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Star Vikings Forever ($2.99) by Akupara Games is a puzzle RPG that’s chock full of humor and good fun. If you enjoyed games such as Ticket to Earth and Beglitched, then you will like what Star Vikings Forever has to offer. It’s even a bit reminiscent of Plants vs. Zombies.

As I grew up, I was always fascinated by puzzles, even if I wasn’t able to solve everything. When I got stumped by a puzzle, it probably just meant that it was a good one. I still appreciated the stimulation and challenge that it brought into my life. When I got older, I started to play more RPGs, and when they have puzzles in them, I just fall in love with the creativity. So when I see puzzle RPGs on the App Store, I know I have to get my hands on them. Star Vikings Forever is just one of those many titles, and it is one that doesn’t disappoint.

App Feels Like

$6.99

Ticket to Earth

Robot Circus Pty Ltd

$3.99

Beglitched

Alec Thomson

Visually, Star Vikings Forever packs in quite a punch. The game features an awesome cartoony art style that is sure to delight everyone. Though the graphics appear in a 2-D fashion, due to the angle, perspective, and lighting of the game, there appears to be a bit of depth to it, so it’s more between 2-D and 3-D. Star Vikings Forever also makes use of a bright and vibrant color palette to ensure that everything, from the rooms in the spaceship to the character sprites of viking and foe, looks bold and enticing. Animations are smooth and fluid with no lag on my iPhone 7. There’s also an adrenaline-pumping soundtrack that’s sure to get players in the mood for some space-snail-squashing action.

Since Star Vikings Forever is a puzzle RPG, you can expect it to be level-based. The game’s split up into different chapters and sections, with a handful of stages for each area. There’s a set objective that must be completed to clear a level, but Star Vikings Forever does things a bit differently.

Rather than have the same objectives set in stone each time you replay a stage, Star Vikings Forever randomizes goals when you go back and play a level again. So the objectives don’t change on the first time you play, but each time after that. This keeps things fresh and interesting, and even gives you even more of a reason to go back and replay stages. If you’re the type who needs a lot of replay value, well Star Vikings Forever has it.

Controls in Star Vikings Forever take a bit of getting used to, but are easy once you get the hang of it. Each stage consists of several rooms connected together. You have to guide each space viking in their lane from start to finish in order to reach the next room. The vikings can only move forward in their assigned lane.

To move forward, just draw a line from them to the spot you want to position them at. A tap on a viking will select him or her, and then you’re able to activate their special ability by tapping on the target. Your vikings automatically hit whatever is in front of them when they run into them.

Your team consists of up to four vikings at once, and each one carries their own unique stats and abilities. For example, the tank has much more health points, but can only push enemies in adjacent spaces. Another class is able to use a laser to hit enemies from farther away than one space. The only catch to using special abilities is the fact that they require energy, and there’s only a limited supply of that for each viking until they reach the next room.

With the varying objectives and puzzle layouts, sometimes a level can last for some time. After you finish a stage, deployed units earn experience points. Once a unit levels up, they’re able to spend their skill points to upgrade their abilities and stats to be even more formidable.

Space Vikings Forever starts off pretty easy, but the difficulty ramps up as more enemy types get introduced, as well as having more foes to deal with at once. All enemies have a line of hearts on them — this is the number of hits that they can take before they go down. Some exert special behaviors when attacked, such as attacking whatever is in front or adjacent to them. This leads to some awesome chain reactions, which are key to getting combos in the game.

You’ll have to keep in mind the abilities of your units as you enter a level. That’s because sometimes the puzzle layout depends heavily on the position of your units and their abilities.

There’s only a campaign mode in Star Vikings Forever, but it packs in about eight hours of gameplay. And when you beat the game, there’s also a New Game Plus mode, so the replay value just skyrockets. There’s six viking classes to discover and upgrade, so eventually you’re able to fully customize your team to fit your play style.

Star Vikings Forever has a lot going for it, and it’s all good. The game’s super cartoonish visuals are pleasing to look at, and the music is quirky and fun. There’s a good sense of humor to all of the dialogue and story, and it’s not your typical cliché either. Controls are simple and the game mechanics are pretty different and interesting. There’s a lot of content to go through, and the replay value is extremely high.

Even great games are not without some flaws, and Star Vikings Forever is one of them. While the controls work out in the end, I did find that it takes a bit of getting used to, and sometimes it just felt a bit clunky. However, it can be overcome with a bit of practice and patience, so it’s not a complete deal breaker.

I’ve only just started Star Vikings Forever, but the experience has been super enjoyable so far. The game features an awesome aesthetic, the music gets the blood pumping, and the gameplay mechanics are different enough to make the game stand out on its own. Controls take a bit of getting used to but work well in the end. And as far as replay value goes, Star Vikings Forever has a ton of it, so you get your moneys worth.

I recommend Star Vikings Forever to anyone who is looking for a lengthy puzzle RPG adventure with a lot of replay value. Star Vikings Forever is on the App Store as a universal download for $2.99. There are no in-app purchases.

9.2

OVERALL

Replayability 10

Graphics 10

Sound/Music 9

Gameplay 9

Game Controls 8

$2.99

Star Vikings Forever

Akupara Games

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Pixel Heroes: Byte & Magic ($6.99) by Headup Games GmbH & Co KG is a roguelike RPG that is a bit different from other ones you’ve played before. If you are a fan of games like The Binding of Isaac and Journey Below, then you may like what Pixel Heroes has to offer.

