Rocket League is one of the most popular games in the world, and for a good reason. It is basically football (soccer) with cars in a sci-fi environment. It is a game that is easy to understand but difficult to master. Its competitive play style makes Rocket League one of the biggest esports games in the world currently.

The multiplayer game’s popularity is an excellent opportunity for non-endemic brands to cross-promote with the game to reach a broad audience. Lamborghini, NASCAR, and Formula 1 have all joined in on the hype by having their cars featured in the game as playable vehicles. 

Ford is the latest manufacturer to team up with Rocket League for a non-traditional marketing boost. Unlike previous auto manufacturer partnerships, Ford decided to go further than just having the Rocket League developers create a virtual version of a current model.

Ford F-150 Rocket League Edition

Rather than choose a sports car like the Mustang or a hot hatch like the Focus RS, Ford elected to make the F-150 truck the star of their promotional partnership. That might seem weird to some of you but considering that the Ford F-150 truck was the best-selling vehicle in America for over three decades, it’s no wonder why Ford chose it to feature in Rocket League.

It should be noted that the F-150 in Rocket League is not just a stock truck rendered in 3D for the game. Instead, artists from Ford and Psyonix (the game’s developer) worked together to design an F-150 truck that fits the futuristic theme of Rocket League. The artists gave the F-150 exaggerated dimensions, large wheels with glowing tires, an eye-catching electric blue and neon green color scheme, and of course, rockets in the truck bed.

As wild as the design is, it is still unmistakably a Ford F-150. The massive “Ford” logo on the front grill, the tell-tale headlights, and the “F-150” on the tailgate are all obvious giveaways.

“It had to be an F-150 but one that fits within Psyonix’s extreme virtual world pairing soccer and mayhem,” said Ehab Kaoud, chief designer, Ford trucks. “F-150 is already the most popular truck in the real world, and this F-150 Rocket League Edition is poised to be the most popular truck in the gaming world, too. It’s Built Ford Tough meets gaming.”

Ford builds real-life version of in-game truck

Ford was not satisfied with creating a virtual representation of a near-future F-150 truck. To build even more hype, the American brand decided to create a real-life version of the in-game vehicle. 

Unfortunately, the real-life version of the Ford F-150 Rocket League edition is not on sale any time soon or at all. Instead, it was a one-off custom build to bring more attention to Ford’s partnership with the game. Once the build was completed, it made its debut at the Chicago Auto Show in July of 2021. 

Even though that real truck can’t be bought, anyone can buy the Ford F-150 Rocket League edition right now as in-game content.