Army of Ruin

Casual, minimally involved game that has a lot of chance in how each run will go. Game runs super smooth on a M4 MBA and has full controller support. Intuitive and easy to play. I wish a couple early rolls didn't decide how the whole run will play out- but sometimes you win because of random chance and sometimes you get crushed despite picking the best options available. Frustrating, but it comes with the genre. Honestly, a fun but fairly mindless way to relax. 8.5/10

还行

The art, animations and UI all combine to make it feel like a bad mobile game. If you want a better bullet heaven game, get Conquest Dark or Not Another Zombie Survivor. Both are mind-blowingly good representations of the genre.

Way too much grinding for such little gold for upgrades. Making 1 upgrade has no real impact on your next run. Not clear like Vampire survivor what items upgrade or evolve to what items.

Army of Ruin suffers from two significant flaws: 1) Design. The entire time I was playing I was wondering when a popup would start asking me for credit card information or if I want to watch an advertisement for +.6 seconds of increased gambler's high. The visual style, from the characters to the menus, have the appearance of a highly polished (derogatory) whale-hunting mobile game. It may not be Milkstone's fault that mobile "game" devs turn their players into lever-pulling rodents, but aping their style is certainly... a choice. I recognize that this might seem an odd criticism to lead with, however the design touches everything. Even the chest-opening animation looks like it's trying to convince me "I missed an ultra rare by thiiiiis much maybe I should buy another 2 or 10 chests..." and even if I wanted that experience, I still would be unsatisfied because... 2) The impact of the visual design bombarding the senses with the [strike]gambling game[/strike] mobile "game" aesthetic, while nauseating, can only distract you from the reality that the game is so boring for so long. Part of the problem is the advancement ('stars' on already-beaten levels) seems challenging until you get a couple of the right upgrades, after which point they're just a list of chores. I spent the final few hours of my gameplay just finishing more chores for achievement completion. If that's how my play experience finishes--chores, not, say, the highest-level challenges--I don't really think a game which had done little to curry my favor can ever really impress well upon me.

Hat wahrscheinlich das Potenzial, interessant zu sein. Aber viel zu viel Grind, bevor man überhaupt Spaß haben kann.

Good but easy, get's repetitive pretty quickly imo. Good for casual time killing. Lots of progression to be had for those that like that.

Wow what a nice game, how I managed to miss it. I love how well-crafted it is, kudos to developers. I like the variety of maps, like that every map has certain kind of enemies - it's very nice to see this kind of effort. Comfortable difficulty, adjustable pace, decent progression - what else do you need. Highly recommend for those who probably do not seek any extra challenge and just want to relax (note: I haven't even opened all characters, maybe there is a challenge later. Not a lot of game inspire me to write such a long review. Oh! And there is no dashing out of red circles.

[h1]Grade: B[/h1] [b]Army of Ruin[/b] does something most bullet hells don't bother with — it gives a damn about how it looks. A [i]dark fantasy fairy tale[/i] aesthetic that immediately sets it apart from the sea of pixel art survivors flooding the genre. The vibrant color schemes against chaotic enemy swarms shouldn't work as well as they do, but somehow the visual language actually helps you read the battlefield rather than fight it. That's a design win most games in this space fumble completely. I've seen enough of this game to say it earns every hour it takes from you. [quote]In a genre where "just one more run" is the whole pitch — Army of Ruin actually delivers on it.[/quote] [h2]What Works[/h2] [list] [] Artistic direction is genuinely distinctive — not just another clone [] [b]300+ unlockables[/b] — characters, weapons, trinkets, charms — the build variety is real [] Multiple difficulty levels per stage give the grind actual purpose [] The auto-shooter loop feels smooth and satisfying, not mindless [*] $7.99 ($3.99 on sale) price point is almost insulting for how much content is here [/list] [h2]Minor Complaints[/h2] [list] [] Some enemy scaling can feel uneven in later difficulty tiers [] Only five stages — the variety is deep, not wide [/list] [b]Bottom line:[/b] If you've written off the survivor genre as Vampire Survivors clones all the way down — [b]Army of Ruin[/b] is the correction. The art alone justifies the look, and the gameplay backs it up.