As someone who loves seeing fighting games which dare to break the mold, Lethal League was a breath of fresh air when it released. Some might consider it a stretch to call it a ‘fighting game’ due to how unique it is, but I think that in this case the term applies well. On paper, the idea makes for a simple and fun party game; you have up to four players and a ball, and you score damage by hitting the ball into other players. But even though you can only hit your opponents indirectly, there are still combos, mix-ups and option selects all present in Lethal League’s mechanics. They translate over in unfamiliar ways, and require very different inputs and responses, but they make perfect sense within their own context. Best of all, the game is visually and mechanically coherent in a way that anyone can grasp the objective from the second they see it. It’s an example of a perfect mechanical concept, executed as well as it could possibly be.
Among all its stylistic and design choices, I’m a fan of how the game exaggerates hit-stop to an absurd degree. In action and fighting games, it’s a common practice to make characters briefly pause when they land an attack to exaggerate the impact; this effect is known as ‘hit-stop’, ‘hit-pause’ or ‘hit-lag’. In Lethal League, this hit-stop is not only stretched out to several seconds at a time, it’s also built up into a central and defining mechanic of the game. Each hit on the ball gradually increases its speed, and also the amount of hit-lag on subsequent hits. It not only increases the tension in the most visceral way possible, but it also serves to give opponents extra time to return the ball with interest. Combined with advanced techniques which let players manipulate their swing’s hit-stop and timing, it’s a deep, tightly-integrated and visually-impressive mechanic that doesn’t get old.
Lethal League‘s OST features licensed songs from a range of talented artists, all perfectly chosen to fit the industrial-funk vibe of the game. Of these, Ordinary Days is the most memorable. It’s a lax, catchy and bass-driven vibe which somehow makes the perfect backdrop for smacking a thousand-mile-per-hour baseball. Producer Klaus Veen returned to make a VIP for the sequel game Lethal League Blaze, which is also incredible in its own right.
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