"If there is an app for that"

Void-X review

June 18, 2022 by RSS Feed

Style isn't everything, but it can go a long way toward making a game much more enjoyable than it might otherwise be. This is certainly the case for Void-X, a very straightforward and simple horizontal shooter that has an unbelievably confident aesthetic identity that feels great to play around in as a result.

Stark shooter

Void-X presents a black and white, pixelated, rain-soaked cityscape backed by a gentle and dark drum and bass track. A plain text prompt blinks in the center of this view with instructions "Tap to start." Doing so launches a ship you control into the foreground where you tap and slide your finger around to auto-fire at enemy aircraft to try and take them down and maximize your score.

Shots coming from your ship are green, while enemy fire is red. If you dodge and shoot your way through a few waves of enemies successfully, you then encounter a boss fight which rewards you with additional health and a powerup for your ship before moving on to a more difficult stage. If you die at any point in Void-X, your score is totaled and you have the option to start the game over from the beginning again.

Soak it in

There's no checkpoints in Void-X, nor is there any currency or upgrades to carry between runs. In fact, there are virtually no additional options, modes, or things to do in the game besides adjusting your control sensitivity, turning the music on or off, and playing the one mode it has.

This barebones approach all feels purposeful, though. Void-X is all about setting a specific tone and having you do one specific thing within it. A sort of ominous cool envelops you while you slide and shoot and keeping the focus on exactly that frees you from distraction and makes this simple game a fun, no-frills challenge worth playing repeatedly.

Style over stability

I really respect Void-X for committing above all else to its specific look and feel, but there are some aspects of this game that are surprisingly rough considering the game's apparent attention-to-detail on the surface. Most of these problems crop up if you switch out of the app and return to it. Sometimes, Void-X may be unresponsive, or the music won't play. In some instances I've returned to the game on the pause screen but the action of the game is still moving and playing out underneath the menu.

To be fair, Void-X isn't the kind of game where you'll really want or need to be hopping in and out of it in the midst of a run. Even my longest individual sessions have only managed to be around 10 minutes. This doesn't excuse technical issues like this, though, so they are worth calling out here.

The bottom line

Void-X is a game where it's style is the substance. There's nothing special or unique about its side-scrolling shooter action besides the way it looks and makes you feel. This is 100% ok by me, though. The tone of Void-X is right up my alley to the point that it serves as a nice escape into another world where everything is simple, manageable, and cool. I don’t really need a game to do much more than that to leave me satisfied.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/void-x-review/

Barnard's Star review

June 18, 2022 by RSS Feed

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Barnard's Star is a multiplayer focused arena tactics game where two players take turns positioning and attacking with a squad of four soldiers in an attempt to destroy their opponent's base and come out victorious. This game format is nothing new to the App Store, but developer Pollywog Games places its own unique mechanics and systems on top of this tired formula that are enjoyable when you aren't running up against some rough spots in the game's design.

Spaceship slayground

There are a lot of games like Barnard's Star that have come and gone over the years. The first one that came to mind for me was Super Senso, but this game's brand of multiplayer turn-based strategy is also reminiscent of the more recent Phobies, or--if you prefer some more well-known comparison points--it can also be situated somewhere in between the likes of games like Advance Wars and XCOM.

This is all to say that Barnard's Star has two players pick a faction to play as and four units unique to that faction to control in a match. From there, the units spawn into a designated zone and players take turns giving instructions to their teams that can include anything from moving into cover, using teleporters, activating overwatch abilities, grappling around the map, placing/destroying cover, and more. The ultimate goal behind all of these actions is an effort to control the map, which includes establishing a balance of offense and defense that your opponent has a hard time countering.

Asynchronous attacking

Due to its turn-based nature, Barnard's Star allows players to juggle multiple matches at the same time and pushes notifications whenever a new turn is available. In executing a turn, players can also make use of a handy undo button, allowing for true tacticians to experiment with the most optimal sets of moves before locking them in.

The more you play, Barnard's Star, the more the undo button will feel necessary as the game hangs its hat on boasting a unique set of units that all operate pretty differently, and their interactions can lead to some surprising and unanticipated results. There's robots that can spawn copies of themselves, bounty hunters that can grapple and pull other units around, monsters that spew poison all over the map, and more. On top of this Barnard's Star has some distinct mechanics that apply to all units that don't exist in other games, as well. Things like bonus turns for units that score kills, respawn timers that change depending on how many times a unit gets killed; heck, even familiar concepts like cover and firing operate in ways that they don't quite do in other games, making Barnard's Star something that takes quite a bit of time to get used to.

Rough and ready

While you can play Barnard's Star single player against AI, it is clear this is a game that is meant for multiplayer. Even playing single-player matches against the game's highest difficulty, your opponents make some questionable decisions, like firing their weapons at walls and ignoring cover. If that weren't enough, Barnard's Star has an unlock system for new units that challenges you to perform certain feats to get new ways to diversify your squads, but you can't get these unlocks through playing against AI.

