Rocket League Notebook and Desktop Benchmarks

For the original German review, see here.

Before we deal with the technology and hardware requirements, we would like to say a few basic things about the game and what we think about it. Although Rocket League only costs 20 Euros (~$22) on Steam's download platform and only needs 6 GB of the hard drive, its abundant content and gameplay quality can definitely compete with full-priced games. The American developer Psyonix has put enough diversity into it - no matter if in the game modes or in the arenas. The selection ranges from underwater worlds over deserts up to futuristic cities here. 

Thanks to the intuitive controls and favorable gaming concept, the player soon gets used to the game - although it is designed as "easy to grasp but difficult to master". To fuel the gaming addiction, the player is provided with new items for various tuning categories after every match. This not only promotes individualizing ideas but also keeps the general motivation on a high level.

The graphics of Rocket League are very compelling. The used Unreal Engine 3 scores with relatively sharp textures, nice effects (in higher settings), and thick 3D grass - while only having low hardware demands. Unlike some other games, the changing daytimes and weather conditions prevent boredom arising after a short while. The vehicles are very detailed so that the player can indulge in their tuned-up cars. Like Blizzard's comic-like Overwatch, Rocket League addresses a very broad target audience with the flashy colors.

The options menu cannot really be criticized, either. While the "Window Setting" takes care of the resolution, image mode, and (when desired) the vertical synchronization, the "Basic Settings" allow adapting anti-aliasing (FXAA or MLAA) and the playback quality or better said rendering details. The latter automatically adjusts almost 10 features in the right bar (see screenshots below) that are summarized in "Advanced Settings". "Performance" roughly corresponds to low details, "Quality" to medium details, and "High Quality" to high details. A big difference is visible between each of the three named levels. However, the transition from Quality to High Quality is a bit stronger than from Performance to Quality subjectively.

The FPS limit can also be tuned. Up to 250 frames per second is possible in the maximum setting, which strong GPUs manage even in the Full HD range. A plus point is also given for the fact that all modifications can be performed on the fly, i.e. without reloading. Generally, Rocket League feels extremely smooth. We not only mean the frame rates but also loading times that are much shorter with an SSD and the - as far as we can judge - good netcode. We did not experience any problems, so neither lags nor connection interruptions or the like - on most servers in our short test runs. In short: Rocket League makes a very well-developed impression both technically and in terms of gaming.