Baron Dashforth is back on stage, and this time the crowd is watching every move. Foul Play, the 2013 beat-em-up from Mediatonic, trades the usual street brawl for a theatre full of seats, and it mostly earns that gamble.
The Stage and Its Tricks
The setup is simple. Baron Dashforth, daemon-hunter and star of the show, takes the stage to face a threat that has broken into the performance. The twist: every hit, every reversal, and every linked attack is meant for the audience. The game rewards style over damage dealt. That single idea shapes everything that follows.
Combat runs on a side-scrolling stage, and enemies break apart into pieces that fly across the screen. Bosses are built around spectacle, not raw force. A fight that lands well can send pieces flying high enough to please the crowd sitting above the stage.
Baron Dashforth and Scampwick
Dashforth is the hunter, and Scampwick is his sidekick. The pair share the stage as the game’s main characters, and the game’s humour rests on their banter during fights. The tone stays light throughout, even when the stakes grow serious.
Bosses are the real stars here. Each one demands a different approach, and the game does not repeat itself often. Some fights favour quick timing, others reward patience. None of them feel like filler.
Where the Game Falls Short
The game’s ambitions do not always land. The focus on spectacle sometimes costs the player the chance to learn a new move or a new enemy type. New players can find themselves thrown into a fight without clear guidance on what they should be doing.
The pace also drags in parts. Levels that rely on walking through scenery to reach the next fight can feel dull compared to the combat sections. The game asks for patience more than it should.
Platforms and Numbers
Foul Play launched on PC and Xbox 360 in September 2013, followed by Mac and Linux in October 2013. PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita ports arrived later, with the PS4 version appearing first as part of the PlayStation Heroes charity campaign in September 2015 before both versions shipped together in February 2016.
The game has a Metacritic score of 6.4 out of 10.
The Verdict
Foul Play is a small game with a big heart. It knows exactly what it wants to be, and it commits fully to that vision. The crowd, the spectacle, and the focus on performance over pure damage all work together to create a game that stands apart from other beat-em-ups.
It is not perfect. The pacing drags in places, and the game’s ambition sometimes overshadows the player’s actual control. But the core idea — that every hit matters to the people watching — is carried out with confidence.
Key Facts
- Developer: Mediatonic, The Irregular Corporation
- Publisher: Devolver Digital
- Platforms: PC, Linux, Mac, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Xbox 360
- Release dates: PC/Xbox 360 — 18 September 2013, Mac/Linux — 28 October 2013, PS4/PS Vita — 23 February 2016
- Metacritic score: 6.4/10
What Works
- Side-scrolling theatre setting
- Shattering takedowns and linked attacks
- Spectacle-focused boss designs
- Humour between Baron Dashforth and Scampwick
What Needs Work
- Dull walking sections between fights
- Some bosses demand too much trial-and-error
- Little guidance for new moves
The game’s strengths are real. The weaknesses are real too, but they never sink the whole project. Foul Play is worth playing for anyone who wants a beat-em-up that treats the crowd as part of the fight.
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