HaxBall: A Simple But Competitive Online Soccer Game

HaxBall: A Simple But Competitive Online Soccer Game:

HaxBall is both one of the most simple games I’ve ever played, in regards to gameplay and visuals, and one of the most addictive. I’m not even a big soccer (football, for our Europeans) fan, either. If you have even the slightest interest in sports, team-based gaming, or games that manage to be both casual and competitive in nature then you should give HaxBall a chance.

Registration is not required and you can begin playing soccer online at HaxBall in about 15 seconds after landing on their website. After selecting a username to play as, you’re presented with a list of rooms. Join a room and you’re ready to play.

HaxBall’s Start

HaxBall is an indie game developed by Mario Carbajal, known as Basro in-game and on Reddit. He and his brother, Pilaf, created HaxBall as a bit of a personal project and just for fun. It has since fleshed out to a thriving community of players that can reach up to 5,000 online at once during peak hours.

HaxBall utilizes Flash’s P2P (peer-to-peer) technology. There are no dedicated servers. It makes for a very unique experience that calls on all players to help contribute as pillars to the game.

The Gameplay

HaxBall’s gameplay consists of two functions – the arrow keys to move your player and the X key to kick the ball. If you’d rather switch hands, you can use the WASD keys as directional keys and the spacebar as your kick button. It’s a matter of preference, but both are very primitive and simple. You need no other keys or mouse gestures to play this game.

The objective is to score goals in the opposing team’s net. The maximum number of players, time limit, score limit, and stadium type (the field, basically) are all variables that you can modify by creating your own room. These variables create unique and exciting gameplay scenarios if you’re bored of standardized 3-on-3 games. Up to 22 players can join a room, which includes spectators.

On the following screen, you’re able to choose your stadium. Here is what the more popular Classic stadium looks like:

Here is what the less-popular Hockey stadium looks like:

Stadiums come in various sizes, big and small, with a choice of corner styles, rounded or standard.

Here is the official HaxBall promotional trailer:

Competition & Leagues

For a game so simple, you’d expect competitive play to behave the same. Not entirely. HaxBall has a thriving elitist community who show a huge skill gap between your first-week beginner. Here’s a little montage of higher-skilled players you might like to see:

After gaining attention from one of the largest sports imageboards on the internet, SPHB was founded and stands today as HaxBall’s premiere league. With both a minor and major division, SPHB gives every player the opportunity to compete. Currently in season five, the league is as organized as it is fun, with teams like the Boston Crabs, Huntington Beach Hipsters, and Robot Bears.

Personal friends of mine have participated in the league and can’t really say enough about how well everything is handled. Games are streamed to the masses, results are posted on their forums, and they really handle this entire thing as if they’re getting paid for it. Check out some of the top plays from one of their most recent weeks:

The HaxBall Community

HaxBall has players from every continent in the world. It doesn’t matter what nook or cranny you’re living in, there should be a server hosted within 1,000km of your location so that you can maintain a solid ping to play competitively.

HaxballTube

HBT is a YouTube clone filled with awesome HaxBall videos.

HaxBall Australia/NZ

Your hub for all things HaxBall for Australia and New Zealand.

HaxBall.de

HaxBall’s German community, filled with awesome tips and tricks for new and old players.

HaxBall Amateur League

The HaxBall Amateur League is the premiere league for players in Poland.

HaxBall Türkiye

Turkish HaxBall players can organize their leagues and discussions here.

There are many more community sites that you can check out here.

Give HaxBall a try. It doesn’t matter if you’re a casual player or a player looking for a new and interesting, competitive game that can be played from any location. HaxBall has a lot to offer for a game that is so simple. My username in-game is Crayder and maybe you’ll see me around!