Rematch Review – SHAOLIN SOCCER

From the devs that brought us punch-happy beatdowns in Sifu, Rematch is what happens when you strip the rules out of football, crank the intensity to eleven, throw in a neon-coloured circus, and you know what? It slaps—mostly.

Rocket Street

Right from the kickoff, Rematch hits you with that arcade adrenaline. It’s 5v5, no fouls, no offsides and no refs crying in the corner—just pure, beautiful chaos. Dodgy slide tackles? Legal. Overhead passes? Oh, yeah! Flying volleys into the top bins from midfield? All day, baby. You can even dramatically alter the flight path of a shot, using both analogue sticks to aim and curve around a defender, or go right over the top of them and the goalkeeper. It takes some getting used to, though it’s genuinely satisfying once you get the feel right, especially since shooting uses the R2 button on a PS5 controller. My EA Sports FC brain was a train wreck at first, but I eventually got used to it… Several hours later.

Every match is a sweaty sprint. You’re locked into one character, meaning your positioning and timing matter a lot. There’s a real “easy to learn, hard to master” thing going on here, and that skill ceiling is skyscraper-high. Players who can nail short stamina bursts, precise passes and perfect aim? Absolute weapons. You can even rebound a ball off the wall for some added panache. Think Rocket League meets FIFA Street… though the Street part is more sci-fi rave and less concrete alley. If that sounds weird, it is—but it works.

As you charge across the pitch, players will automatically switch roles. For example, if the keeper goes on an attacking run, any other teammate can run into the box to automatically chuck on some gloves and trade positions. Or if a forward runs into the back half, they’ll be able to sprint much more liberally, not worrying about stamina like they would as a striker. Cool stuff!

Looking to the Future

There are ranked 5v5, casual matches, and offline bot drills on the way. The core loop is solid, yet it’s missing a few social bits—no clubs, limited voice comms, no post-match mics for those spicy zingers or salty sass. On launch day, the netcode was a bit dodgy, like in the beta we tried beforehand. But fingers crossed, there are more patches to smooth things out sooner rather than later.

The game’s set in a kind of utopian future where everyone decided to play street soccer on speed. Maps are tight, vibrant, and brimming with style. From the saturated skyline to the custom character designs (prosthetics, vitiligo, purple mohawks—you name it) Rematch is very Gen Z-core, and we dig it. Shoutout to the UI too—clean, responsive, and not annoying.

If you’ve ever wanted to slide tackle someone while blasting synth-metal, Rematch delivers. The soundtrack, courtesy of The Algorithm, punches just as hard as the gameplay. It’s reactive too. Meaning, as the match heats up, so does the music. Always nice to hear.

Decision

Rematch has the makings of a great multiplayer experience akin to Rocket League. It’s stylish, speedy and seriously addictive. The kind of game where you say, “gimme one more!” and suddenly realise it’s 03:00AM. While it still needs a few updates to tighten the online experience and bulk out its social side, the foundation is already rock-solid. If Sifu was your workout, Rematch is your cardio.

By Anthony Culinas – Reviewed on PC

Great

A worthy alternative to FC—Rematch is fast, flashy and endlessly replayable. Let’s just hope Sloclap doesn’t red card the momentum with bad post-launch support.

This game was reviewed using a download code provided by Sloclap. The Beta Network uses affiliate partnerships, however, this does not influence reviews or any other content published. The Beta Network may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links that are on the website.