Post by Ron Gaul on Sept 15, 2018 0:19:18 GMT -5
Thus follows the review of that game which is entitled “Robot Warfare”, conducted by (the esteemed) Rongaulius Tertius Maximum.
In the lore of mecha games for mobile platforms, thus far there is little to tell. Several years ago there were numerous titles on the App Store, but most of them weren't any good and we're discontinued. Only one survived to become legend: the game that was then called “Walking War Robots”. Which started out quietly enough, but grew to great heights before plunging forever into darkness…
Sorry. Forgot where I was for a second.
Robot Warfare. One of the latest of a slew of newcomers to the mobile mecha shooter scene, hoping to carve for themselves a slice of Pix’s market pie. Most such efforts, needless to say, aren't worth bothering with. Not because Pixhas a death-grip on the market, but because most such games are poorly executed ripoffs. At best. At worst, they simply steal the game icon from War Robots and then give you a stick-figure “robot”. Assuming the app can even be opened after downloading.
Robot Warfare, however, doesn't follow that pattern. I can count a large number of similarities between War Robots and RW, but I will honestly say that this game plays very much like Walking War Robots did. Which is a good thing. A very good thing indeed, given what followed. Certainly, RW is rough around the edges and needs refining. But it's a bloody good start.
To begin with, there are plenty of mecha available for free in the game. You will acquire most of these through leveling up by means of typical XP-earning. Standard weapons are also easily obtained and leveled up by means of easily-obtained in-game-currency. The weapons currently fall only into Light and Heavy classes, so variety is partially limited at present. And the unique weapons are available only for premium IGC, or cash. Which is understandable, and predictable; fortunately, there seems to be a good degree of power balance. Thus far I've encountered nothing that could be considered blatantly OP or PTW. Premium gear seems to be slightly more powerful, but not insurmountably so. A fine business model that should prove highly sustainable, if it is adhered to.
There is one concern, which is that the game does not allow use of duplicate mecha within a single match, for one player. There is no way to eject, and once you've been blasted out of your mech, you must choose a different one next. Which promotes diversity, to be sure, but I would not mind seeing a little more customizability in hangar setup.
Speaking of hangars, one excellent feature of RW is that it effectively allows you to select your hangar on the battlefield. In War Robots you enter battle and then choose from up to five mechs, or from one of your multiple hangars and then from up to five mechs; RW gives you access to your entire fleet of robots, limiting your respawns by means of how many “pilots” you have. Pilots are purchasable via premium IGC or cash; at present I have three, though it is possible to have at least four slots and perhaps more. Others may be able to provide better insight in this regard.
The maps are detailed and quite pleasing to the eye. No complaints in the aesthetics department.
In the Options tab, it is also possible to select “First-person-view”, which moves your combat POV to inside the robot’s cockpit. From there the weapons and crosshairs are visible as well as subtle lines to indicate the windscreen; fortunately there are no distracting, screen-blocking instrument panels which serve no real purpose. I switched to this game mode late in the day and found it to make the game even more immersive. It quite realistically draws you down into the fight, increasing the satisfaction of charging up into an enemy’s bubble and unloading a full salvo of rockets and shells into their face.
Beyond that…the reader should be left some surprises to discover for themselves, if so inclined. I heartily recommend this game to those who enjoy the mech genre. It is a gem.
I will add that this is the first game I've played in a long while that actually made me want to spend money on it. Not to remain competitive, but to acquire gear that is simply cool. More importantly, this is a game into which substantial effort has already been poured. It's good enough that it would likely do quite well even without any subsequent improvements. And yet, if the developers continue along the trajectory they seem to have set themselves, this game might well rise to become what War Robots should have been.
Very few games excite me as much as this one has done. Perhaps because when I play RW, it calls back directly to the days of Walking War Robots. The entire game leaves me with the distinct impression that these developers know what Walking War Robots was like, what it could have become, and where it went wrong. And they do not intend to do that with this game.
I hope that is the case. If it is, Robot Warfare may very likely become the new king of mobile mech shooters.
