When Switch-exclusive Morphies Law was first announced, and then when it surprise-launched on the eShop just a couple of months ago, its unique online shooter gameplay grabbed the attention of many - ourselves included. Shooting a particular body part sees you steal mass, reducing your opponent's stature and increasing your own to create wild, incredibly clever changes to gameplay on the fly.
Despite this, though, we felt it needed "the right kind of post-launch TLC" to truly stand out as a real winner, with elements such as the game's net code and in-game player progression feature feeling a little off. It seems that players around the world have felt the same way, as the game's developer Cosmoscope has shared a blog post detailing the difficulties the team is currently facing with the title.
"Due to a bunch of reasons – some of which we could influence, others not – our launch wasn’t good and sadly it’s hard to find full games these days. This sucks for a multiplayer game and we are determined to fix this situation. For this to happen though, we need to make a big splash."
With the number of online players dwindling over the last month or two, the team realises that changes need to be made. Cosmoscope hasn't given away any exact details of what this "big splash" might be, but it certainly sounds promising.
"We can’t tell you yet what this big splash will be, but we can tell you this: You will get A LOT more Morphies Law – for free! We just ask you to be patient for a little while.
The whole team is hard at work improving things and implementing new ideas and content, some of which we think will make a big difference, and once it’s ready we believe it will convince people to go back to stealing mass and morphing massively, and not just on the Switch!"
The post goes on to suggest that this update will arrive sometime before Easter, with a pre-Christmas release being a possibility, so we'll make sure to keep an eye out for any updates or reveals.
Did you buy a copy of Morphies Law when it launched in August? Do you still regularly play today? Let us know your thoughts on the game in the comments below.
[source morphieslaw.com]
Comments 63
I didn't even know the game was released
@SamuFinland Yup, that's how bad they did.
I was put off by the performance issues. Have they been fixed yet? That and is it possible to play this game to voice chat through that godforsaken app?
I liked the idea, but seeing gameplay, it just looked stupid
Bad Network in this kind of games, it's a killer, don't matter if it has good graphics or idea. I really was looking for this game since it went out... But all reviews described serious network problems
"this update will arrive sometime before Easter, with a pre-Christmas release being a possibility"
Sounds like they've got no idea what they're doing.
When you look at the competition, it’s no wonder they struggled. But, they did release a game with very poor netcode and that’s on them.
Have never even heard of this game before.
It's unfortunate. I was interested in the game but like others, I was put off after hearing how poorly the online multiplayer ran at launch.
I'm still getting bad network issues when I play, ruining the experience. And sadly there doesn't seem to be many playing... often only getting 3-4 in the game.
I like the idea but it just doesn't feel smooth enough yet.
What are the chances of someone reading this article and commenting, when they missed the appearance of this game in all the nindie stuff and this site's coverage?
They're competing in a world between a Nintendo title in Splatoon 2, and a F2P in Fortnite. Not to mention quite a few other indie shooters that haven't gained traction either.
looks dumb
and bad
so - no - just stop and move on to something else
The thing is is it's pretty boring and no matter of what you launch you cannot really alter that.
It would have done better if people knew it released. A suprise launch only works if you're already a big developer.
I hope they can fix this without causing too many problems for themselves! 🤞
Releasing an online multiplayer game as an indie is probably the hardest thing to do in game dev. When your game relies on people playing the game and they don't want to play it because no one else plays it... Even big names like Evolve or Law Breakers can go into a death spiral fast. Especially now that devs rarely let players make their own dedicated servers. An indie shooter stands little chance – and even if it makes something unique that translates to success, a more experienced and better financed studio may just take your ideas and implement them better (see: PUBG being superceded by Fortnite).
Day of the Dead would be the best time to push Morphies Law BTW.
@SmaggTheSmug
Exactly why I didn't buy Runbow. Played it a lot on Wii U the few weeks it had players, but I never saw anyone talking about online for the switch so I couldn't really bring myself to buy it again and never play it.
