while still keeping the same aesthetic.
2. Mechanics: With the rework in the way we animate and rig the players, we will be able to add in a lot of dynamic mechanics outside of the aforementioned 'kick, mark, goal' loop. Quite a few things mentioned in some of the feedback are already on the way, and although we do showcase that 'Kick, mark, goal' loop in the initial alpha video trailer, we do still have handballing/punching/tackling in the current build, with more to reveal.

There are obviously things that we cannot mention yet, but it's great to see that there is a need for a fun arcade style Footy game with an active community.

Keep the awesome feedback coming, and the best place for catching our dev updates would be the Discord or our Social media for those who are interested.

Kind regards,
Danger Thumbs Team