Pro Jank Footy

Australian Rules football is a funny old sport, 18 players on each team run around a cricket field desperately chasing after a ball, which they can either kick or punch, should you get to the other end of the field without being brutally tackled to the ground, you can kick for goal, but if you miss, it is ok. You’ll get a point just for trying. While Aussie Rules aficionados will rightfully argue the game is much more complex – this is the base level of understanding required to play Pro Jank Footy, a comedic arcade sports roguelike by Powerbomb Games and Tinkertown. At first glance, Pro Jank Footy, doesn’t shy away from the influence of arguably the definitive 90’s sports arcade game, NBA Jam. Pro Jank Footy’s visual pixel-art style obviously takes cues from Jam, but more importantly it shares Jam’s tense adrenaline inducing end-to-end gameplay, making every match a rush of the senses. Where Pro Jank Footy elevates the excitement and freneticism though is through its unique integration of roguelike mechanics. Any time a player concedes a goal they can select from one of three power-up cards, in a clear nod to Balatro, which will either help your team, hinder the other, or completely change the way the game is played in a litany of weird and wonderful ways. Matches featuring pitch invaders, catastrophic flocks of seagulls, brick walls blocking goals, a football turned beach ball and an in-game blue screen of death are all norms in Pro Jank Footy. However the hilarious powerup system is not simply a punchline - as when used strategically, it can quickly turn the tide of a game. For example you could pair a powerup that increases your sprint speed with a powerup that removes your opponent’s ability to sprint, making you practically uncatchable. In the same match an opponent may use a powerup to transform your team into tiny players, making it extremely difficult to mark or catch the ball. This can be countered with the ‘No Arms’ powerup which, sure enough means, every player on the field no longer has arms, thus levelling the playing field. It is interesting combinations like these that make Pro Jank Footy a unique and surprisingly deep experience. These powerups also introduce the game’s ‘jank’ element. Inspired by Goat Simulator’s integration of bugs as a comedic tool and gameplay mechanic, the way Pro Jank Footy’s powerups interact can sometimes produce some painful gameplay sequences, though it is this tension that makes the game so fun and rich in character. While the game is reasonably polished, at times the ‘jank’ can extend beyond gameplay – menu transitions can sometimes be a little awkward and audio from cutscenes will often overlap gameplay for a few seconds. None of this gets in the way of the core experience, though, and it is something that could feasibly be patched in future updates. By now you understand Pro Jank Footy is an incredibly silly game, and this is further expressed by the fantastic voice work of Broden Kelly of Australian comedy group, Aunty Donna. Kelly articulates team names, powerups and generally commentates with a uniquely Australian bravado and intensity that will have you cackling at the most mundane of phrases. The inclusion of unique voice lines for each of the powerups is also a welcome touch and not only adds to the hilarity of the experience but is also a welcome cue when you’ve lost track of why so many bizarre things keep happening during a match. Supporting Kelly’s masterful voicework is the game’s generally brilliant soundtrack, you’ll find yourself honing into the game with extra intensity as a mixtape of jungle, house, and classic rock clearly inspired by The Chats entrances you. Pro Jank Footy is an engaging experience when played solo, however, it is ultimately a party game and best enjoyed with friends. Two player couch co-op is encouraged but online play is also an option. You and your friends will regularly find yourselves screaming with laughter, and spectators will easily be reeled in by the sheer madcap marvel of what is already a pretty weird sport. Should you not have a friend available to play, Pro Jank Footy remains a fun experience, though its single player modes can leave you a little underwhelmed. These are confined to one-off matches in the Versus mode or a knockout tournament, Season mode, where players add three powerups to their deck before every game, stacking some wild combinations on their road to victory. Each playthrough of Season takes about an hour, and while the mode is a great challenge and results in the game’s most frantic matches, it doesn’t offer much of an incentive for replayability. One solution to this problem that would also satiate completionists would be the inclusion of a menu showing which of the more than 150 powerups you have and haven’t yet discovered. Pro Jank Footy, has succeeded in removing the complexities of Australian Rules Football and distilling it into its core simplicities in such a way that ensures the game translates to those foreign to the sport and hones in on its greatest elements for hardcore fans. Simply calling Pro Jank Footy a great football game would be doing it an incredible disservice – it is a unique take on the sport and roguelike sports genre that delivers a genuine and heartfelt authenticity befitting its myriad of influences. It is genuinely astounding a game has so effortlessly blended the deck-building mechanics of Balatro, the jank of Goat Simulator, the pace of NBA Jam and the frenetic energy and brutality of Australian Rules football. Pro Jank Footy can comfortably be bestowed the mantle of the great Australian party game, however limited single-player options mean it offers little longevity unless you have a friend to play with. Despite this, Pro Jank Footy is a must-own for any Australian Rules football fan, is an enthralling introduction to the sport for newcomers and a truly one-of-a-kind experience. 8/10 Check out our full review at thebyte.au or on our youtube channel @thebyteau

