Review of Kaiju Wars, a strategy game with giant monsters in 8-bit sauce

contact kaiju It is well known to fans of Japanese productions, and the first film of the genre is now releasing in the distant 1954. We’re obviously talking about Godzilla, the progenitor of an enormous amount of movies. giant monsters With the devastating power of an atomic bomb, it invaded and trampled Japan’s largest cities.

In recent years the genre has also seen significant pressure in the West with Pacific Rim further expanding the audience of fans of a particular genre of representation, on the video game front this narrative vein has been represented quite often, just think. example of the last 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim.

Well, the guys at Foolish Mortals Games saw fit to combine their passion for classic movies with kaiju, a strategic genre and retro style that combines the color palettes of 8-bit platformers to bring their latest games to life: here it is. Kaiju Wars review.

Structure

Kaiju Wars’ main menu comes in the form of an 80’s command center with a set of monitors at the top, some devices, and some sort of sticker album at the bottom. The album can be “reversed” to reveal cutscenes and missions, while the former lets you access a curious archive of old movies, adjust the (several) options available, try your hand at the map editor or local countermode. countryside.

It consists of six parts for a total of more than sixty stages, one of which is main and optional. duration At least fifteen hours (depending on how many times you have to repeat the hardest levels), the game’s campaign will see us take on the role of rulers of some cities that are in full threat with the kaiju’s arrival. The monsters are not numerous, just four, but they are almost unstoppable creatures: a clone of King Kong, a hybrid of a wolf and Godzilla, a variation of the Rodan theme, and a kind of gigantic dragon-snake.

In very minor scenarios characterized by a isometric image and as stated, from a graphic style reminiscent of the 8-bit platforms era, our task will be to defeat the monsters by resetting their full-body health bars, or alternatively to keep them busy enough for our scientist’s reference, Dr. Wagner, develop a serum that will force them to flee.

By unlocking the objectives of each mission, we will be able to earn medals that will then be spent on raising troops, at least to try to reduce the enormous gap between the effectiveness of our defense systems and the giant’s unstoppable fury. Monsters that are exaggerated in the final missions of each chapter, but that take too long without the possibility of significantly speeding up the development of transitions or saving the game: pretty frustrating aspect.

gameplay

This gameplay The strategy of Kaiju Wars is the result of a very special balance: while the enemies we will have to face from time to time are few but very strong, our military vehicles have very limited mobility and will be crushed like flies on the first attack. He will make tactical decisions based on the objectives of the monsters, which at every opportunity tend to shoot down buildings that provide the necessary money for the manufacture of weapons.

The Kaiju’s movement is predictable, and it’s the interface itself that tells us what might happen in the boxes that surround them, but there are thousands of obstacles that are only available in boxes adjacent to the monster to prevent any attack maneuvers: the inability to move vehicles over water, for example, or a life-threatening fire.

Dr. Since Wagner’s murder appeared as a condition of the case, game overIf kaiju gets too close to his laboratory, we will have the possibility to transfer him by land with a convoy, but at this point we will agree to pause production of the science points necessary for the creation of the aforementioned serum. to reject the invasion.

To slow down the Kaiju’s progress we’ll be able to count on tanks, airplanes, missile launchers, as well as special weapons including a spacecraft that requires several rounds of preparation and can be converted into a robot (what an ugly cutscene, however), a hovercraft, a laser, a freezing beam, and more. more than. Someone special papers they will give us more options in turn, but monsters will also be able to draw from their decks and sometimes frankly exaggerated benefitscapable of canceling any possible counter-movement and determining our inevitable defeat.

graphics and sound

As noted, graphic of Kaiju Wars is characterized by a distinctive ’80s style, especially regarding very limited color palettes. It is not clear what the fruit of this inspiration is and what is due to the production constraint instead, the truth is that visually the result is definitely weird and has a lot of character, but it also shows the side of really ugly solutions, especially the front side of the animations.

Sector sound probably better use this type of characterization and chiptune style music It very aptly accompanies what we see on the screen, without wanting to leave the beginning of the game. The effects exemplified are essential as expected for such a product only.