iOS App-Aholics Anonymous: [Megatroid]

App Name: Megatroid
Developer: Triolith Entertainment
Launch Date: 8-1-12
Price: FREE
App-Aholic Rating: 4/5
Watch it Here: Official Game Trailer

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High gas prices, utilities bills, and other forms of debt are constantly eating at your wallet. Why should the AppStore do the same?

Triolith Entertainment, the makers of Megatroid, have decided to release their episodic platformer for $0. That’s right, it’s FREE!

Just based on the name alone (enhanced by a quick glance of the photo frames), one may guess this is an iOS rendition of the popular Metroid series. Down to the female character-piece, you would be mostly correct. Now, I, for one, couldn’t be happier that a mobile developer decided to bring this to the mobile markets, since we haven’t really seen a good Metroid-esque RPG since the release of Grokion a couple years ago. As you may or may not know, Grokion was only released with an “episode 1” and the promise of future additions to the series; unfortunately, due to some personal errors, all that has yet to surface from Grokion since then is a couple sketches of the second episode, and that is all. I’m happy to say that Megatroid fills whatever gap the unfinished Grokion left in me; now let’s hope Triolith Entertainment sticks to their episode updating schedule. 😉

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Gameplay: The idea is simple. You will endure a numerous amount of stages, all the while collecting data cores and leveling up in order to face the awaiting bosses. Data cores will earn you said leveling experience, as well as contribute towards a type of money system by which you may purchase heftier armor and deadlier artillery to help you defeat the growing threat.

To infinity and…? Gameplay is virtually endless. As far as boss battles are concerned, however, there are a limited number of chapters (only 1, currently) and a limited number of bosses in each chapter (only 2). On the boss screen, it claims that chapter 2 will be available soon, most likely through an AppStore update. Until then, feel free to keep punching random destinations into the level-creator and blast away. But keep in mind: once you reach the final skill level required to face the last boss, you will not be allowed to level up anymore until the next chapter is released, if or when that will be. You could, however, always earn more cores to grab the latest gear from the built-in Black Market, which consists of a series of goodies that are changing nearly every 10 minutes or so.

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The Bad: With an endless stage-creator and no real “levels” that must be completed, some may grow bored with Megatroid simply because its lack of motivation to keep playing. Avid gamers will quickly reach their maximum level, acquire the highest-rated upgrades, and kill all the bosses in a short amount of time. After that, there’s really no achievements to keep you going other than to wait for Chapter 2’s release. Some may like this type of episodic gameplay; others will be annoyed to wait.

There were also another glitch worth mentioning: several minor system crashes occurred, particularly when trying to access the Boss Battle menu. Again, this was only minor and occurred only a small handful of times.

Monotony: With “randomly generated stages,” it’s not uncommon to find copied portions of previously-played stages in future stages. Thanks to these spliced components, variations with the appearance of the stage landscape is nill; each location will geographically look the same.

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App-Aholic Rating: 4; near perfection, but a few minor blips, as were mentioned above, keep Megatroid from bursting into complete mobile gaming gold. Despite these, Triolith Entertainment’s homage to a semi-forgotten legacy of a classic side-scrolling adventure. The AppStore needs more like this.

Bottom Line: Did I mention Megatroid’s free? It’s a fun adventure. Controls are firm. Storyline is a bit weak, but the drive to excel in experience levels and increasing weaponry. This side-scrolling platformer is worth a try for anyone interested in the genre.

Sound Off: Now, folks, it’s your turn! Do you have any thoughts, opinions, or general comments about Megatroid and/or its developer, Triolith Entertainment? I personally reply to every comment, and I’d love to hear what you have to say! Just take your cranial debris and throw it down in the box below!

Happy Downloading!

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