Fastest I've ever bounced off a game. I'm not refunding it because I want to support Aussie devs, and because they got Broden Kelly on announcing duties, but I had a rough time with this one. The visuals are extremely crunchy. Everything is blindingly bright and oversaturated, pixels are extremely chunky, and stadium grass is just a massive sea of solid colours. On a 32" 4K monitor I was fatigued within five minutes. There's exactly one video setting in the entire game, a CRT filter (on or off). No saturation options, no game speed, no AI difficulty, nothing. What you see is what you get. Also, controller only, KB&M not supported. There's no progression either. All you get is exhibition matches, so single player content is very thin. The gameplay hurt the most. Matches are extremely fast and chaotic, you're tackled within seconds of taking the ball, and the controls feel like suggestions rather than inputs. There's no way to aim a pass beyond the teammate closest to you.I just kept slugging the ball downfield and hoping a teammate was there, because holding it for more than 2.5 seconds guarantees a tackle and a free goal for the other side. Player switching is also a mess. Manual swapping feels random, and even with automatic switching on, the game sometimes yanked control away when my player was half a second from a tackle, other times refusing to automatically switch me to the teammate closest to the ball. Meanwhile the AI coordinates movement and lines up plays with ease, so about 80% of my time was spent camped in my own half defending. Once I enabled auto switching I managed a couple of goals, but it all felt haphazard. At one point I tackled an opponent, took possession, and got tackled back within a single frame. That's the gist of it. Onboarding is a five slide power point presentation. No practice mode, no explanations, just the deep end. On the humour front, seeing Michael Cusack and Broden Kelly attached had me expecting skits and dumb gags front and centre. Instead the comedy is baked into the game itself, the announcing, the visuals, the chaos. Probably the right call, since the jokes would wear thin after a few hours if they were the main event, but worth knowing going in. This is a party game through and through, and I reckon it'd be a laugh with some mates and a few beers. As a single player experience, there's nothing here for me. Support Aussie devs, but maybe wait for a sale if you don't have anyone to play with.

Was winning the game by 30 points and the other team got the next goal wins card and scored 200 points and won the game instantly 10/10

Unironically, the best Aussie rules football game that has come out in the last 20 years. Somehow less jank than AFL 26

more jank than footy. switches players randomly if you don't have the ball and there's not really any content. still feels like a demo. hopefully it gets more polish because it is a fun concept, but until then it's not worth it.

As an American who knows nothing about footy I was disappointed when i watched a real AFL game and at no point did a car tackle a team of giants while portals spawned in the pitch 8/10 game Needs a better season mode because I hate how each team has the same exact power ups each time and a way to see which power ups They have, the ones you’ve unlocked and what they do like in other roguelikes.

I can absolutley see the huge potential for this game. The Jank and the Aussie humour are spot on. As a proof of concept I can absolutely get behind the game. However, beyond maybe the first game of the season it is almost unplayable, and frustratingly so. The AI scales in mysterious ways and you get absolutely dominated without really understanding why. You cant see the opps powerups, or your power downs. The mash buttons mechanics for centre bounce make sense for PvP but PvE there needs to at least be an adaptive or opt in (old man wrist gang rise up). Difficulty options will be greartly appreciated by all. Cant wait to see where this game goes, all the potential is here.

Pros: Fun commentary and general aesthetic/vibe/colour palette. it's footy. Cons: The underlying gameplay is pretty basic and roughly put together. No AI difficulty settings, no controller mappings, no players on mini map, just a lot of really basic things missing even for a silly arcade footy game. The powerups are an interesting idea but it makes the game so chaotic that I'm mearly a passenger without much control.

A bit disappointed, the gameplay itself feels fine but there are plenty of other things that feel basic that are missing. When you enter versus mode you can not back out until you select a team, let cutscenes play, and also let the match start. Also why do i need an epic account to play online? I also feel the lack of matchmaking will kill this game fairly quickly. I expected the gameplay to be jank, but not the basics.