Racket Rivals looks simple on the surface, but once Spirits, Awakenings, and rackets come into play it becomes a full buildcrafting game. Each slot changes how rallies unfold, and the current meta heavily rewards control tools and high-power smash rackets, especially in 2v2 and 3v3.
Tier labels and what they mean
The rankings below use a straightforward tier structure that matches how Racket Rivals is currently played:
- S tier – Strong in almost all modes with little downside. These picks define the meta.
- A tier – Very strong but a bit more situational, or they need better timing and coordination.
- B tier – Functional but niche. They work in specific comps or modes, not as all-rounders.
- C tier – Outclassed or inconsistent. Playable, but usually a downgrade from other options.
Best Spirits in Racket Rivals (tier list)
Spirits give you an active ability on a short cooldown. They are the most important part of your kit because they let you directly rewrite a rally: stopping the shuttle, pulling it, or disrupting enemy vision or movement.
| Tier | Spirits | Role |
|---|---|---|
| S | Gomu (Freeze), Gazo (Time Control), Jin (Astral Set) | Global control and consistent tempo swings |
| A | Hinari (Overheat), Senshu (Defensive Bomb) | Pressure and safety, especially in coordinated teams |
| B | Kyoki (Blindfold), Gojin (Void Run) | Mind games and movement, more matchup-dependent |
S-tier Spirits
Gomu – Freeze is the baseline meta Spirit. Freeze stops the shuttle in place wherever it is, until someone hits it or the timer ends. That single button press does three important things: it saves impossible blocks, it lets you reset bad positioning, and it sets up a perfect counterattack angle. In teams, Freeze can erase enemy smashes and give your front player a free spike. In 1v1, it forces the opponent into awkward timings and fake-outs if you trigger it just before their hit connects.
Gazo – Time Control slows the entire rally for a short period. It is weaker than a full stop, but still powerful because you remain in full control while everything else moves more slowly. The best use cases are tight 1v1 games where you need extra time to read a curved shot, and 3v3 rotations where your team is scrambling and needs another half-second to cover a gap. Higher levels strengthen the slow and extend the duration, making it feel closer to Freeze without copying it.
Jin – Astral Set pulls the shuttle to you and auto-sets it. It is effectively a personal “teleport set” that turns almost any ball into your ball. In 1v1, that means you can rescue bad returns and instantly convert them into a self-set spike. In 2v2 and 3v3, Jin is extremely strong on a skilled attacker: you yank the rally into your hands, then your team knows exactly where the ball will be. The main risk is uncoordinated teammates who swing into your pull and mis-hit, so Jin shines most in premade squads.
A-tier Spirits
Hinari – Overheat marks the shuttle with fire. While the shuttle is burning, the enemy side has to use Set before they can hit it normally. That restriction is devastating in 1v1: if their Set is on cooldown, they simply cannot respond and you score. In team modes, Hinari becomes more matchup-dependent. Organized teams stagger their Sets, but in public 3v3 matches, someone often forgets, and Overheat turns into a free point.
Senshu – Defensive Bomb drops a sphere on the court that auto-sets or repels any shuttle passing through. Placed near the net, it acts as a temporary wall that both saves your team’s misplays and gives you a ready-made spike setup. It is especially good in 1v1 and 2v2, where court coverage is tight and a small zone of safety matters more. After recent balance changes, Defensive Bomb counts as one of your team’s touches instead of bouncing balls straight out, which slightly lowers its abuse potential but keeps it a highly flexible defensive Spirit.
B-tier Spirits
Kyoki – Blindfold sends out a smoke orb that blinds anyone it hits. The idea is simple: blind an opponent, then send a fast or curved shot where they cannot see it. In practice, the blind duration is short, and players are getting better at guessing the shuttle’s path from sound and timing alone. It is strongest in 1v1, where you can guarantee the blinded player is the only defender.
Gojin – Void Run makes you invisible and faster for a brief window. It looks scary at low levels of play because the opponent loses track of your model, but with common tools like Freeze and solid dashing, experienced players can still cover most lines. In 3v3 the value drops further: your team gains some mobility, but there are usually enough defenders on the other side to handle most shots.
