Sonic Rumble Is Not the Fall Guys Clone I'm Looking For

I've been after a new Fall Guys type game for several years, but Sonic Rumble isn't the one.

Joining a growing trend of free-to-play mobile games from SEGA also on PC (looking at you, Persona 5: The Phantom X), this arcade battle royale spin-off set in a toy world earlier launched this week on Steam, iOS, and Android. I'm maybe one of two people who's beaten Sonic Dream Team using an Apple Vision Pro and enjoyed the Apple Arcade exclusive platformer, so I was willing to give this a try.

Friends, it's not good. Upon loading up Sonic Rumble for the first time, you're immediately sent into a match with little more than a basic tutorial to guide you. Using familiar locations like Green Hill Zone for these stages, what follows is a three stage knockout format across these obstacle courses.

Stages so far are a mix of games with a familiar Sonic-themed twist - defeat more enemies, race to the finish line, collect the most rings as possible, you get the idea. A higher finish even in the earlier stages grants Rings (currency) and #1 in the final round wins the whole thing.

Having played for roughly an hour, I've already uninstalled this as there's practically no redeeming factors. Stages are forgettable, it's utterly devoid of the sense of speed you'd expect in a Sonic game, and winning feels all too easy. There is no sense of satisfaction here, and none of the charm you'd hope for from a party game; it's just not fun.

That's made worse by the heavy monetization. Surprise surprise for a free-to-play mobile game, I know, though I will say the “pay to win” accusations aren't true. There's some confusion around costume bonuses, which only gives you extra rings used for non-premium cosmetics. Premium skins, though? Some cost over £45 each, even with the “discount” applied. That's before mentioning the multiple paid premium passes, it slowly stacks up.

I discussed Fall Guys at length several years ago, as I used to love playing Mediatonic's older hit with friends. That first season set off my competitive nature with its party platformer premise in a way battle royales like Fortnite never could, earning those crowns after a hard fought set of rounds was exhilarating. That got even better back in 2021 when it added squads.

I fell off it again after its free-to-play switch as that early magic gradually disappeared, and I've been after an alternative ever since. If you're in the same boat as me, this unfortunately isn't it. Sonic Rumble is a depressingly bad game further hampered by some egregious monetization. Don't waste your time here.