Our App of the Week for the week of March 1nd, 2013 is:
Shadowgun: Deadzone. As always, we always try to highlight apps that are cheap and/or free in most cases. There are exceptions where an app is just so awesome, that paying more than $4 or $5 dollars shouldn't be a problem. But keeping true to our idea that most of us are on a budget (and or just cheapskates like me),
ShadowGun: Deadzone is a
FREE app. And unlike our usual App of Week pick, this game is cross platform on both
iOS device and
Android devices. So let's jump into what really makes this game standout.
What is it?
The Story
As mentioned above,
Shadowgun: Deadzone is an online multiplayer game that throws the player into either a deathmatch style game or a capture point style game. There is very little by way of story for this app. It ideally picks up after the events of the original
Shadowgun title. If you missed the original, a "Shadowgun" is basically a professional bounty hunter. In the original game, you played as John Slade and your mission was to stop a mad scientist from making a mutated army. So in
Deadzone, your character is either a mutant soldier or one of several
Shadowgun skins.
Gameplay
The game plays pretty much just like the original
Shadowgun title. It is basically a covered based shooter much like the
Gears of War franchise on the
Xbox 360. Meaning, you run and gun and use objects that are scattered around the map to hide behind when you need to get out of the line of fire. When hiding behind a barrier or your back is pressed against a corner wall, the camera shifts a little providing a view of the action in front of you. You can then fire from behind cover, which is really handy in a heavy firefight.
The controls are fairly straight forward as well. On the left side of the screen is a virtual joystick which controls movement. You aim by sliding your right thumb around the screen. In the bottom right we have several icons that include aiming/firing, reloading, and sprinting. In the upper right corner of the screen we have your weapon selection icon, your sprinting meter, and a couple empty inventory spots for certain perks or power ups that you unlock as you play. These perks can include the ability to drop ammo or health recharge packs, use motion radars, and grenades to name just a few. Unlike a lot of games that utilize a touch based, onscreen button layout; this one works extremely well with a very low learning curve.
Other Features
What would a game that only offers online multiplayer be without a system for leveling your character? And
Shadowgun: Deadzone offers exactly that. As you play matches you gain experience points and cash. Both of these add up over time. Your cash is used to upgrade weapons and unlock new power up. Meanwhile, you're experience points builds up your character's level as you play as well. Here is the important thing, a higher level doesn't necessarily mean a "stronger" character. It does mean, that someone with a higher level than you, has access to different weapons which in turn may be stronger than those who run lower level characters. But this is a fair trade off. As I have been in matches with people who are much higher levels, and still been able to more than hold my own against them.
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| Character Loadout Screen |
There is also a "Casino" feature built into the games main menu. Each day your account will be given a token (or 2 or 3 depending) and you can use these tokens to take a spin on the Slot Machine. The reward for playing the Slot Machine is in game gold. This gold can be used to buy cosmetic items such as skins, hats, etc. for your character. As the tokens are given to your account, you do not have to pay "real-world" money for these.
There is also a buddy list, you can log in with your Facebook account, and you can chat (and voicechat if you have a premium account).
Game Modes
Currently there are only two game modes: Deathmatch and Zone Control. Deathmatch is your traditional free-for-all game mode. Where every player loads out into the map and spends the matches time limit trying to frag each other. He who has the highest killscore wins the match. Meanwhile, Zone Control is a little more tactical. Each map is contains a series of "Control Points" which also acts as spawn points. Two teams (red and blue) each fight for the duration of the match to gain control of more points than the other team. Eventually this leads to some pretty epic battles over points in the middle of a map. I spend a lot of time playing Zone Control as the strategy aspect of this game mode is a lot of fun.
Premium Features?
So at this point you may be saying, "Wait a minute? A game with these features, and it's free?". That's right, it is free to download and free to play. There are a couple ad screens you will see while playing, but the ads are for Shadowgun: Deadzone itself. Players have the option to upgrade to a "Premium Account" if they choose.
Premium accounts get the following:
-50% more Money and Gold for Playing Matches
-Increased Experience Points for Matches Played
-Access to Premium Servers
-Voice Chat
Premium features can be purchased using your in-game gold or you can drop some "real-world" money for it as a microtransaction. Premium accounts can be:
-1 day
-3 days ($00.99)
-1 week ($00.99 USD)
-1 month ($2.99 USD)
-3 months ($9.99 USD)
For example, I ran the month of January as a premium account. And the immediate advantage is being able to change between more than just the original 2 character skins. For me the cost is very little and if it counts towards helping the developers build updates for the game; then I am happy to support it. The Premium cost is a one time charge and no recurring. So when it runs out, you are dropped back down to a "Free Play" account status. Which means you receive less money and experience points.
Overall
This game should be considered a AAA title. It offers gameplay that I have yet to find in any other mobile game. And it feels like a big-console experience that you can hold in your hand. With great controls and graphics and an online experience like no other on a mobile device. I highly recommend this game. With a limited selection of maps and only two game modes, I would love to see this game grow to offer more as time goes on. But even with those limitations, I still give this game 5 Stars.
To play it, you will need a device that has at least 512MB of RAM. For iOS device users this includes: iPhone 4 (and newer), iPod Touch 5th Generation, and iPad 2 (and newer). For Android users a modern device with at least 512MB of RAM and running Android Honeycomb and newer.
I have been playing this on both my Samsung Galaxy S2 and my Google Nexus 7 and it plays smooth and fluidly on both devices.
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