Best Awakenings in Racket Rivals (tier list)
Awakenings are powerful one-off abilities that charge up over time. They either affect the entire court or make the shuttle behave in extreme ways. They decide key points in close sets, so the gap between strong and weak choices is very noticeable.
| Tier | Awakenings | Primary strength |
|---|---|---|
| S | Wall Portals, Captain Salute, Curve Shot, Gooey, Energy Drain | High impact in both solo and team modes |
| A | Ground Slam, Tide Wall | Strong disruption or speed control, timing-dependent |
| B | Fake, Curve Shot (in some lists) | More situational or mode-specific |
| C | Hocus Pocus, Aimbot | Inconsistent or clearly bugged |
S-tier Awakenings
Wall Portals turns the side walls into teleporters that send the shuttle to the opposing court. It is easily one of the most oppressive Awakenings in the game because it multiplies your shot angles. Low wall hits arrive at uncomfortable heights and timings for blockers, and last-second wall redirects can send the shuttle to the opposite corner of where the defense is leaning. It excels in 1v1 and 2v2, and remains useful in 3v3 with good aim and communication.
Captain Salute plants a flag that boosts your entire team’s movement speed. On its own it does not interfere with the enemy, but in 2v2 and 3v3, raw mobility is a win condition: you reach impossible blocks, rotate into better positions, and convert more counterattacks. The buff scales with team size, so the more teammates you have, the more value you get per cast. It is weaker in strict 1v1 play, where a single player already covers less ground.
Curve Shot forces your shots to curve as much as possible. In 1v1, this is an S-tier way to generate nearly free points: you bend the shuttle around the opponent or to empty corners where they cannot react in time. In 3v3, it becomes easier to cover curved trajectories with multiple blockers, but even then it can break tight defensive formations if you aim for gaps between players.
Gooey coats the shuttle so that hitting an opponent applies a slow and mini-stun. In practice, that momentary stun often wins the rally: you tag the front player, they freeze, and the rest of their team scrambles to cover. It is especially brutal in 1v1, where a single hit almost guarantees the point. In larger modes it still punishes poor spacing and over-aggressive front-line players.
Energy Drain combines the effects of a personal Captain Salute-style speed buff and an enemy Ground Slam-style slow, without Ground Slam’s knockback. Used well, it swings both offense and defense in your favor at the same time. Enemies can still dash out of the slow if they manage their cooldowns, but coordinating Energy Drain with spikes and aggressive rotations forces mistakes.
A- and B-tier Awakenings
Ground Slam creates rocks on the enemy side that slow movement. It is most valuable in 3v3, where slowing multiple players simultaneously opens clean smash windows for your hitters. The main counterplay is simple: dash before or as the rocks appear, or use Freeze to ignore the pressure. Because of that, Ground Slam is strong but not reliable enough to sit alongside Wall Portals or Gooey.
Tide Wall sends a wave that speeds up your shuttle while slowing enemy returns. It is not as flashy as other Awakenings, but it works in every mode. Faster outgoing shots reward attackers with good placement, and slower enemy returns give your backline more time to reset. Tide Wall is a comfort pick when you want guaranteed value without learning a complex gimmick.
Fake spawns an extra, fake shuttle alongside the real one. That can be effective in 1v1, where you create a simple 50/50: if the defender picks the wrong shuttle, they lose. As soon as a second or third defender is present, the illusion breaks down because they can simply split coverage or track the shot more carefully. For that reason, Fake is often rated below Curve Shot despite a similar goal.
C-tier Awakenings
Hocus Pocus makes a teammate invisible. On paper that should be strong in 2v2 and 3v3, but enemies can still clearly see charge animations and movement cues, which undercuts the surprise factor. It ends up being more cosmetic than tactical in most rallies.
Aimbot is intended to “auto-aim” the shuttle at the best spot on the enemy court. In reality it frequently sends the shuttle to easily defended areas or even out of bounds, and it is trivially countered by Freeze or a good dash. Until its targeting logic is fixed, Aimbot is the weakest Awakening choice.
Best rackets in Racket Rivals (tier list)
Rackets define your baseline stats: movement, dash, jump, power, speed, reach, and spin. The meta strongly favors smash and hunter rackets with very high power and strong mobility, especially in 2v2 and 3v3 where one hard spike can end a rally.
| Tier | Rackets | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| S+ | Soul Smash, Dragon’s Breath | Top power/speed rackets for spiking and aces |
| S | Divinity Hunter, Winged Shadow, Night King, Divine Spin, Saber Spin, Infernis Smash, Fire Spin | High-end options covering both power and mobility |
| A | Violet Strike, Shadow I, Fire Spin (on some lists) | Balanced stats for general play |
| B | Danger String, Crystal Edge, Nova Core, Arcana Edge, Plasma Flex | Playable but outclassed in specific roles |
| C | Pink Whirl, Red Pulse, Glide Pro, Vanta Edge | Starter options you outgrow quickly |
S+ and S-tier rackets
Soul Smash sits at the top of the meta. It combines some of the highest power values in the game with excellent dash length and speed and solid jump height. That package lets you self-set and spike in 1v1, and also act as both a finisher and a mobile blocker in team modes. Its main weaknesses are lower raw speed and limited reach, but high movement and dash largely cover those gaps.
