Rumbleverse delayed indefinitely, but a new beta test is on tap

Disappointing news about Iron Galaxy’s pro rasslin’ battle royale Rumbleverse: The game is delayed indefinitely, and pre-orders of the early access version planned for a Feb. 8 launch will be refunded.

“Having Grapital City filled with Rumblers taught us a lot,” the developers wrote Thursday morning. ‘We’re excited about the game we’re making — and we’re glad you are, too — but there’s more we want to do to perfect the experience.”

Iron Galaxy didn’t give an additional release date or window for Rumbleverse. Refunds will be made through online marketplaces, the studio said. Rumbleverse, announced at The Game Awards 2021, will be published by Epic Games for Playstation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. When it launches, the game will support cross-platform play and progression.

“We’ll provide another opportunity for you to purchase content for the game once we schedule a new launch date,” the studio said.

Instead of an early access launch, Rumbleverse will return with another test, on Windows PC (via the Epic Games Store), on Saturday, Feb. 12 from 2 to 4 p.m. EST. This round will set players loose on the game’s Battle Barge map, Iron Galaxy said. Players may sign up for the closed beta by adding Rumbleverse to their Epic Games Store wish lists, Iron Galaxy said.

In Rumbleverse, 40 brawlers launch into a battle royale map and eliminate one another with melee attacks, scarfing up loot to buff up their stats as the ring shrinks. Iron Galaxy’s promotion so far lays into the over-the-top zaniness of the action, with costumed rasslers landing elbow drops from the top of skyscrapers.

“One thing we found out is that a lot of people that are crazy-good platform players, like Mario, Crash, Spyro fans, became the best players, very quickly,” Iron Galaxy co-CEO Adam Boyes told Polygon back in December. “So it’s as much, I think, about how you move around the world as it is your offensive integrity.”