It's also really clear that Barnard's Star wants you to take steps back from the game's action between turns and truly play it asynchronously, as evidenced by a relatively common bug that doesn't pass control of a round to you if you when it's your turn if you stay in a match to wait for it. This doesn't happen all the time, but there were numerous times, (even when playing against AI), where the game essentially would not proceed forward unless I backed out of a game and went back into it.

The bottom line

In comparison to other turn-based multiplayer strategy games, Barnard's Star feels pretty small. That said, of the variety it has there is a lot of depth to explore in terms of team composition and turn combos that can make it a really satisfying competitive experience. I just wish that whole package felt little more polished.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/barnards-star-review/

Street of Rage 4 review

June 01, 2022 by RSS Feed

The question you have to ask yourself before you consider buying Streets of Rage 4 for iOS is whether or not you're ok dealing with the same issues that seem unavoidable for 2D brawlers. If the answer is yes, this game is likely the definitive beat 'em up experience you can get on the App Store. Just know that for all it gets right, the game still comes with all of the control challenges you can expect from trying to navigate and fight with 2D characters in 3D spaces.

Retro rage

If you're at all familiar with the lineage of the Streets of Rage series, then you know that Streets of Rage 4 is a long-awaited sequel to a beloved series of titles that last released on the Sega Genesis back in the 90s. A big part of these games' popularity had to do with their style and music on top of the way they played.

Fast-forward to now, and Streets of Rage 4 really tries to stay true the series lineage, offering fairly straightforward and competent gameplay wrapped in a really stylish and slick-looking package. I'm not sure the overall aesthetic feels as in-tune with any particular subcultures in the ways that the previous games were, but the distinct style it has avoids relying too much on nostalgia which helps it stand on its own merits.

Street fighter

As for the game itself, Streets of Rage 4 is perhaps the most complete and balanced brawler I have encountered. From the very start of picking your character and playing through the first stage, you encounter a level of variety and balance that puts most other beat 'em ups to shame. Although later levels definitely run a little dry on new enemies or situations to put you in, the mixing and matching of what you've previously encountered makes for satisfying combat challenges that still feel novel.

On iOS, mastering combos via touch can be challenging at first, though I found myself perfectly capable of completing the game on its default difficulty without having to use a controller or any of the game's built-in assists you can turn on to make the game easier. The port itself looks incredible and includes a bunch of fun and useful customization options, ranging between scaling and moving the touch UI to turning on video filters to make the game look like it might have back in the 90s.

Plain puncher

I can't think of an action brawler on iOS that really rivals the amount of depth and variety as Streets of Rage 4, but that doesn't mean the game is able to sidestep some of the genre's most irritating and endemic issues. As with seemingly all games of this ilk, it's difficult to tell when you are actually lined up with enemies and vice versa, which can lead to irritating defeats.

There's nothing worse than getting countered by a basic enemy because you thought you were about to tear into them only to find yourself punching air and leaving yourself exposed. Streets of Rage 4 somewhat exacerbates this issue by limiting the amount of lives you get to clear levels, as missing enemies due to perspective can very well be the cause of you having to retry an entire stage from the beginning. In fairness, this kind of perspective trouble just seems unavoidable for anyone making games in this style, but it's still worth pointing out that this continues to be an unsolved problem here.

The bottom line

Streets of Rage 4 is a stylish and satisfying brawler that does just about everything you can do with brawlers better than the competition. It is still very much one of those games though, so don't go in expecting something revelatory. The best news about Streets of Rage 4 is it hits iOS in a completely uncompromised form, allowing you to carry around an incredible beat 'em up and whip it out just about anywhere.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/street-of-rage-4-review/

Apex Legends Mobile review

June 01, 2022 by RSS Feed

I have bounced off of almost every battle royale game there is. Conceptually, I like the format of a multiplayer shooter that relies on teamwork, exploration, and survival beyond quick and precise aiming, but most of them are bogged down with features I'm not interested in engaging with or don't strike the right balance between depth and approachability. Since firing up Apex Legends Mobile for the first time last week, though, I've found myself struggling to put it down. It may not tout the same fidelity of its PC and console counterpart, but makes for a streamlined battle royale experience that maintains a satisfying match pace and depth that many mobilized versions of battle royales fail to do.

Same but different

Apex Legends Mobile is mostly the same game as the original Apex Legends, which is to say it's a multiplayer shooter where teams of three combatants drop onto a massive map with the goal of eliminating all other teams using weapons found scattered across the environment. It also features all of the signature touches specific to the original Apex, like additional mobility options, characters with special powers, a ping system, and more.

Functionally, it feels like a port of Apex Legends. Even the match length is about the same. They key difference though is that this game has no cross-play with the original Apex and has some different tuning and control options for movement and shooting that make it manageable to play on a touch screen and allow for players to develop a sense of precision despite the less-than-precise control method.

Slide, scavenge, shoot

The secret to Apex Legends Mobile's success for me is just how easy it is to dive into a match and instantly be a competent teammate. By default, this game does things like auto-ping enemies and items so you're constantly being useful to your team even if your aim isn't on point. You can also auto-loot gear so you don't have to develop any sort of specialized knowledge about what weapons, attachments, or items you should or shouldn't be picking up.