Dragon’s Breath trades some power for extreme speed and fast dashes. Serves, returns, and spikes travel faster, which creates more outright aces and forces weaker players into panic dashes. Reach and spin are both solid, making it easier to hit edges of the court without perfect positioning. For players who value rally tempo over raw smash strength, Dragon’s Breath is the go-to Divine racket.
Divinity Hunter focuses on power, movement, dash, and reach. At level 3 it reaches power 10 with strong mobility and long reach, making it one of the best rackets for hard carries in any team size. You can hold the backline, cover a huge defensive area, and still come forward for lethal spikes.
Winged Shadow offers very strong dash and movement with high speed and competitive power. It is a common alternative to Divinity Hunter from limited events, built around getting to every ball rather than simply hitting the hardest possible spike.
Night King blends high movement and good power with decent speed. It does not reach the same extremes as Divinity Hunter or Soul Smash, but it is very reliable in coordinated team matches where staying in the right spot is more important than raw stat ceilings.
Divine Spin and Saber Spin are the premier spin rackets. Divine Spin leans into very high jump and spin, allowing aggressive curve-based offense and high blocks, while Saber Spin trades some jump for outstanding dashes. In 3v3 their curved shots are easier to cover because multiple defenders can fill space, so they excel more in 1v1 and 2v2 or on players who have already built a strong curve-shot game.
Infernis Smash is arguably the best free-to-play friendly smash racket. It offers power values similar to Soul Smash, respectable speed, and excellent jumps, at the cost of low reach and modest dash. If you want a high-power option without spending, prioritizing Infernis Smash when it appears on banners is a smart use of in-game currency.
A- and B-tier rackets
Violet Strike and Shadow I are balanced choices with solid power, reasonable speed, and decent reach. They suit players who want to do everything reasonably well rather than commit to pure smash or pure spin gameplay.
Fire Spin sits between power and spin, offering enough power to threaten spikes and enough spin to create interesting angles. It is less explosive than Soul Smash or Dragon’s Breath but more flexible for players still learning advanced shot types.
Danger String, Crystal Edge, Nova Core, Arcana Edge, and Plasma Flex all offer one or two standout stats, usually power or movement, but they give up too much elsewhere to compete with top-tier choices. They work as temporary upgrades when your banner luck is poor, or as specialist picks for players who prefer a specific pattern like high jumps or extra reach over everything else.
C-tier rackets
Pink Whirl, Red Pulse, Glide Pro, and Vanta Edge are early-game rackets meant to introduce basic stat spreads. They are fine when you first load into Racket Rivals, but their stats fall behind quickly. Vanta Edge is particularly limited because it lacks spin and has weak returns, making it difficult to participate in spin-heavy higher-level rallies.
Recommended builds for common modes
For 1v1, the strongest patterns pair a control Spirit with a high-power or high-speed racket and a solo-focused Awakening:
- Gomu (Freeze) or Jin (Astral Set) as Spirit
- Curve Shot or Wall Portals as Awakening
- Soul Smash or Dragon’s Breath as racket
Freeze or Astral Set guarantees you at least one safe touch on dangerous balls, while Curve Shot or Wall Portals create hard-to-read finishing angles that a single defender struggles to cover.
For 2v2 and 3v3, team buffs and slows become much more valuable. A strong all-round team setup looks like this:
- Gomu, Gazo, or Jin across the roster for overlapping control
- Captain Salute or Wall Portals as primary Awakening, with someone flexing into Gooey or Energy Drain
- Soul Smash, Divinity Hunter, or Dragon’s Breath on your main spikers, with Night King, Divine Spin, or Saber Spin on support players
In this environment, Freeze, Time Control, and Astral Set keep your rotation stable, while Captain Salute and the top smash rackets amplify every good read into a winning point.
Racket Rivals is still young and balance patches will keep shifting small details, but these choices consistently deliver value in ranked matches. If you focus on unlocking an S-tier Spirit, a strong Court-warping Awakening, and one of the top smash rackets, you will already be playing inside the current meta curve.
