Month: September 2015

We’ve seen a handful of indie fighting games release over the last couple of years, each offering a slightly different take on the genre that we’ve all come to love. Divekick placed a strong focus on space control and timing; Nidhogg stripped away the need for health bars and offered a refreshing twist on the standard fighting game win condition; and just over the horizon looms Rivals of Aether, which promises to bring its take on Smash-style fighting to a wider audience.

Developed by a team led by Dan Fornace–a name you may recognize from the PC “demake” of Smash, appropriately dubbed Super Smash Land–Rivals of Aehter pits players against each other in one-on-one or two-on-two battles that immediately conjure up memories of Smash titles both past and present. These memories spring forth from the percentage-based health system, the advanced movement options, and even some of the attacks that the fighters bring to the battle.

The developers announced earlier this week that the game will be entering early access on Steam in just shy of two weeks, allowing those who purchase an early copy to give the game a try themselves. If this sounds like something that you’d be interested in giving a shot, be sure to head over to the game’s official Steam page on September 22 to get in on the action!

To get a good idea of the sort of gameplay experience that you can expect from Rivals of Aether, you can check out replays from the invitational tournament that took place at Evo 2015 earlier this year or the early access trailer we’ve included below.

Sources: Steam via Smash Boards, Rivals of Aether, Dan Fornace