There are three modes of play – Single, Multiplayer, and Practice. Mutliplayer supports up to four players simultaneously so you and three friends can get served in different arenas. There are 12 selectable characters at the start and 20 total in the game. The backgrounds range from jungles and waterfalls, to a western city and factory. The arenas are set up with environmental traps that provide insta-kills to even out the score or knock down your score even faster.

The controls are simple and easy to learn. There are two attack buttons, jump, block, throw, and digivolve. The attacks can be changed up with different direction pushes while hitting an attack button. The attacks change when in the air or when you’re Digivolved into a bigger monster. Players will start out normal sized until a meter powers up fully after several attacks. One hit of the trigger and players can transform into a bigger meaner animal, like a big cactus.

The attacks are wide ranged but they don’t flow that well. Each hit feels separate and combo hits don’t feel strung together. A lot of the attacks aren’t snappy and don’t feel all that precise, which results in more mashing than anything near technical. It’s really easy to get pummeled by enemies in a successive string of attacks without any way out other than jumping or dying.

The graphics are quick at 60 frames per second. The characters are more flat shaded to make a more cartoon-like appearance. The backgrounds are always lively when they’re shape shifting to make everyone scramble for their lives. The smacks have some weight to them and all the trademark digimon voices are loud and clear, whether you like it or not.

Digimon Rumble Arena is an average multiplayer game. It will satisfy the fans who want a decent way to beat each other, but it’s not deep enough for other players to pick up.