Grapple Tournament

About

Grapple Tournament is a single player and multiplayer casual shooter game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Tomorrow Games and was released on December 23, 2023. It received very positive reviews from players.

"Grapple Tournament" is a VR-exclusive sports game that combines fast-paced grappling hook action with basketball-inspired gameplay. Players compete in 1v1 matches, using their grappling hooks to catch and throw a ball into the opponent's goal. With a variety of arenas and customizable settings, "Grapple Tournament" offers a unique and engaging experience for VR enthusiasts.

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90%

Audience ScoreBased on 304 reviews

gameplay38 positive mentions

optimization3 negative mentions

The game offers a fun and fast-paced VR experience reminiscent of classic arena shooters like Unreal Tournament and Quake.
The grappling hook mechanics add a unique and enjoyable layer to movement and combat, allowing for dynamic gameplay.
Despite its early access state, the game feels polished with intuitive controls and a variety of weapons that enhance the overall experience.

The player base is extremely low, making it difficult to find matches and diminishing the multiplayer experience.
There are significant issues with server stability and matchmaking, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
The game lacks meaningful single-player content, which limits its appeal for those who prefer solo play.

gameplay
73 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
44%
4%
The gameplay of this VR arena shooter is highly praised for its fast-paced, addictive mechanics, particularly the innovative grappling hook that enhances movement and combat dynamics. Players appreciate the smooth controls, diverse weaponry, and engaging map designs, which together create a thrilling experience reminiscent of classic shooters like Unreal Tournament. Despite some balancing issues and a need for further polish, the overall gameplay is described as immersive and enjoyable, making it a standout title in the VR genre.
- “It's everything I want from a VR arena shooter: fun movement, cool guns, and mechanics that make use of VR. It has crossplay with Quest, so you can still find games.”
- “The gameplay of Grapple Tournament is pure fun: you move around with a grappling hook and mid-air jumps, shooting and dodging mostly projectile-based weapons.”
- “Incredibly satisfying gameplay that's easy to learn, difficult to master.”
- “This was an ill-conceived PvP arena shooter for VR users only, featuring grappling hook mechanics and cartoony cel-shaded models.”
- “Some of the mechanics need some polish, and game balancing isn't where it needs to be at all, but still, play this f*cking game.”
- “Mechanics are super fun, but the game gets boring insanely fast.”
graphics
30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
37%
53%
10%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a stylized, low-poly, and cartoony aesthetic that some players find appealing and easy to read, particularly in VR. While the visuals may seem simplistic compared to AAA titles, they are well-optimized for performance and contribute to an immersive experience. Overall, the graphics receive mixed reviews, with some praising their charm and clarity, while others desire more photorealistic options.
- “Gaming is a visual medium, and to be considered one of the best games on Steam, the graphics have to be some of the best on Steam.”
- “The visuals of the game are pretty nice to look at with a cell-shaded, toony art style and seem to be pretty optimized performance-wise.”
- “The graphics are on the 'toony' side of things, but that's okay; it does not detract from the game experience.”
- “On the important subject of visuals, this features fairly low quality stylized/cartoony low poly 3D graphics.”
- “The graphics look a little more shoddy, and there is a gun you can't even use.”
- “Graphics and sound are typical VR level (Valve's Alyx and the handful of AAA VR titles aside) - in that the graphics would seem cheap on a flat surface, but in VR they are extremely immersive.”
story
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
66%
17%
The game's story aspect is minimal, as it relies heavily on multiplayer interactions rather than a traditional narrative. Players appreciate the engaging mechanics and fun gameplay, but express a desire for a more immersive story experience akin to classic shooters like Doom or Quake. The hope is that future updates, including a potential Quest port, will enhance the player base and possibly introduce richer storytelling elements.
- “I was waiting for the game to get a bigger player base before giving it a positive review, and now with the quest release and cross-play, I can finally do it! The player count is large enough to have full matches at peak times without the need for organization via Discord, and that's all you can ask for in any amazing but lesser-known VR multiplayer game.”
