Strategy games are often a type of genre we very much like to play but all of the involved controls and strategic mechanics get us down from time to time. Perhaps the best thing we can take away from these sorts of games is the age old premise that there is strength in numbers. Strategy games are often a lot of fun once you get past the obstacles of the controls and the fluff that comes with them. Well, what if they weren’t any obstacles in the first place? They’re not present at all in Ant Raid, read on to see how good a game this can make.
Description: Ant Raid is an arcade game that has strategy mixed in to create a fun and engaging game that puts you in charge of defending an Ant colony from other insects. You’ll have to defend from bees, snails and more as you coordinate your ant troops to defend their home. Defending Ants from other insects doesn’t sound like too much of a challenge but when you’re up against mutated bugs there’s a lot more than meets the eye. Take a look at the trailer below to find out more:
How it Works: To start defending some Ants, you’ll have to go and install the game from the Play Store. Once that’s done with, you can start playing, there are two game modes to play through, Story Mode and Survival.
The Story Mode of the game will have you progressively go through level after level, defending your colony against bigger and more difficult mutant insects at each level. There are a number of levels to choose from and when you first start the game you have the choice of watching an intro if you like, before you get started.
Let’s get started with the Story shall we? What’s great about Ant Raid – something we’ll run through now – is the tutorial that’s not really a tutorial. What I mean by that is that it takes you through how to play the game but it doesn’t feel like yet another boring tutorial.
So, the game tells you how to select a group of Ants – done by touching a small group – and then tells you what to do next. What’s really great about this is teaches you how to play the game without getting you too bogged down in instructions. Sometimes, a small group of Ants just isn’t going to cut it, for larger insects, you need to select a large group of Ants – which is done by holding down on the screen while the circle selects more and more Ants:
As you progress through the levels, you’ll be presented with different environs in which to protect the Ants from, you start of protecting a boot but you’ll soon be protecting a Melon and beyond!
Sending Ants out in their numbers to defeat insects is all fine and well but, you’ll have to get further into the game to do some real damage. There are a whole host of Power-Ups available as you progress through the game to give those insects a real fright!
When you complete a level, you’re given a rating out of three stars, try and get three stars on all levels – it’s not as easy as it sounds!
Survival Mode is a great way to hone your skills and the perfect mode to kill some serious time with. You’ve got to fight off wave after wave off horrible mutant insects until you can no longer go on!
Opinion: I really like games like these, the type of game that presents you with a little challenge but also helps you along the way. Ant Raid doesn’t leave players in the dark, it helps them get started and beyond. Not only that but Ant Raid brings us the best that strategy games have to offer – you have to control a group of ants to take down bigger mutant bugs and you’ve got to make sure you don’t stretch them too thin. That’s the best that strategy games bring us and perhaps the most fun part of them.
Ratings
- Speed (4/5) – Ant Raid is a very quick game and there were no slowdowns through my use. It’s paced very well for this type of game as well.
- Features (5/5) – While it might look a little light on features, it certainly doesn’t feel like that and I feel that the balance of arcade action and strategy here is pretty spot on.
- Theme (5/5) – I really liked the graphics, there’s a top-down view with some stunning 3D graphics. Ant Raid looks great and it’s got a very fun appearance to it, one that’ll definitely put a smile on your face.
- Overall (5/5) – It’s often hard to find a game on a smartphone that’s easy to enjoy. Controls might be difficult or it takes forever to get into it. With Ant Raid, there’s none of this obstacles, there’s just a great game for you to enjoy and have a lot of fun with.
Pros
- Stunning 3D graphics.
- The tutorial is light and quick, without leaving you in the dark afterwards.
- Arcade action and strategy elements have never come together so well before.
- It’s so much fun!
Cons
- Defeating bugs over and over could get a little repetitive.
Conclusion: If I’m completely honest, it’s been a long time since I’ve played a smartphone game and enjoyed it as much as I have Ant Raid. A lot of time spent gaming is on the PC or the Xbox and I stay away from a lot of mobile games because of finicky controls and things like that. With Ant Raid I found no obstacles stopping me from enjoying the game, it was very easy to get up and running with the game and from then on it was a like an arcade strategy game, which is in itself something I have never come across. It might seem like a silly bit of fun but believe me, Ant Raid is a brilliant game and something that everyone will enjoy – it’s perfect for gaming on the go without having to compromise on anything else. Ant Raid is also pretty challenging so if you’re fed up of playing easy smartphone games then this is one for you. If you haven’t already downloaded the game then go ahead and do it right now!