Rusted Emeth is a very average RPG with a few weird control issues and some things that could be explained better. I love the style of games where you have both a pilot and a mech, it's a bit weird when they both can deal and/or take almost the same amount of punishment, but I was curious about the game so I let it slide. A bit on the incomprehensible stats side with an uncertainty in game progression, RE didn't grab me at all.
What if Nintendo went free-to-play with Pokémon? How would they sell it? Would they still put the same production values into the game? Would the game feel fair and balanced or would it feel like you need to pay money in order to have even odds? I'm not sure where Micromon fits in this whole picture, but it smells both of Pokémon rip-off and of pay-to-win systems implemented together in a bland game that I won't play anymore.
Divinity Original Sin is a pretty interesting game, although it is mired with a few annoyances and badly implemented ideas that make the experience less than ideal. It is, as they advertised, an old kind of game; turn based RPGs aren't that common anymore and the bulk of its mechanic feel like they have been designed a while ago. That being said, the combat system salvaged it for me after a while, otherwise I would have been ready to write this game off.
S&PA is a sad game, it's sad because the core concept of fighting with poker hands is interesting, but it's sad because of timers, premium currencies and 99.99$ best values. It's sad because of facebook requests, it's sad because of things you could buy to make the game too easy. At least it's sad and I'm not saying it doesn't have merit at all.
Battleheart Legacy is a fine iOS RPG that has some of the mechanics from the older Battleheart game. While it's predecessor was a series of RPG fights in single-screen rooms, this game is more of a complete adventure where you move around, fight random and scripted encounters, learn passive and active abilities for various classes, buy gear and complete quests. It was a good time even though I've had a few issues with it's mechanics and the way it told part of its story.
Angry Birds Epic might be a good game, it might just be. I would have gladly paid 10$ for that same product without the free to play junk, the unbalanced enemies and the random popups to try and bait you into clicking on ads. ABE might be a good game in a parallel universe, but in this one, it’s a neat idea flawed with greedy intentions.
Knights of Puzzelot is a haunted game, haunted by the specter or free to play mechanics and tactics to get your money. The core game is quite good, but that’s even more of a bummer when almost every step of the way, I’m left wondering if something is difficult because they want me to pay, or if it’s just annoying for the sake of convincing me to pay, or wondering if the next level is going to be the one where I have to grind or pay to get past.
One Way Heroics is a great little game, I really had tons of fun with it. It’s not perfect and I wish it was easier - as I do most roguelikes - but my issues I have with it are mostly of personal taste and nothing really ruins the game for me. I would recommend this game to anyone that likes RPGs with weird mechanics, especially roguelikes. I played about 10 different characters, more or less close to the big boss fight the game was warning me of, but I never saw it actually happen, sadly.
Coin Crypt is quite weird, it’s one of these games where your main resource isn’t something you’d usually expect to use as-is. In Coin Crypt, your special moves and your money are one and the same, you fight with coins that you collect in chests and on enemies. I’ve been a bit confused with it, and the lack of help on some systems made me not use them, but I had some fun with it, especially after I’ve figured it out.
Altough it crashed to desktop quite a few times while I was playing it, I really enjoyed my time with Warhammer Quest and plan to sink some more as soon as I have the chance. It’s a great little RPG with interesting mechanics and hooks to keep me playing for quite a while
Braveland is an amazing little strategy game from iOS in which you control your army of peasants, knights and archers in a quest to defeat an evil king. You also have a hero with stats and equipment. I really enjoyed that game and I wish there was more of it. Actually, it ends quite abruptly by saying “END OF BOOK ONE” and then you can’t continue to a theoretical book two, what’s up with that?
I really enjoyed the first Half-Minute Hero game, in small bite-sized chunks of adventures, you went around fighting things, solving simple puzzles and completing challenges in less than 30 seconds (with some help from the money-grabbing time-rewinding goddess). This sequel bogs it down with long cutscenes and moves to a more linear way to frame the game instead of the level system it used before. I didn’t enjoy it nearly as much.
Games where you match blocks are not that rare, but I love those with RPG elements and clever mechanics here and there. 10000000(000?) was a good example of such a game, but Block Legend is less so. I found that a few mechanics were superfluous or not well thought out and the progression was almost doing more harm than good.
While it might look like an innocent match-3 game with RPG mechanics, Puzzling Rush is terrible, for the single reason that never ever, any mechanics are explained, leaving the player with a bunch of symbols and ‘HELP’ screens that are confusing and impossible to decipher.
A little strategy game with some good old decision-making weaved in, The Banner Saga has style by the bucket and spends a great deal to construct an interesting world around familiar and simple good gameplay mechanics.
A card game where you play your units and other special moves using maths, Calculords is mighty interesting, but a bit confusing as far as the deck building goes. I really enjoyed my time with it even if it felt like the screen didn’t detect my tapping some of the time, which was quite annoying.
While sometimes games have terrible stories and art that might weird you out, it’s only in extreme cases that I will be prevented from playing a game because of these things. LTAP is a fine RPG - with a few issues here and there - that maybe would’ve fared better with different graphics and tone.
As far as iOS platformers go, SpellSword is fine, you pick up cards that enchant your weapon with various spells while killing monsters, looting rupees and completing missions, between them, you upgrade your character and buy more gear. It’s fine, but it would be better on something with actual controls.
Puzzle Quest Galactrix is a sad puzzle videogame in the line of other great Puzzle Quests. It’s core gameplay is perfectly fine, mind you, but it is ruined by abysmal controls between fights and poorly designed UIs and quests. I enjoyed my time solving puzzles and fighting, but everything between that was painfully boring.
Quest Lord is an old school RPG where you move in a 3d environment in first person. It’s very confusing and quirky and I lost attention pretty fast after not being sure where to go, fumbling around with a weird UI and not being sure if certain features of the game were bugs or just weird things.