Gaming

What Is ‘Fall Guys’, The Game All Your Friends Are Playing To Get Through The Hell of 2020?

The game has totally taken over the internet.

by Joseph Earp  15 August 2020

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At the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, the game that everyone turned to was Animal Crossing — a wholesome, sweet fantasy about a world unspoiled by disease. So take it as a sign of how much things have changed that the game everyone is playing now is Fall Guys, a serve of pure, candy-coloured chaos.

Since dropping a little under two weeks ago, the PC and Playstation 4 game has become a smash sensation. In fact, it grew so quickly that the game’s servers couldn’t keep up: early players dealt with long wait times between matches.

But what is Fall Guys, and why has it taken over the internet?

What Is Fall Guys And How Can I Play It?

Fall Guys is a multi-player online-only Battle Royale. Think Fortnite and you’re in the right vicinity. Like Fortnite, Fall Guys sees a bunch of players compete against one another to complete a series of tasks. Each of these tasks is essentially some variation on a race — the aim is to be part of the first group to complete the activity. If you’re after the cut-off point, you get eliminated, and aren’t allowed to progress to the next task. Eventually, if you win enough tasks, you are crowned the victor. Simple!

But that’s not the fun of Fall Guys. The fun is that the game has been self-consciously designed to emulate such ’90s gameshows as Takeshi’s Castle or Wipe Out. Players must maneuver trampolines, falling blocks and slides.

Each level is designed to maximise chaos. The sheer number of players onscreen frequently makes it impossible to see where you’re going or what you’re meant to be doing, and matches often descend into chaotic free-for-alls.

Better yet, player avatars resemble little colourful bean people. Players can also customise their bean people fits, leading to a wild variety of looks and styles.

If you have a PS4, you can buy the game from the Playstation store, and if you have a PC, it’s available via Steam. There’s already talk of the game getting ported for other systems, so watch out for news on that front.

Show Me Some Clips Of Fall Guys Chaos

Since going live, clips from the game have begun to saturate the internet. It’s everywhere, with Twitter and YouTube in particular becoming swarmed with footage from the game.

I mean, just watch some of these excellent moments to get a sense of what I mean:

But of all the many, many people streaming themselves playing Fall Guys, perhaps none are more entertaining to watch than Scottish comedian and all-around Twitch legend Limmy.

The Game Has Also Spawned Memes And Art

Because Fall Guys has reached total cultural saturation, there’s also a bunch of memes and art dedicated to the game. The official @fallguysgame Twitter has been compiling a lot of those fan submissions, making their timeline a must-scroll for people who can’t get enough of the game.

Here are some of the highlights:

Turns out all the escapism we needed in 2020 has come in the form of little bean-like folks absolutely face-planting while trying to do gameshow tasks. Who would have thought it?