It's a fun game, and they have fixed many of the bugs with the first two patches, just need people to fill the lobbies
So many good points raised by the above commenters. Even if the launch was more immediate, the online ran smoothly, etc., I think the free-to-play and uber popular Fortnite still would cause online participation in Morphies to be weak.
When an online shooter for the Switch that's better than Splatoon 2 comes along, I'll play it. Until then, I haven't got the time to be grinding away at more than one of those kind of games.
1. No marketing from Nintendo until the day of release (aside from the initial announcement in a Direct)
2. Multiplayer-only
3. Launched just before the online paywall
These are just 3 reasons I can think of that it didn't perform well. In particular, I refuse to pay for the online system until Nintendo actually offers a service worth paying for. Which means I won't be buying multiplayer-focused games. Sucks that Nintendo is punishing devs like that
It's a janky, broken, terrible game..
We don't need free DLC, we need a polished game where you can't walk right through 90% of the walls.
It was a laggy,buggy mess when it launched. They have since inproved it a lot but no one is playing it anymore. There is the option to play against bots which is quite good fun.
@Smoo Runbow has 8 player couch multiplayer, not sure if online gameplay really is the strong suit of a party title like that. I could only see myself getting one of these for online if I didn't have any immediate friends/relatives.
The price was way too high and with all the issues I had heard about it just wasn’t on my radar anymore. However if things improve I will be buying it bc I’ve been interested this whole time!
Probably because it’s rubbish
This is 99% on the Devs that launched a broken game.
The game just looks ridiculous, a solid pass for me.
First, there was the paid online subscription coming up, second there was the €20 price tag which is way too high for a new multiplayer-only digital-only game surrounded by free-to-play games. And Splatoon.
Those were my main reasons to wait, and later skip it based on less-than-positive reports, despite the fact that I was really hoping it would do well and planning on getting it. I like the style and the idea, really. It just needs higher game value and/or lower price tags.
I was on the fence, but decided against it cause I barely have enough time to play Splatoon. I wish them the best though, I hope they can turn it around.
Releasing just two months after Fortnite on the Switch probably didn't help matters any, as well as the fact that the whole "Day of the Dead" aesthetic is a love-it or hate-it proposition (I love it but I wouldn't base a whole game around it).
The launch of NSO has no doubt had an impact. F2P models don't help. He's right about the some factors we don't control part. I just think it was bad timing. It should've been one of the earliest online titles, or perhaps it should've gotten a harder push from Nintendo. Who knows. Hope it works out for them. I'm so spoiled for choice that I've been playing everything else.
Id never heard of this game before, ive just watched the video and thought it looks ok and ill give it a go for free.......only to find out it 16 quid???? you mean this isnt free???.....no thanks.
I really liked the look of this when released it's got a quirky and intriguing gameplay mechanic and looks gorgeous. It's a shame the release was so botched though. Too many bugs and not enough content for the price coupled with the fact there is no local split screen multiplayer sealed its fate for me.
they somehow thought that it was a smart business move to ask money up front for this game while you have paladins that are f2p. make it f2p and you'll see you'r player base and income grow. let's be honest, this looks worse than some f2p games
It seemed like a good try towards innovation. But the concept and game trailer freaked me out lol
Price kill it
Very cool idea, but I'm just not that interested in shooters and if I was going to get one, I'd get Splatoon 2.
How about fixing the bugs first that make this game unenjoyable?
The game feels like the studio doesn't even have a QA department.
I'm working as a QA manager, so I know what I'm talking about. Those bugs should've never found their way into the final product!
Should have made a deal with Nintendo to make the game f2p with the new paid online service.
Maybe Nintendo will make their own version of Fortnite? Or Ubisoft with Nintendo license... it could actually be Mario + Rabbids Battle Royale!
Poor guys.
A paid online shooter on Switch.
With exceedingly quirky art and gameplay.
And bugs.
From a new studio.
