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Rivals of Aether II - TV Tropes

  • ️Wed Oct 23 2024

Rivals of Aether II (Video Game)

"What is a rival?"

Rivals of Aether II is the sequel to the 2017 Platform Fighter Rivals of Aether. It introduces new (to the series) mechanics like shields and ledges, as well as new-to-genre special attacks performed while knocked down, hanging on to a ledge, or grabbing an opponent.

The game is planned to have a story that is a direct sequel to the previous game's. The Champions of Aether have defeated the Abyssal Gatekeepers, but they are now trapped in the Abyss, destined to remain there forever. Clairen arrives from the future, not knowing where the Champions are, but knowing that their disappearance will allow the evil Loxodont to rule Aether unless she does something about it.

Following a successful Kickstarter campaign, the game launched on October 23rd 2024 with 10 playable Rivals, and planned updates that will add more modes and characters, all for free.

Rivals of Aether II contains the following tropes:

  • And Your Reward Is Clothes: Increasing a character's level unlocks cosmetic items and awards currency that is also spent on more cosmetics.
  • Art Evolution: The game has made the leap to a fully 3-D polygonal game in the vain of contemporary platform fighters, with many characters sporting much more elaborate base designs that were once unfeasible in sprite form. Clairen's suit is significantly more detailed and she's able to be depicted with her tail at long last as one example.
  • Bait-and-Switch:
  • Battle in the Rain: The Merchant Port stage the weather change to rainy once all fighters are down to their last stock.
  • Color-Coded Item Tiers: Cosmetic items are Common (light gray circle), Rare (blue diamond), Epic (purple five-pointed star), or Legendary (yellow six-pointed star). For most item types, rarity is arbitrary (except for Legendary icons being animated), but for skins, there are clear distinctions: Common skins change the character's textures, Rare skins change the model, and Epic skins have new sound effects, visuals for special attacks, and victory music. There are no Legendary skins as of the November mid-season patch.
  • Event-Driven Clock: Some stages have time advance when all players have only one stock left. Julesvale goes from evening to night, The Air Armada goes from day to sunset, and the Godai Delta goes from day to night.
  • I Know Madden Kombat:
    • A new FGC-themed skin for Ranno replaced his poison bubbles with basketballs and his sweatpants with a basketball uniform.
    • Loxodont has an Epic skin where he's dressed as a hockey goalkeeper, with a hockey stick replacing his axe and a puck for his Molten Boulder.
  • The Parody Before Christmas: The Winter Festival Event trailer is a spoof of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.
  • Premium Currency: Aether Coins are earned by playing, and can be used to buy items from a limited daily selection consisting of Common skins, certain select Rare skins, and other items up to the Epic tier. Aether Bucks can only be bought with real money, or earned in limited amounts through character mastery and events. One Aether Buck can be exchanged for 100 Aether Coins (the regular currency) or used to buy any cosmetic item in the game (except those that are part of the current event, or out-of-game events) at any time.
  • Recovery Attack: New features in the game include Ledge Attacks and Getup Attacks - attacks done while hanging from a ledge, and attacks done while laying prone. Unlike smash bros, there are also Special Ledge Attacks and Special Getup Attacks in addition to normal ones.
  • Retraux: The theme for the first event, Rivals 3D, is old video games, giving Wrastor, Kragg, Ranno, and Clairen low-poly appearances which the trailer hypes as revolutionary.
  • Revenue-Enhancing Devices: Optional costumes, player icons, respawn platforms, emotes, and death effects can be bought with real or fake money. Anything that affects gameplay, like characters or stages, will be free.
  • Rewards Pass: They're called Events here, and are free for all players, letting them earn a skin and other cosmetic items without spending a dime. Each event also has a set of three paid skins that give extra experience points if used. Lampshaded in the Launch Features Deep Dive, where Dan Fornace insists it's not a Battle Pass by listing traits of Battle Passes. As of the December 17 2024 update, it's possible to return to past events that you missed, as part of Aether Studio's attempts to minimize FOMO.
  • Shout-Out:
    • The "Tuxedo Ranno" profile image is modeled after the "BEAT IT CHICK!" meme.
    • Fleet's "Fleet Squint" emote is based on Futurama's "Not sure if..." meme.
    • The Rivals 3D event trailer includes an ad for Kragg's album The Rock Wall, which was hinting at Kragg's Rockstar skin. Said skin has a top hat similar to Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash, and a recolor based on I-No from the Guilty Gear series.
    • Maypul's "Bandit" skin wears a costume based on Sly Cooper.
  • Suddenly Voiced: The entire cast has voice acting when the previous game lacked it.
  • Victory Pose: Everyone now possesses a unique win animation after every match, as opposed to the static win screens featured in the first game.
  • Wall Jump: Very much nerfed compared to the previous game, as you can no longer wall-jump after using your Up Special.
  • What the Hell, Player?: Most of the cast will complain if you lose a stock accidentally, rather then by being launched off the stage by an opponent.
  • You Mean X Mas: December 2024 has the "Winter Festival Event", also called Aethermas in the trailer itself.