- Psyonix has introduced Rocket League Sideswipe, a mobile-only car soccer game for Android and iOS.
- It’s built around fast, small multiplayer matches.
- The free-to-play title is due later in 2021, although some testers can try it now.
You no longer have to sit down with a console or your PC to get a taste of Rocket League. Psyonix and Epic Games have unveiled Rocket League Sideswipe, a mobile-only car soccer game destined for Android and iOS.
As the name implies, Rocket League Sideswipe is optimized for the touch input of Android and iOS devices. You’re playing on (and above) a simpler, side-scrolling pitch instead of navigating in 3D. Accordingly, matches have no more than two players per team and last two minutes each. While you’ll still benefit from your experience if you’re a Rocket League fan, this is aimed at both newcomers and players who just want a quick fix.
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The title will be free to play and launch worldwide later in 2021. People in Australia and New Zealand won’t have to wait, though, as Psyonix is already conducting a limited alpha test of Rocket League Sideswipe for Android users in those countries. Beta tests will come to other countries, too.
Sideswipe comes two years after Epic bought Psyonix, and just months after the studio made the standard Rocket League a free-to-play game in September 2020. In that light, this is as much about a changing strategy for the fantasy sports hit as anything else. A mobile version of Rocket League could help Psyonix rake in more money from cosmetic item sales, not to mention boost interest in the original game.