Released at a point where people would neeed to pay for the online, but those downloading Fortnite won't.
Not all releases on Switch can be a fantastic success, and this one did have me a bit worried.
@Pod
Fortnite doesn't even require the Nintendo Online subscription? If so, I didn't realize that...
Does Rocket League?
i honestly forgot that this game was released.
I was actually planning to buy this at the time, but then Paladin happened and scratched that non-inkling team shooter itch.
Maybe they should do a half off sale like the Mexican eShop at release. I’ll help bring it back to the spotlight and get the ones that are on the fence due to pricing.
The game seems like a great idea but it just dosent seem to work that well. I hope the updates improve this as they have obviously worked hard on it.
Too late, time to move on.
Hey, good on them for not giving up on the game. They are already doing something better than some Triple A publishers, cough EA cough.
This game should have been 5 bucks so that everyone would buy it and it would have a huge online community. 20 bucks for such a quirky idea was way too much and prevented enough people from buying. I bet anything that if they reduced the price by 75% they would have made way more money.
@holygeez03
Games that are free at the outset do not require a Nintendo Online subscription.
At the time of announcement, this one didn't sit well with me. It favors the big developers of free-to-play marketing models, that are able to take massive hits on acquiring users.
It looks ugly. There I said it. I love the concept but it needed to look more like Coco and not this atrocity. The truth is it's not visually appealing. If you took this game and put it next to Splatoon 2 or Fortnite or Overwatch, and then you manged to find 1,000 kids that never played any of those four games and this game would lose every time. More kids would line up to play any of those other games and then would continue to play them because they play as good as they look.
Been wanting to play this but refuse till they fix the stuttering that still happens online. Absolutely killed my interest in the game and likely won't get it back because of Black Ops 4. Shame because the concept was pretty cool
was curious about this game when i saw the direct it was in but like a few people never noticed it had been released and given the problems other people have mentioned i think i am glad i didn't get it
Maybe they should have made more than three levels and a single player or PvE mode
Time for a near permanent spot in the “great deals” section with a heavy discount. Seems like an online shooter needs to be free or Splatoon on Switch.
They announced the game back at the first Nindies Showcase in 2017 and it took them about a year to release it after that, so most people seem to have forgotten about it or lost interest unfortunately.
This is one of those games on my, I'll get it later down the road when it's on sale list.
Add voice chat! I don’t care if headset or app, just get it done.
This games gets kudos for trying to be creative in a generally very standardized genre.
However just being different isn't always a good thing. I am sorry but this game is weird and the aesthetic just isn't as broadly appealing as it could have been. Looking at these characters without a weapon and I doubt anyone would have the slightest idea what kind of game they are from, or even that they are from a game.
Personally, I'd just like a more traditional shooter on Switch. Something like old school Halo or Battlefield or COD. You don't need to re-invent the wheel, just give us solid controls and the classic shooter game modes. Deathmatch and team deathmatch, multi-team, king of the hill, capture the flag, and maybe a zombies/horde mode. Give us optional motion control and a decent 10-15 hour campaign. Doesn't matter if the visuals are rough, if it's solid at 60FPS people will be happy.
The price tagg killed it.
All an indie team needs to do is release a split screen online basic shooter like Goldeneye or Perfect Dark and they'll make money...
I put this down to Nintendo's god awful shop front
First ever indie game that flopped on the switch? That took a while.
@NewAdvent It seems like when they thought of this game, they didn't think Paladins or Fortnite would ever come to the Switch, or at least not before they launch, so they didn't have a business model that's akin to what those two have (free game, then pay for cosmetics sort of deal). The moment those two games entered the picture, Morphies Law was instantly dead on arrival with its pay for the game model.
The competitive shooter market is already a tough one to crack (whether it's team-based or battle royale), there have been bigger studios with veteran names that tried and failed (Lawbreakers, anyone?). Coming in with a paid game model when many market leaders are free-to-play is just asking for trouble.
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