During my years in high school, I got immersed in RPGs. This is because RPGs usually contain immersive worlds that I easily got lost in, relatable characters (or not), hours of playtime, and plenty of challenges. In recent years, I noticed that roguelikes have gained a lot of popularity. While I’m not a big fan of having to lose all of my progress with each new game, I do enjoy the challenge that it brings, and I always end up striving to do better. When RPGs and roguelikes combine, I find them irresistible, so of course I have to get my hands on new titles that come out. Pixel Heroes: Byte & Magic is one of those, and after spending some time with it, I’m not disappointed.

App Feels Like

$14.99

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth

Nicalis, Inc.

$2.99

Journey Below

Ravenous Games Inc.

Pixel Heroes lives up to its name with its visual style. The game’s packed full of retro, 16-bit pixel art graphics that take one back to the golden days of gaming. There are two ways to display the graphics in Pixel Heroes: Stretch-to-Fit and True Pixels. If you’re on a smaller device, the Stretch-to-Fit works better, and True Pixels is good for larger screens.

Despite the pixelated look, Pixel Heroes is wonderfully detailed in terms of environments, dungeons, monsters, and heroes. Maps are easy to understand. The color palette consists of bold and vibrant hues to darker and gloomier tones, depending on where you are. Animations are smooth and fluid. And for those who dig chiptunes, Pixel Heroes has an awesome soundtrack that is perfect for your adventure.

Since Pixel Heroes is a roguelike RPG, that means each time you start a new game, it will continue until you die. At that point, a new game starts, and the experience won’t be the same as the last. You can still pick the three heroes that you want to take with you from the start. There are around 30 heroes to unlock. Each new run will have randomized events, dungeons, NPCs, loot, and enemies. If you’re not having particularly good luck on a run, then perhaps the next one is better — who knows? That’s the fun with procedurally generated roguelikes, because it’s always a surprise.

Controls in Pixel Heroes are simple. While you’re in town, just long-press on the left or right side of the screen to have your party move in that direction. NPCs with quests to give you appear with an exclamation mark above them. You can tap on any NPC to interact with them and hear what they have to say. While shopping in stores, you can tap on items to view their details, and then purchase them (if you have enough money) through buttons.

Once you’re ready to go out of the town and embark on your journey, just head over to the town gate and then tap on the “Go” button. It’s important to have some quests already so you can complete them while you’re out.

When in combat, battle’s done through turns. This means you take an action for a party member, then the enemy goes, and it continues back and forth. The actions that your party members can do fall under two categories: Item and Skill. For Item, it is essentially a regular attack with whatever weapons, shields, or tomes that they have equipped on them. Skills involve unique abilities that only each hero type has, and these usually involve healing spells or attacks that dish out more damage or have status effects. You can switch between Item and Skill by tapping on the button, but remember — each party member can only perform one action during a turn. Most attacks target a single foe, unless otherwise stated, and you can target manually by tapping the one you want to attack. Otherwise, the first enemy in the group gets hit.

After a successful battle, players get experience points for their party members as well as gold and random loot. I noticed that the equipment have pretty humorous names, so it’s a fun little jab at RPGs in general. Before players venture into the next room of the dungeon, there’s an opportunity to go through your inventory and equip your new gear on your heroes, so take advantage of those moments before advancing, especially when facing off against bosses. This is also the time to increase your character stats if they leveled up.

Remember — Pixel Heroes is a roguelike, so permadeath is a feature. There’s a record kept of every single hero used and their death, thanks to the game’s detailed graveyard. The details for each hero include their stats and the choices that led up to their death. It’s a place to mourn or laugh about your decisions, and then move on to a new run.

Pixel Heroes is a fantastic gem of a roguelike RPG. The game features an amazing pixel art aesthetic that appeals to many, and the chiptunes are delightful. The controls are intuitive and clever for touch screens, so anyone can pick this game up and play. Randomization is the name of the game, and never having the same experience twice means plenty of replay value. There’s also a fun sense of humor that is apparent with the name of items and gear, so it’s almost like this game is poking some fun at RPGs in general.

There’s a lot to love about Pixel Heroes, but since it’s a roguelike, permadeath is a feature, and not everyone likes that. The game is also fairly on-rails style, meaning you don’t get to fully explore the outside of town freely, because you’re set on a straightforward path. If you prefer to have full control of where you go, then this is not the RPG for you.

I’ve only just started in Pixel Heroes, but I can see myself coming back to this for quite some time. The game has a lot of replay value with the amount of content, and always having a fresh new experience is satisfying. As someone who grew up with classic games, I love the vintage pixel art style, and the chiptunes are amazing. Controls are simple and easy to learn, and the game is fairly challenging but still accessible to everyone. It’s definitely a game to have if you’re a roguelike RPG fan.

Pixel Heroes: Byte & Magic is available on the App Store as a universal download for your iPhone and iPad for $6.99. There are no in-app purchases.

9.4

OVERALL

Replayability 10

Sound/Music 10

Game Controls 9

Graphics 9

Gameplay 9

$6.99

Pixel Heroes: Byte & Magic

Headup Games GmbH & Co KG

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