AppReviewToday- AppReviews

AXE.IO (Free) by Crescent Moon Games is a brutal battleground arena game. If you enjoy games like Fortnite and PUBG Mobile, but want something a bit less serious and more comical, then AXE.IO is a good choice.

When I need to take my mind off of things for a bit, I turn to video games. Whether it's puzzles or some arcade action, it usually helps ease my mind. But lately, I've been needing something a bit more action-packed, something that lets me take my anger out in a non-harmful way. So when I saw AXE.IO on the App Store, I knew it was going to be a good fit.

Free

Fortnite

Epic Games, Inc.

Free

PUBG MOBILE

Tencent Mobile International Limited

Visually, AXE.IO has a distinctive, low-poly art style that seems popular these days, especially since Horizon Chase. It reminds me a tiny bit of Fortnite, since it's rather cartoony, but the characters are modeled after fantasy and medieval designs, rather than modern young adults. The arenas are not vast and huge as PUBG and Fortnite, but there's still plenty of space to move around as you try to survive. The colors are bright and colorful, with some muted earthy tones thrown in to the mix. Animations are smooth and fluid on my iPhone 8 Plus, though I get some lag and frame rate issues when a lot is going on. The soundtrack is rather exhilarating and action-packed too.

There's four game modes in AXE.IO: Arena, Deathmatch, Battleground, and Dragon Hunter. Arena is the default mode, and lets you partake in small 6-player arenas, where you fight for as long as you can. Deathmatch puts you up against players in real-time, and you can keep reviving and trying again until time's up. Battleground puts 50 players on a map and you fight to be the lone survivor. Dragon Hunter is more of a co-op mode, where you team up with others (instead of fighting them) to defeat huge dragons.

No matter which mode you choose, AXE.IO is just brutal multiplayer fun with throwing axes and other melee weapons. The controls are easy to pick up as well. To move around in the arena, just use the virtual joystick in the bottom left corner. Opposite of that, in the right corner, you have buttons for throwing your axe, rolling to evade, and even a sword attack if you have a sword equipped.

AXE.IO, as the name implies, involves throwing axes to kill your enemies. To do this, you'll want to make sure that green arrow in front of your character is aimed towards your target, and then you just tap on that axe button to throw, hopefully hitting them. Those axes land in their skulls for some nice, brutal kills, which is exactly what the game was going for. But since you just threw your axe, you'll become vulnerable until you pick up another axe laying around, ready to strike your next target.

As you get kills in the arenas, you'll earn experience points, represented by the gold coin drops from fallen foes. The higher your level is, the more advantages you'll have in battle. That's because there are tons of items just laying around, such as multiple axes, swords, and shields, but they require a higher level to use. Having such items protect you from more hits, and let you dish out more hits without having to find another axe laying around.

You have the opportunity to earn crystals as you play, which can be spent on new character unlocks. Each character has their own unique trait. There are also skills that get unlocked, and if you use them with the right character, their abilities get boosted. It's important to match the right skill with the proper character for maximum efficiency.

If you die, you can spend some gems to revive with all of your existing items and level, or watch an ad for the same purpose. Otherwise, if you revive, you start back at level one and all items are lost. Be careful though — you only get one continue, so use it wisely.

AXE.IO is an intense and brutal multiplayer battlegrounds arena game that is perfect for bite-size mobile gaming sessions.

The Good

AXE.IO is a fun and entertaining pocket battleground game that's sure to keep you busy for some time. The graphics are nice, the music is fun, and the gameplay is challenging, considering that it's against other real players from all over the world. The controls work out nicely, and it's hard to stop once you get used to the system, even if you end up dying a lot.

The Bad

Like other battleground games, you're going to die a lot in AXE.IO. If you get frustrated because of a lot of deaths, then perhaps AXE.IO is not the type of game for you. However, it's all really in good fun, so you shouldn't be too serious about it. Plus even if you don't usually play these types of games, AXE.IO is a lot easier than games like Fortnite and PUBG, so it gives everyone a more fair chance of playing and rising in the ranks quickly.

The verdict

I've never played any .IO games before, but AXE.IO is a pretty fun one, I must admit. I enjoy low-poly graphics, so the visuals appeal to me, and the cartoonish style works considering the nature of the game. The music is fun and delightful, along with the sound effects. Controls are intuitive and not too complicated, considering the battlegrounds theme, so it's friendly enough for everyone. I just wish that there wasn't so much lag when the action gets pretty intense, as that has screwed me up a few times in the middle of combat. Not that big of a deal though, since it's so fast-paced, but some optimizations would be nice.

AXE.IO is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for free. There are in-app purchases for characters and gems.