Cheers. I hope you found this post enjoyable to read, if nothing else.
In the lore of mecha games for mobile platforms, thus far there is little to tell. Several years ago there were numerous titles on the App Store, but most of them weren't any good and we're discontinued. Only one survived to become legend: the game that was then called “Walking War Robots”. Which started out quietly enough, but grew to great heights before plunging forever into darkness…
Sorry. Forgot where I was for a second.
Robot Warfare. One of the latest of a slew of newcomers to the mobile mecha shooter scene, hoping to carve for themselves a slice of Pix’s market pie. Most such efforts, needless to say, aren't worth bothering with. Not because Pixhas a death-grip on the market, but because most such games are poorly executed ripoffs. At best. At worst, they simply steal the game icon from War Robots and then give you a stick-figure “robot”. Assuming the app can even be opened after downloading.
Robot Warfare, however, doesn't follow that pattern. I can count a large number of similarities between War Robots and RW, but I will honestly say that this game plays very much like Walking War Robots did. Which is a good thing. A very good thing indeed, given what followed. Certainly, RW is rough around the edges and needs refining. But it's a bloody good start.
To begin with, there are plenty of mecha available for free in the game. You will acquire most of these through leveling up by means of typical XP-earning. Standard weapons are also easily obtained and leveled up by means of easily-obtained in-game-currency. The weapons currently fall only into Light and Heavy classes, so variety is partially limited at present. And the unique weapons are available only for premium IGC, or cash. Which is understandable, and predictable; fortunately, there seems to be a good degree of power balance. Thus far I've encountered nothing that could be considered blatantly OP or PTW. Premium gear seems to be slightly more powerful, but not insurmountably so. A fine business model that should prove highly sustainable, if it is adhered to.
There is one concern, which is that the game does not allow use of duplicate mecha within a single match, for one player. There is no way to eject, and once you've been blasted out of your mech, you must choose a different one next. Which promotes diversity, to be sure, but I would not mind seeing a little more customizability in hangar setup.
Speaking of hangars, one excellent feature of RW is that it effectively allows you to select your hangar on the battlefield. In War Robots you enter battle and then choose from up to five mechs, or from one of your multiple hangars and then from up to five mechs; RW gives you access to your entire fleet of robots, limiting your respawns by means of how many “pilots” you have. Pilots are purchasable via premium IGC or cash; at present I have three, though it is possible to have at least four slots and perhaps more. Others may be able to provide better insight in this regard.
The maps are detailed and quite pleasing to the eye. No complaints in the aesthetics department.
In the Options tab, it is also possible to select “First-person-view”, which moves your combat POV to inside the robot’s cockpit. From there the weapons and crosshairs are visible as well as subtle lines to indicate the windscreen; fortunately there are no distracting, screen-blocking instrument panels which serve no real purpose. I switched to this game mode late in the day and found it to make the game even more immersive. It quite realistically draws you down into the fight, increasing the satisfaction of charging up into an enemy’s bubble and unloading a full salvo of rockets and shells into their face.
Beyond that…the reader should be left some surprises to discover for themselves, if so inclined. I heartily recommend this game to those who enjoy the mech genre. It is a gem.
I will add that this is the first game I've played in a long while that actually made me want to spend money on it. Not to remain competitive, but to acquire gear that is simply cool. More importantly, this is a game into which substantial effort has already been poured. It's good enough that it would likely do quite well even without any subsequent improvements. And yet, if the developers continue along the trajectory they seem to have set themselves, this game might well rise to become what War Robots should have been.
Very few games excite me as much as this one has done. Perhaps because when I play RW, it calls back directly to the days of Walking War Robots. The entire game leaves me with the distinct impression that these developers know what Walking War Robots was like, what it could have become, and where it went wrong. And they do not intend to do that with this game.
I hope that is the case. If it is, Robot Warfare may very likely become the new king of mobile mech shooters.
Cheers. I hope you found this post enjoyable to read, if nothing else.
