Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout is the most popular game ever published by Devolver Digital, with more than 11 million copies sold on Steam. It was also released in August 2020 for PlayStation Plus on PS4 and became the most downloaded PS Plus game of all time after just a month. With a graphical and gameplay style distinct from other popular Devolver Digital games, Fall Guys became an anomaly for the publisher.
Devolver Digital is no stranger to popularity. In 2012, Hotline Miami became a standout indie hit. The American publisher has dealt with many different genres, as can be seen in Loop Hero, Carrion, GRIS, and Enter the Gungeon. But like the Hotline Miami series, none of these have featured goofy parkour or adorable, 3D characters. What they all have in common are stylish 2D graphics and compelling worlds or stories. This is another example of where Fall Guys differs from the other Devolver Digital titles: It doesn’t have a backstory or any reason behind its in-game occurrences.
When buying a game published by Devolver Digital, players are almost certain to find an enjoyable narrative, a compelling world, and a 2D graphical style. Because they achieve some of these elements, previous 3D Devolver Digital games like Absolver and The Talos Principle don't feel too abnormal, especially considering the small impact they've had compared to Fall Guys. Others, like Ape Out, My Friend Pedro, and STRAFE, have presented themselves in 2D or otherwise retro styles, better fitting the usual Devolver Digital mold. Fall Guys doesn't match the typical style of the company, and still it attracted over 1.5 million players on launch day.
Digital Devolver has worked with many indie developers and has published games for mobile, too. The most popular one is Reigns, a card game with more than 500k downloads on Google Play Store, according to third-party tracker Play Store Sales, followed by Reigns: Her Majesty, Reigns: Game of Thrones and Downwell, each with more than 100k downloads. These are good numbers, considering they're all paid games, but they're nothing compared to the popularity of Fall Guys.
Fall Guys is a simple, competitive game that came at the right time, when people needed some lighthearted multiplayer fun. It is a very different game from Devolver Digital's Always Sometimes Monsters, for example, which is a To The Moon-like RPG with moral choices, or Katana Zero, another 2D action platformer. In Fall Guys, players just have to jump, avoid obstacles, and run for the crown. Why? To be the best. Devolver Digital hadn't published party games before, besides 2019's Heave Ho, which never reached the popularity of Fall Guys. This was a brand-new endeavor for Devolver Digital, and it turned out great. As long as developer Mediatonic continues to update its maps and add variety to the costumes and challenges, Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout could remain relatively popular in the long run.