Football is one the largest, most widely known sports on the planet. Its entire system, mainly overseen by FIFA, makes billions per year, with players that have estimated values well into the tens of millions. When sports themed video games became popular on the market then, it came as no real surprise, even though few sports games venture into the new, as many just stick to the mechanics of the real life games and that's that.

It unfortunately turns away many players, because if they don't play the sport in real life, then why bother playing it at all? But mixing the scoring system and team based challenge from football with the intensity of, very explosive, buggy racing? That's an idea that surely cannot fail to appeal to everyone.

Rocket League, the direct sequel to Supersonic Acrobatic Rocket-Powered Battle-Cars (SARPBC for short), is an incredibly addictive and insane experience which fills the need in your heart you never knew was there until now.

There's a variety of modes, both online and otherwise, but the general gist of it revolves around playing a gigantic game of football in cars that can soar through the air at speeds upwards of seventy miles per hour. The result is a game which is fast paced, utterly bonkers and genuinely fun to play.

After you familiarise yourself with the tutorials, both basic and advanced, and come to terms with the fact that you can actually fly in this game if you handle yourself well enough, you can either jump into a real player or AI match. Standard matches last just five minutes, which doesn't like much but really is when you're concentrating on trying to play well.

Using a mixture between the turbo boost and dodge mechanics, you have to pilot/drive your team to victory in the main championship, which serves as the 'campaign' mode for Rocket League to some extent. This can be altered by the player in terms of how many teams are involved, the actual length of matches and the overall difficulty so that you're not beaten down by a Pro team right from the word go.

Playing online, with or without friends is especially fun. Be warned though, the games can get very tense, very quickly when either side starts to concede goals. Although unlike the FIFA series, in Rocket League you can actually destroy your opponents using the boost feature, by building up enough speed and crashing into the back of them.

Aside from the captivating gameplay, Rocket League further stands out because of the Unreal engine 3 which it uses. Graphics aren't normally a huge must-have, but this entire game employs them flawlessly and makes everything look fantastic. This cheery atmosphere just keeps up the mood between games, or when you're in the garage, customising your car.

Because customisation is key, Rocket League doesn't skimp on the details or decals. As you level up by playing more and more games, you gradually unlock different parts and body frames that allow you to forge your own style. By style of course meaning, a minivan wearing a sombero with a bright pink ion boost trail.

All things considered, Rocket League is a very strong contender for game of the year so far, as it combines neck breaking pace with a furious intensity that makes it totally irresistible to players. It's worth just spending time on simply because of the fact you're playing football for titans. 

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