Summoners War: Sky Arena
| Summoners War: Sky Arena | |
|---|---|
 App store icon | |
| Developer(s) | Com2Us |
| Publisher(s) | Com2Us |
| Platform(s) | iOS, Android |
| Release date(s) |
|
| Genre(s) | Turn-based Strategy, MMO |
Summoners War: Sky Arena, created by South Korean game developer, Com2Us, is a mobile turn-based strategy MMO. The game was announced and released at the Electronic Entertainment Expo on June 12, 2014 for iOS and Android devices. Summoners War has performed successfully with 50 million downloads worldwide.[1]
Gameplay
Players assume the role of a summoner, opening scrolls in order to acquire monsters to fight in battle. Newly summoned monsters can range from a 1-star grade to a 5-star grade, with higher-end monsters being rarer.[2] Using monsters in battle raises their experience level, and they can be evolved to a higher star grade, with the maximum being a 6-star grade.
Cairos Dungeon is a critical element in the game. It is where players farm the majority of their runes, all awakening essences, and a variety of others. These dungeons range in difficulty from B1 being the easiest, to B10 as the most challenging.
Monsters come in five elements: water, fire, wind, light, and dark. In terms of attack, water monsters have an advantage over fire, fire has an advantage over wind, and wind has an advantage over water. Light and dark have advantage over each other, but deal regular damage to the other three types. In addition, each monster also has a specific class, such as support, defence, health points, and attack.[3]
In addition to evolving to a higher star grade, another gameplay mechanic is awakening', which transforms the monster. The process requires "essences" of the element of the monster: fire, water, etc. Monster's that are naturally higher stars, or summoned at higher grade require more essences. Awakening a monster changes its appearance and name, boost its innate stats, and may allow it to gain a new skill.[4]
Runes
A core mechanic of the game is the use of runes. Each monster can accommodate six runes, which helps boost its innate stats. These can be upgraded using mana (in-game currency), which increases the stats runes provide. Similar to monsters, runes come in different grades, ranging from one to six stars. Higher-grade runes offer better stats, but cost more mana to upgrade.[5]
All runes provide an additional bonus if the player attaches a complete set to a monster. For example, attaching two Energy Runes will give the monster a 15% health bonus, while attaching four Violent Runes gives the monster a 22% chance to attack again after its turn.
The Next Stage
On November 21, 2015, Com2Us held a press conference called Summoners War: The Next Stage.[6] During the event, the developers highlighted major features that would be introduced in the upcoming patch:
- Rift of Worlds: (See § Rift of Worlds, below.)
- World Boss: This is an enemy that has a single health bar and is attacked by all participating summoners. Players use three teams of 20 monsters that must be level 30 or higher. Earning a higher ranking by doing more damage to the boss results in increased rewards.
- Transmogrification: Shapeshifting Stones was introduced, which allows players to change the costumes for certain monsters. These are aesthetic changes only and have no effect on the monster’s skill or stats.
Multiplayer
Although the main storyline is single-player, Summoners War offers many cooperative and competitive multiplayer modes.
Arena
In this competitive game mode, players can select up to four monsters to attack other players' defences. Participating in arena battles allows players to earn glory points, which can be used to purchase in-game items. Winning battles also increases the player's rank and at the end of each week, additional rewards can be earned.
Guilds
On July 1, 2014, Com2Us announced an update introducing guilds to the game.[7] Although this early update only allowed players to join guilds in order to chat directly with other players, a larger update on March 9, 2015 added battling capabilities and a rewards shop.[8] Players in a guild set a defence consisting of two teams with three monsters each. Guilds battle against a randomly selected guild of similar ranking to earn points, which can be used to purchase prizes.
Rift of Worlds
Rift of Worlds is a cooperative raid mode that pits teams of three players, each using a team of six monsters, against a three-headed boss. Players can position their monsters in the front row, where they'll receive more damage, or the back row, where they'll be safe from some incoming attacks.[6] The battle commences in auto-mode, meaning the player has no direct input on what skills their monsters use.
Unique rewards that can be earned after winning a raid include rune grindstones and enchanted gems. Rune grindstones are used to boost a rune’s substats, while gems can be used to change a substat to a different one.
Reception
The game has achieved top-10 status in over 84 countries in the Apple App Store and over 54 countries on Android.[9] By November 2015, the game had reached over 50 million downloads.[10]
As part of the developer's push to develop a global market, the game includes extensive language support and is available to play in 14 different languages.[11] To increase brand awareness, Com2Us has launched large marketing campaigns in overseas markets, such as North America.[9]
Reviews
Summoners War has received positive reviews. Brittany Vincent gave the game 4 out of 5 stars, praising its high production value and interesting mechanics.[2] Noting the oversaturation of the game genre, Vincent Haoson notes that Summoners War has "considerably superior graphics and production value".[4] On a similar note, Nick Shively applauded the style of gameplay, stating, “What really separates Summoners War: Sky Arena from the rest of the mobile MMORPGs is the combat".[12]
Shively also complimented the 3D rendering of the fights and monsters during combat. “I thought this was a pretty cool aspect, since most mobile MMORPGs feature card systems and you never actually get to see your creatures moving in 3D".[12]
However, both Shively and Vincent point out that the high degree of grinding could put off many players.[2][12] Speaking about the nature of collecting the strongest monsters, Vincent argues, “The game is clearly geared toward collecting as much money from its players as possible, but it's just as enjoyable without spending a dime".[2]
Another criticism is the game’s generic story. While Haoson awarded Summoners War a perfect score, he describes the plot as “a mediocre and linear storyline to give the notion of progress and development as it takes the player from one map to the next".[4]
References
- ↑ Shaul, Brandy. "E3 2014: Com2uS launches Summoners War: Sky Arena on iOS, Android". Adweek. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Vincent, Brittany. "Summoners War: Sky Arena Review". 148 Apps. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- ↑ Buja, Steve. "'Summoners War: Sky Arena' Release, iOS And Android Strategy RPG Lets You Wage Fantastical Battle On Your Phone". GameNGuide. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 Haoson, Vincent. "Summoners War: Sky Arena Mobile Review". MMO Huts. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- ↑ "Game Guide - About Runes". Official Com2Us Summoners War Forum. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- 1 2 "Summoners War: The Next Stage press conference". GameNGuide. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- ↑ "Summoners War: Sky Arena July Update adds Guilds and new Monster Review System". Gamasutra. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- ↑ Huff, Andrew. "[Update: Released] Com2uS will be bringing Guild Battles to Summoners War in the next update". Droid Gamers. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- 1 2 "Com2uS announces upcoming Summoners War Guild Battles update as it surpasses 30 million downloads". Gamasutra. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
- ↑ "Summoners War to open long-awaited Rift of Worlds in major update". Gamasutra. Retrieved 10 February 2016.
- ↑ "Summoners War: Sky Arena on Google Play". Gamasutra. Retrieved 11 February 2016.
- 1 2 3 Shively, Nick. "Summoners War: Sky Arena Review". MMO Games. Retrieved 3 February 2016.