It also helps that Apex Legends Mobile feels about as great as you can make a mobile shooter feel right out of the box, and if that doesn't work there is a staggering amount of customization options you can dial to your exact preferences. Given all of the options at your disposal (including competent controller support), there's a way to make just about anyone feel comfortable controlling it.

The apex of unweildy menus

It's astounding how Respawn Entertainment has managed to simplify its battle royale while still cramming in all of the depth of the original game, but it comes at a cost. When you aren't actively in a round of Apex Legends Mobile, the game is a nightmare of menus and splash screens that are both hard to look at and unintuitive to navigate.

Everything from choosing the kind of match you want to play to redeeming battle pass rewards just feels a lot harder to do than it should, and every moment the game uses to try and show off animations or cinematics, the whole thing ends up feeling really slapped together. Out of all the things to drop the ball on, I guess it's fortunate that the sloppiest parts of Apex Legends Mobile don't affect how matches play, but that doesn't mean that these aren't problems that need to be fixed. I'm not sure the menus will get too slimmed down over time due to the game's free-to-play nature (which, by the way, seems very focused on keeping gameplay balanced and promoting/selling cosmetic items), but I'm hoping the nested maze of menus at least gets a more coherent flow and better navigation buttons down the line.

The bottom line

Apex Legends Mobile is the most fun I have had with a battle royale game, on mobile or otherwise. It makes all of the nitty gritty aspects of playing such a multi-faceted experience easy without stripping out depth, and offers such a multitude of options to get yourself feeling like a precision player even if the overall experience isn't as sharp and honed as PC and console battle royales.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/apex-legends-mobile-review/

Catalyst Black review

June 01, 2022 by RSS Feed

Super Evil Megacorp's latest mobile release is a multiplayer top-down shooter known as Catalyst Black. You may know this developer from their previous work on the now languishing MOBA Vainglory, which was a game designed to clear the hurdles that otherwise make this genre inconvenient to play on mobile devices. A lot of the same design ethos has been poured into Catalyst Black, resulting in some fast and fun shooting action despite its bothersome free-to-play design and the fact that it has essentially zero personality.

Shapeshifting shooter

Catalyst Black is a team-focused shooter where every player has full control of their loadout and abilities. On top of choosing a primary and heavy weapon of choice, heroes can equip a wide variety of special actions (i.e. teleportation, shields, healing, etc.), passive talents (i.e. faster reload, auto-shielding teammates, etc.), and even their character's overall appearance to make the exact kind of hero character they might want from other hero shooters like Overwatch.

One of the main selling points for Catalyst Black is also that every character has the same ultimate ability: to transform into magical monsters known as primals that allow you to shift the tide of battles considerably. As with hero characters, primals are fully customizable in that the handful of available monsters have unique sets of abilities that can also be swapped out for the ideal loadout.

Condensed combat

Across the four primary game modes in Catalyst Black, players can find themselves teaming up for a standard death match, skirmishing to complete objectives using limited lives, taking part in large-scale territory control contests, or all working together to cut down monsters in a completely cooperative coliseum mode. Outside of these options, Catalyst Black also has a rotating 5th game mode that can be things like capture the flag or a unique mode that places bounties on unique AI enemies for teams to try and rack up points faster by taking them down ahead of their opponent.

No matter which way you decide to play, Catalyst Black mostly revolves around outwitting your opponents and working together as a team (though it helps to have good and quick aiming, too). Luckily, the action in the game is super easy to control and maps are full of interesting features like brush to hide in, obstacles to take cover behind, and even random monsters that will attack and kill you if you aren't careful.

Cobbled together customization

Catalyst Black is about as easy and convenient a shooter can be on mobile. It has high quality social features for managing friends and lets you drop in on matches at a moment's notice. Queue times for matches are also lightning quick and each mode serves up a different average match length, ensuring players wanting long sessions with the game or quick bursts of action can have a good time.

With all of this customization and comfort comes a trade-off, though. By keeping things so modular, Catalyst Black doesn't really feel like it has a firm sense of self. The AI mobs, primals, and other unique features of the game feel like they are there purely to make the game stand out, and otherwise don't feel like they gel or give additional dimension to the experience.

On a final note, perhaps the most irksome thing about Catalyst Black is its free-to-play structure. Progression in the game involves collecting currencies to make weapons and abilities more powerful than those of other players, which ultimately tips the balance scale in favor of those willing to put money into the game. In my time with Catalyst Black I haven't felt like I've played a match with someone who paid to be powerful, but the fact that this is possible is annoying and could eventually become a big problem for the game.

The bottom line

Catalyst Black is a fun shooter, but it's hard to get too excited about any of the other stuff in it that makes it unique. I definitely plan to keep returning to it because of the way it feels and the variety it offers, but I find little else endearing about it, which is a weird way to feel about a game.

Source link:https://www.148apps.com/reviews/catalyst-black-review/