Gigantic Rampage Edition review: A not-so-gigantic revival

Gigantic Rampage Edition is an interesting crossover between the MOBA and hero shooter genre. After shutting down a year past its 2017 launch as just as "Gigantic" back then, this latest rendition from Arc Games (formerly Gearbox Publishing) is supposed to be a second wind for the formula. With the F2P (Free-To-Play) model axed in favor of a paid version, does Gigantic Rampage Edition make a splash?

Perhaps for the genre fans, but it will likely go under the radar for most players. Here is our full review of Gigantic Rampage Edition.

Gigantic Rampage Edition is a fun ride in short bursts

Enemy guardians can and will attack players in range (Image via Arc Games)

The game pits two teams or Houses, each overseen by a massive beast called a Guardian, against one another. These are the House of Daevedra and Aurion, a massive serpentine dragon and a large griffin, respectively, each of whom is situated at the opposite ends of a map. Both act as Payloads that must be protected and will move across the map upon completing objectives.

The goal is to defeat the other Guardian by collecting energy across the map. This is done by gathering it from specific capture points (or stealing from the opponent's points), defeating summoned creatures, and defeating opponent players. The first team to gather 100 energy will make the opposing Guardian vulnerable to a beatdown, who must defend their beast's weak point from the onslaught.

I should say this is quite a sight to behold as one monster pins the other down to expose its weak spot. This concept is shared across the two Unranked modes currently in Gigantic Rampage Edition: Rush and Clash. The former is the first mode encountered in the game as Clash is locked until players reach Profile Level 10. Levels are raised by increasing Hero mastery, but more on that later.

There are also Fortunes, which are daily, weekly, and hero challenges that players can complete for rewards. However, this is completely optional, so players wanting to enjoy the two game modes in Gigantic Rampage Edition are free to ignore them.

Rush vs Clash

Players are always in a race against the clock to gain the upper hand over the opponent (Image via Arc Games)

While Rush matches are fast, Clash is the bigger, more complex version of Rush. Players cannot change heroes or predefined builds (which are selectable at the respawn ship) once picked, and unlike Rush, they must upgrade skills manually (or have the game do it for them). There are also extra objectives to accomplish. This includes summoning creatures at specific setup points that can heal allies, obstruct paths by creating walls, attack opponents, and so on.

The Guardians also have more health, so each round becomes a tug-of-war to see which House can rack up the most points. While there are varied maps, they are neither too small nor too big, and it can be tempting to break away from the group to flank opponents or set up traps. However, if the opponents are co-ordinated this can leave the player's team with one person down.

Players should also know which characters synergize better with what their team has on hand as many heroes require skill and aim to use. This brings us to the roster.

A hero to save the game

All heroes in Gigantic Rampage Edition (Image via Arc Games)

Gigantic Rampage Edition features 25 varied characters, and players are able to select most of them from the get-go. Others must be unlocked using in-game Vouchers. These are earned by completing matches, alongside coins called Crowns that are used to buy cosmetics. Compared to its paid peers in both the indie and AAA scene, Gigantic Rampage Edition features no microtransactions, which is a breath of fresh air for a modern multiplayer game.

We recommend players take some time to try every hero as each is vastly different from the others and divided into distinct roles like Tank, Melee/Ranged DPS, Support, with further Archetypes. Check out our full character roster guide for Gigantic Rampage Edition to know more.

Griselma the Summoner hero is underrated in Gigantic Rampage Edition (Image via Arc Games)

To cut to the chase, heroes range from tanky melee monsters to ranged snipers and shooters, and utility characters who can heal and buff allies while rebuffing foes. I spent most of my time with the offense-oriented support Xenobia and the DPS caster Mozu. The former heals herself upon attack while also debuffing foes, and the latter unleashes a flurry of quick magic bolts that can devastate foes.

Each hero has a total of five skills to use during battle, including an Ultimate. This is charged up using Focus points, which are gained over the course of a match by dealing damage, performing assists, and more. In addition to character health, players must also be mindful of the stamina gauge as running, dodging, and attacking consumes it—and exhausting it can spell doom for you.

Outside of the basics, each hero also comes with a set build which is a series of upgrades that alter how skills and overall hero playstyle function. Skills can be upgraded in the Clash mode via experience gained during the match, and players may even create Custom loadouts to maximize the efficiency of their hero.

The results screen grades player performance and hands out rewards (Image via Arc Games)

Players have an incentive to get better thanks to a ranking system and a rewards system at the end of each match. The former hands out a rank based on player performance and the latter grants emotes, banners, and more. Good plays mean the hero levels up, which in turn levels up the player profile via Hero Mastery.

While an official Ranked mode is unavailable, as the first Season is yet to arrive, there is still some depth here for fans of the genre. Gigantic Rampage Edition has its moments of chaos and fun, and while the movement and animation are good, combat feels unimpactful, even when using melee heroes. Additionally, gameplay can get repetitive quickly as the core objectives do not change.

Graphics, sound, and performance

The game presents a vibrant art style (Image via Arc Games)

Gigantic Rampage Edition is an Unreal Engine 4 game and boasts a cel-shaded visual aesthetic that looks pleasing, like a comic or cartoon. Sadly, the cumbersome UI/UX experience is a stain on the game as the menu animations and navigation appear sluggish.

While there is nothing home to write about regarding the neat fantasy tunes during gameplay and menus, the performance is a bummer as Gigantic Rampage Edition is a 60 FPS capped game, but for some reason, it hovers just shy of that target even in the menus. Played on a 165 Hz display, it is an unflattering experience. It is not uncommon to face stutters as well, which further bogs down the experience.

Technical and design issues galore

It is hard not to feel overwhelmed with so much happening at once (Image via Arc Games)

While Gigantic Rampage Edition is a small-team effort, it is an unfortunately unpolished one too. While I have been fortunate enough to not encounter some of the more serious issues like failure to fetch match results (which means you do not get any rewards either), some minor gripes persist.

This includes an odd "Paths need to be rebuilt" notification on the top-left of the screen, and the character models sometimes not appearing during the character select screen (or being partially obscured by the camera). Speaking of which, since this is a third-person hero shooter crossover with a MOBA, the design makes it vulnerable to unavoidable problems as this limits player view.

Furthermore, to say that matches in Gigantic Rampage Edition are chaotic is an understatement as dozens of colorful flying effects onscreen can make it hard to parse what's going on in the heat of battle. Coupled with the handful of status effects and lackluster combat, new players are definitely in for a rough time during the initial stages.

In conclusion

Gigantic Rampage Edition shows promise but stumbles far too many times to be a consistently engaging experience. For every pro such as a colorful world, fast-paced gameplay, and lack of microtransactions, there is an equal con, like the unacceptable 60 FPS cap, jank gameplay, and bugs. As it stands, this is one experience that only core fans of hero shooters and/or MOBAs will enjoy coming back to. For most casual players, it will likely be a done-and-dusted affair.

Gigantic Rampage Edition

Final verdict (Image via Sportskeeda/Arc Games)

Reviewed on: PC

Platform(s): PC, PS4, Xbox One, PS5 and Xbox Series X\S

Developer(s): Abstraction Games

Publisher(s): Arc Games

Release Date: April 9, 2024