A Weird RPG is a new game that mixes things up by combining two things that should not go well together by all the laws of physics, yet coming up with a decent end result. Like cats and dogs or, heaven forbid, Democrats and Republicans, this game combines classic RPG gameplay with old school arcade style high scores to create something . . . well, weird!
The game starts you off on a random small hunk of land, surrounded by enemies and dungeons. You move your character by tapping on one of four quadrants on the screen, and eventually go into a dungeon or run into an enemy. Combat is basic. Attack and defend icons pop up randomly on the screen, and you have to hit them to strike and block attacks. You will eventually come across quest-giving NPCs, who are too useless as humans to find their doll or shovel that is only five steps away. (Where is Darwin when you need him?) Along the way, you will acquire random weapons, rings and amulets that don’t really affect gameplay at all.
So what the heck is the point of all this?
That’s the thing. There really isn’t one. You have a limited number of moves (500 on the small island) to do as much as you can, whether it’s fighting, completing quests, or running into a tree repeatedly. Every single thing you do takes a move, and the goal is to do whatever you can to get the highest score you can. There is no story to speak of, so there isn’t much motivation to play over and over again. Although there is a massive database of items and enemies to complete, as well as Game Center leader boards and achievements. So there’s always that.
The controls can be frustrating. In the over world, your character is in the middle of the screen, but in the dungeons, the map is fixed instead of the character, which is disorienting, and takes some getting used to. You have to be very careful not to waste moves, which is easy to do.
Overall, the game seems to be “love it or hate it” for most people. I thought it was an interesting experiment, and worth checking out. Download with caution.
Download the free Appolicious iPhone app
