Rocket League is a competitive soccer game where you take control of a race car and work with your team to try and score goals and win. You originally had to buy the game to play it, but as of September 2020, the game has gone free to play.
The way the developers make money from the game is through skins, cosmetics, and other goodies, but as with any free-to-play game, the question must be asked – is it pay-to-win? In this article, we’re going to answer that exact question, so be sure to read until the end.
Without further ado, let’s get into it.
Table of Contents
What You Can Buy in Rocket League
In Rocket League, you can spend real money on in-game credits which can then be used to purchase a variety of items in the virtual store. These items include:
- Car Body – Your car body determines the shape and look of your vehicle.
- Decal – Decals can be used to decorate your cars with unique patterns.
- Paint Finish – This gives a cool effect to your car’s paint job.
- Wheels – There are a variety of cool wheels available in Rocket League.
- Player Banner – This is the image that shows next to your name in games.
- Player Title – This title is displayed below your name in games.
- Trail – This is the trail left behind by your wheels when you drive around the field.
- Rocket Boost – This is the particle effect that you see whenever you use boost in games.
- Goal Explosion – This is an animation that triggers whenever you score a goal.
- Topper – This cosmetic sits on top of your vehicle like a hat.
- Avatar Border – This border appears around your avatar in games.
- Engine Audio – There are a variety of different engine audios available in Rocket League.
- Anthem – This is a tune that plays whenever you score a goal or pull off an epic save in a game.
As you can see, there are absolutely tonnes of different customization options available for you in Rocket League, but do any of these cosmetic changes actually give you some kind of advantage in the game?
The answer is no for every cosmetic except one.
That one cosmetic that can have an effect on your gameplay is the car body. More on this below.
How Does Your Car Body Affect Gameplay in Rocket League?
Car bodies all have different hitboxes, and though the differences are very small, any experienced Rocket League player will tell you that the difference is noticeable. Cars with larger hitboxes like the Merc are great when you’re trying to block shots, making defense easier, while cars with flatter hitboxes like the Batmobile or Dominus make dribbling the ball in the air easier.
Although many car bodies are available to every player, there are equally as many locked behind paywalls. Having to pay to unlock certain car bodies means that technically, Rocket League is pay-to-win if you’re trying to master a playstyle that is easier when you use a certain kind of car body.
Try not to worry too much though, as hitboxes don’t make a huge difference when you’re starting out with Rocket League.
Sure, when you get to a higher level it may matter more, but by the time you get there, you’ll have no doubt unlocked a bunch of new car bodies through the free rocket pass that you’ll be able to take advantage of.
Speaking of the rocket pass, there are a few goodies only available to premium pass holders, so let’s go into a bit more detail about those next.
The Premium Rocket Pass
The Premium Rocket Pass can be purchased for 1000 in-game credits and ultimately, it just provides you with a bunch more cosmetics that don’t affect your performance – aside from car bodies that are advantageous for certain playstyles.
However, there is one other thing the pass offers that you can’t get otherwise, and that’s an XP boost.
XP boosts are available throughout the premium pass tiers, helping you to level up and unlock new cosmetics faster. Though this doesn’t affect gameplay, you do unlock certain advantageous car bodies more quickly, so this could be considered pay-to-win.
So, is Rocket League Pay-To-Win?
The answer is no, not really. Though certain car bodies are slightly better in certain situations, the differences are so small that most players won’t even notice, so try not to worry about it. Virtually everything you can pay for in this game is purely cosmetic, so if you’re not keen on spending money on the game and just want to work on your skills, more power to you.
You don’t need a fancy car to become the best player, you just need to put in the practice.
Thanks for reading!
