Is Rivals of Aether Free?
No, Rivals of Aether is not a free game. It currently costs $19.99 USD on all platforms, including Steam, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4. The developers are committed to a premium pay-upfront model to funding ongoing development, maintenance and online infrastructure costs.
Why Rivals Isn‘t Free-to-Play
In a 2020 AMA thread, Rivals‘ lead developer Dan Fornace explained why they have no plans to transition the indie platform fighter into a free-to-play (F2P) title.
The primary barrier is the small team size – only 3 developers work on Rivals full-time. Running a successful F2P game requires extensive post-launch support, continuous new content updates, community management and anti-cheat measures.
As Fornace stated, "That is too much work for our studio to handle while also developing new content." Many fan requests like crossplay, new game modes, and fixes also take priority over core monetization model changes.
There‘s also the high risk of cheating and toxic behavior endemic to F2P titles. Paid games inherently filter out some percentage of low-quality users just looking to grief.
Analyzing the opportunity costs, managing a F2P environment provides little upside compared to doubling down on the engaged loyal player base. Despite over 7 years in active development, Rivals still feels like an underground indie hit. Transitioning now would likely drown visibility further rather than expanding reach.
While the game may eventually offer a free trial version, purchasing the full game is currently required for access.
Breakdown of Base Game Content
Here‘s an overview of all the content packed into the Rivals of Aether base game:
| Feature | Amount |
| Playable fighters | 14 |
| Stages | 20+ |
| Single-player modes | Abyss Run, All-Star Versus, Trials, Daily Challenges |
| Multiplayer options | Online and local, ranked matchmaking |
| Guest characters | 5 additional (Shovel Knight, Ori, Hellboy, etc.) |
| Developer updates | Continuous balance patches, new features, workshop integrations |
Compared to other major platform fighting games in the $20-30 price range, Rivals packs far more content with its diverse original cast and varied features. And that‘s not even considering ongoing updates and additions since launching early access in 2015.
What Critics & Fans Are Saying
Holding an 85% critic score on Opencritic and 83% user score on Metacritic, Rivals of Aether is beloved by fans and critics alike.
Reviewers consistently praise Rivals as a polished, traditional-styled platform fighter with fluid combat mechanics and excellent roster balance. Fan sentiment echoes most of the critical reception. Here‘s a sample:
“Rivals nails the feel of a competitive, technical fighter. Every character introduces creative ideas…It’s addictive in all the right ways.” – 9/10 GameSpot
“The definitive indie platform fighter” – Rock Paper Shotgun
“Best feeling platform fighter I’ve played” – Steam user review
“Deepest and most rewarding platform brawler besides Melee” – Reddit user
Analyzing recent Steam data shows the monthly active player base ranging from 400-1200 over the past year. Twitter and Reddit activity indicate a small but dedicated fan community.
Why Rivals Is Worth Buying
For fans of the competitive platform fighter genre looking to dive deep into a skill-based, traditional-styled Smash alternative, Rivals of Aether is an easy recommendation.
Boasting 14 unique, hand-crafted characters with no clones, excellent balance, a passionate community, and ongoing support from an indie dev team that cares – Rivals delivers tremendous value at $19.99. Unlock endless replayability through online ranked queues, tournament play, character mastery and exploration of advanced mechanics.
Given the immense amount of content paired with post-launch support since 2015, Rivals of Aether is absolutely worth the investment. Consider picking it up next time it‘s on sale to save even more. This indie gem can easily provide hundreds of hours of entertainment for platform fighter enthusiasts.
