Anyone remember the classic cartoons such as Thundercats, Transformers and Superfriends? Those shows where teams of super powered heroes would battle it out to see who could prevail in the never ending war of good vs evil… Well, imagine if these sorts of characters became mercenaries, and their sole motivation was money and explosions, you’d get Awesomenauts, the latest project from Ronimo Games.
The game itself is entirely online, and has one simple concept; Infiltrate the enemy base, and destroy their main generator. Regular players of League of Legends will recognise the model of gameplay. Waves of small AI driven droids move from the home base to the enemy generator, and must push through defensive turrets in order to reach their goal. Players have a choice of various mercenaries, or ‘Awesomenauts’ to shoot up everything that moves, and everything that doesn’t move just to be sure.
The main difference between this game and ‘LoL’ is the pacing. Awesomenauts is much faster, and revolves around quick, snappy fire fights. Even when starting a new game, the maps and teams are randomised, meaning you don’t have to faff about with hundreds of options, like where to play, what game type, and who you’re playing with.
Controls are very easy to get used to; A to jump, X to attack, and Y & B to unleash some very unique special attacks, which offer some degree of tactical advantages. It only took me a few seconds to memorise the controls and I was shooting away with the other, more seasoned players – still ended up having my carcass riddled with holes, but at least it wasn’t because I was mashing the buttons, hoping the guy would do something relatively useful.
Each of the characters on offer vary greatly to each other, and are catered rather well to suit different playing styles. For example, Leon Chameleon is a close range stealth attacker, while Clunk is the resident robotic tank, soaking up damage while draining the enemy’s’ energy, which is good for those who like to offer support and defence to the rest of the team. My only issue is the low number of characters to choose from; only 5 heroes.
I do hope they release more characters, like a sniper character, or even an Awesomenaut that can be used to push waves of enemies back. And if they release them as DLC that you need to pay for, I will be rather disappointed.
Despite a few server issues when first playing the game, I had a good time when playing online. The pacing is exhilarating, the character balance is rather well done, and it’s a lot of fun when teams start to coordinate their attacks. If Ronimo Games can expand the content a tad, then it will be wonderful value for money. If you’re after some pick up and play tactical madness, then this really is a recommended purchase.
Finally, I must give extra kudos to one small thing I love… the theme tune. Seriously, the full version is just amazing. Download it for free from the official website, jam it onto your MP3, and play it on full blast. Your ears will thank me for it
Price: 800 MSP
Developer: Ronimo Games
Publisher: dtp Entertainment
For more info visit www.awesomenauts.com