What happens when Mountaineers take soccer to the virtual field and throw cars into the mix?
Soccer balls, speeding cars and the drive to win were a big part of Wednesday night, March 31. WVU students went head-to-head in an online Rocket League tournament, competing for the title of champion as part of a WVU Intramural eSports special event. Four teams of three faced off in a short bracket to make it to the championship game, where only one prevailed. It was a night of excitement, fun and teamwork.
Rocket League is an online arcade-style game developed and published by Psyonix in which you play giant soccer with sports cars. You must launch and jump through the air to hit the ball towards the opposing team’s goal, or to block it from going into your own. It is typically played in teams of three, and teamwork becomes a big aspect of the game as you struggle to guess the opposing team’s next move or block a ball before it is too late. Rocket League is free and available on Microsoft Windows, Playstation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch.
Wednesday night’s match began with the team that named themselves Pipe versus another team called Rocket Junkies, while a team called The Brogul Monsters faced off against Part of the Actual WVU RL Team. As implied by their team name, the latter team was involved in the WVU Intramural eSports Rocket League Tournament earlier this semester, and came to the virtual field ready to win. In the first matches, Pipe ended up coming out on top over Rocket Junkies, and Part of the Actual WVU RL Team beat The Brogul Monsters. Now came time for the final championship game: Pipe versus Part of the Actual WVU RL Team.
In the first round of this final game, Part of the Actual RL Team managed to win over Pipe, with some close calls along the way. Then, in the second round, Pipe bounced back from the loss, managing to beat Part of the Actual RL Team. When it came to the final round, tensions were high, and both teams were racing across the field with the title of champion driving them forward.
Calls to teammates of “send it up” and “back pass” and “ball coming mid” showed the teamwork involved when it came to Part of the Actual RL Team. Going off each other’s callouts and instincts was what drove them forward to score each point, eventually taking them all the way to the win. The game ended with Part of the Actual RL Team as the champions, and all three team members will receive Intramural Sports Champions t-shirts.
Regardless of who won, all teams had fun and brought that Mountaineer spirit to the field. In the future, you could, too! Keep an eye out for possible future WVU eSports events. You could be the next champion!
About the Author
with a dual emphasis in creative writing and professional writing and editing. Alex
is and has always been obsessed with reading and writing and is hoping to become
an editor and a published author one day. Since coming to WVU, she has been involved
each year in the Calliope Undergraduate Literary Magazine, and recently has begun
focusing on writing about the wildness and wonder of West Virginia.