8.4

OVERALL

Game Controls 9

Replayability 8.7

Graphics 8

Sound/Music 8

Gameplay 8.5

FREE

AXE.IO

Crescent Moon Games

Source link: http://appadvice.com/reviews

Ilu (Free) by Brainium Studios LLC is a puzzle game that balances light and darkness. I know, it's a little cliché, but it's tastefully done in ilu. If you enjoyed other recent titles like Fliplomacy or even Umiro, then you'll like what ilu offers.

When I'm under a lot of stress, I need to take some time out to relax and take my mind off of things. Usually, my go-to game type is a puzzle because it helps me calm down and also keeps my brain busy, which is always welcome. And while I feel like I've played every kind of puzzle game there is on the App Store, I can't help but always be on the lookout for new ones. And so ilu was definitely one that caught my attention this week, and I must say that it does not disappoint.

$0.99

Fliplomacy

Shobhit Samaria

$2.99

Umiro

GHI Media, LLC

Visually, ilu is beautiful. The game contains a minimalistic aesthetic style that's completely rendered in 2D. It uses simple shapes to represent the board and the pieces, as well as a soft color palette that is full of soothing gradients. Each of the infinite stages contains a board that lights up yellow, to represent the light in the darkness. And as you solve each puzzle, lush green life blooms and flourishes, proving to be the icing on the cake on this already gorgeous game. All animations are smooth and fluid on my iPhone 8 Plus, and the game has an ambient and atmospheric soundtrack that's tranquil and zen-like. The sound effects are whimsical and create a dynamic track on it's own as light fills the board.

The great thing about ilu is the fact that the game is free and contains an infinite number of levels that are generated as you progress. Since the game itself is a free download, there are some ads that show up every now and then, but you can get rid of them with an in-app purchase. However, I was not bothered by the ads since they don't interrupt the gameplay, but I appreciate having the option to get rid of them completely.

The goal in ilu is simple: light up the dark board and make sure that no tile gets unlit. However, some tiles have dots on them — these dots signify that an adjacent square must be the source of the light, and all of the dots on a tile must be lit up accordingly. So if a square has one dot, it only needs one adjacent tile to be the light source. If it has three or four, then three or four adjacent spaces must be the source of the light.

While this sounds like a simple task, things get complicated as the board gets bigger and features more intricate layouts. Each time you place a light down, the entire row or column is lit up accordingly. Be careful not to overlap the lights though, as the dots can be cancelled out too. With ilu, it's all about the logic and sequence of the lights.

Controls in ilu are simple and intuitive. To place a light in a square, just tap on it. The light flows into the rest of the row or column, and if an adjacent tile has dots, they'll light up. The goal is to get all of the dots lit up, as well as the rest of the grid, in order to solve the puzzle and restore life. You can undo a light by tapping on the square, and there are buttons in the bottom left corner for resetting the puzzle or undoing your last move.

At the top of each puzzle is a bar that shows you how well you're doing in solving it. You can even see the difficulty level at the start, in case you're curious. However, don't worry about stars or anything, because the game doesn't use that system. Instead, the number of moves you do to solve it is calculated into the progress bar, as well as your overall, cumulative score. You can earn "perfect" on a puzzle, and it's shown in your stats, but it's not completely necessary.

Once you've completed all of the puzzles on a planet, you'll earn crystals. These crystals are to upgrade your suit and ship. Both of these are more like cosmetic upgrades, as they don't affect solving the puzzles — that's all logic. They affect how the world looks after you terraform them, as a result of restoring light and balance.

Ilu is a gorgeous logic puzzle game about balancing light and dark and restoring life.

The Good

Ilu is definitely a good game to check out for fans of logic puzzles. The graphics look sharp and crisp on Retina screens, the dynamic music and sound effects are fun, and the controls are simple enough for anyone to understand. However, the puzzles are a great mix of straightforward and intricate, and it just becomes more entertaining as you go. And while it's a free game with ads, they do not get in the way of the game itself, and there's an infinite number of stages that can be generated, giving you a lot of bang for your buck.

The Bad

Honestly, even though I'm not usually big on freemium games, ilu doesn't have the annoyances of the typical free game, which is a nice breath of fresh air. There's no energy system so you can play as long as you want, and the ads never get in the way. Perhaps if I must point out a fault, it's the fact that the upgrades can be a little pricey, and they don't change the gameplay at all.

The verdict

As a fan of relaxing puzzle games, ilu is definitely one I'm going to be keeping around on my devices. The game's visuals are breathtaking, especially as life blooms on each planet, and the dynamic music is fun and delightful. I love logical puzzles, and these are the kind that make you go, "Aha! That all makes sense now" quite often. The ads don't get in the way of enjoying the game, but I think I'll be sending some money to the devs in the future to show support for this elegant little gem.

You can find ilu on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for free. There are in-app purchases for ad removal and cosmetic upgrades.

9.0

OVERALL

Replayability 9

Game Controls 9

Graphics 9

Sound/Music 9

Gameplay 9

FREE

ilu

Brainium Studios LLC

Source link: http://appadvice.com/reviews