Ultimate Dodgeball Review

Reviewed: Ultimate Dodgeball

Release Date: 1/18/2013

Developer: K-Dog

Publisher: K-Dog

Platform(s): [Reviewed: XBLIG]

Genre: Sports & Recreation

On a trip down Indie Avenue, there’s one new game that you just might want to give a try. It’s a 8 player (4 on 4) fight to the finish. For a change, you’re not using guns, knives and other means of destructions for eliminations. It’s a dodgeball! And if you can dodge a wrench….. you know the rest.

The game is as simple as it sounds. Catch a ball or hit your opponent with one to eliminate them. You can also dodge balls to avoid them as well. It may take a while understanding how to separate catching and dodging as they have the same button use.

To throw the ball simply press X, or perform a charged attack by holding X. Special moves like spikes and cartwheel can be done through the same method and with the use of the left trigger.

Catching the ball while one is heading your way will allow one of your teammates to return to the game, hopefully giving you an upper hand. I say “hopefully” because the A.I. is the major setback, at times. You’ll receive a great experience out of Ultimate Dodgeball, especially when you’re climbing ranks in Tournament. Most gamers love a challenge, and it’s definitely here. For a buck, may I remind you!

The A.I. issue may agitate you pretty quick as your teammates will sometimes space out and not even move. To slightly defend this, you can switch between players which can be helpful in many occasions. However, if you’re normally focusing on the player you began with, you’ll completely lose sight of the game overall, at least until you notice you having less players than the oppenents.

Graphics are decent, considering it’s indie and for the platform. The staging area is surrounded by avatars to give you that live tournament feel. One thing I would’ve like to seen here was the crowd interacting. Not physically, but awing for the near misses or cheering for eliminations.

Overall, I’d highly recommend Ultimate Dodgeball to anyone with 80 Microsoft Points to spare. Don’t believe me, just try the trial run in the Marketplace.

Overall Score: 3.5 / 5