- “I believe once the game is ported over to work on Quest 2 standalone, the game is going to explode in popularity.”
- “I imagine if they add cross-play between Quest headsets and SteamVR, there will be a massive spike in players.”
- “The developer gambled that other players would be an acceptable substitute for adding storytelling, level design, etc. to the game.”
- “I know it's probably optimized for Quest and low-end hardware, but if we got these mechanics with Doom or Quake aesthetics and photoreal graphics, well, I'd never play anything else.”
- “I think this led to them porting the Quest version to the PC version, like Onward did.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
17%
50%
Overall, the game's optimization is well-received, with many users noting that it runs smoothly across a wide range of hardware, particularly lower-end systems. While the visual style may not appeal to everyone, its minimalistic design contributes to solid performance. Some users experienced minor motion sickness issues in the demo, which were resolved in the full game, suggesting initial optimization quirks.
- “Visuals are minimalistic and well optimized.”
- “The visuals of the game are pretty nice to look at with a cell-shaded, toony art style and seem to be pretty optimized performance-wise.”
- “The visual style isn't very appealing to me, but it gets the job done, and it will probably ensure smooth performance for a very wide range of PCs.”
- “Motion sickness = 4/5 = I played the demo and had slight motion sickness, but when I downloaded the full game it went away, so I think the demo had some weird optimization issue.”
- “The visuals of the game are pretty nice to look at with a cel-shaded, toony art style and seem to be pretty optimized performance-wise.”
music
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game's soundtrack features a driving electronica beat that is well-received, with users noting its crisp audio quality and lack of issues, earning a perfect score of 5/5. However, some players criticize the developer for charging a $5 "donation" for a soundtrack DLC that is already included in the game, labeling it as digital panhandling.
- “Audio = 5/5 = no audio issues and it sounds crisp, and I like the background music a lot.”
- “Furthermore, the developer has their hand out for a $5 USD 'donation' for this, as you're expected to give them money for soundtrack DLC (that's already in the game) from Steam to 'support' the developer... digital panhandling.”
- “The soundtrack features a driving electronica beat.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
100%
Overall, the game demonstrates impressive stability for an early access title, running smoothly on lower-end hardware and feeling polished with minimal bugs. However, some players have reported persistent micro-freezes that can hinder gameplay experience.
- “All the guns feel great, the bots are challenging, the maps are well-made, and it runs great on my slightly lower than mid-range hardware (GTX 1070, i5 8600K).”
- “Even though it's in early access, it feels quite polished and bug-free, a welcomed change from most early access games.”
- “I experienced constant micro-freezes, which made the game unplayable for me.”
- “The game crashes frequently, disrupting my experience.”
- “I encountered numerous bugs that affected gameplay stability.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
150%
Players rate the game's replayability highly, often giving it a perfect score of 5/5 due to its addictive gameplay and unique mechanics, such as grappling that enhances the experience. Suggestions for additional challenges, like unlocking skins for achieving specific goals, could further increase replay value.
- “Replay value = 5/5. I would say 5/5 because it's just addicting and easy to play. I thought using a grapple would be disorienting, but it is not in any way. It actually adds a cool mechanic that non-VR games cannot do; I can grapple, shoot, and look in a different direction while I am swinging to the grapple point.”
- “Maybe challenges like skins for guns for getting headshots, etc. I don't know if this lines up with the developers' vision, but I think it would add some replay value.”
- “The game feels like a one-and-done experience; once you've completed it, there's little incentive to return.”
- “After finishing the main story, I found myself with no real motivation to replay it, as the side content felt repetitive and uninspired.”
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
Users express frustration with the game's monetization strategy, urging developers to allocate resources towards advertising instead of frequent updates and to consider lowering the game's price.
- “Please divert the money and time you're using to update the game into advertising and, for God's sake, lower the prices.”
- “The monetization model feels exploitative, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending a fortune.”
- “It's frustrating that the game is designed around pushing microtransactions rather than providing a fair experience.”