Fate Arena just launched yesterday, and I'm already 7 hours in...that's usually a pretty good sign. This game follows the blueprint of most autochess type games, allowing you to battle for gold, purchase/upgrade units, organize unit formation, etc. There are a few things that set this game apart from the rest: (also TLDR verdict below)
[h1]Potential Pay to Win Mechanics[/h1]
This feels like the elephant in the room, so let's get it out of the way. This game has a way to buy gold/gems with real money to open chests, which in turn give you stronger units. I will speak a bit more on how that works in the next topic, BUT this is the only part of the game that I REALLY don't like. This company has another successful game (ZombsRoyale) which employs the same system, but the gain is purely cosmetic, HOWEVER they just received financial backing from Supercell (Clash of Clans, Boom Beach, etc) so maybe they are moving to more of a p2w setup. Obviously the game is in beta, let's hope for balance sake that they move to a cosmetic only model, OR limit the # of upgrades you can buy with cash.
[h1]Out of game unit progression[/h1]
When you win games, you will gain gold and eventually unlock chests and cards that will allow you to upgrade individual units. Everything starts as a Level 1 with base stats, and require a certain number of cards to upgrade HP and DMG. SO, theoretically you could be in a game with level 5 units against someone with level 1, and you would have an edge. This is done COMPLETELY outside of the upgrade mechanic in game as well, so a tier 1 level 5 unit SHOULD have an advantage over a tier 1 level 1 unit. I'm not certain how high the unit level goes overall, but I currently have a single level 4. I could see this getting out of hand if an tier 1 level 7 is beating a tier 2 level 1 unit....as that would seem to punish the core game mechanic and reward time/money commitment. If the money aspect was removed altogether maybe I would feel a bit better about this, but again I think it's worth stating that I've never felt outmatched unit to unit. This is something to keep an eye on as the game progresses.
[h1]Balance / Gameplay[/h1]
When you first start out, you are given a limited number of units and a small health pool so that you can learn the game faster. Games hardly take anytime at all...and if you've played any autochess games before you'll feel like it's over before it really started. As you progress you will unlock new arenas which bring new heroes as well as an increased health pool to work with. Essentially as you move forward, the meta become more complex and games last longer because 1) the additional health and 2) it is less likely to create tier 3 units due to the sheer number of units available. So far, it's hard to have a good gauge on how the units balance out. I'm starting to see a few things that seem OP...for instance, getting 6 of one kind of unit (referred to as synergies....archers would be an example) seems to be strong right now, but it would take more time to have a real grasp on how the meta plays out fully. One thing I REALLY appreciate is that the devs include some preset builds to help you synergize faster, so you don't need to be a god-tier theory-crafter to be lethal...just grab a premade build and go to work. I've only tested a few premade builds, but I've taken 1st each time when sticking with them.
[h1]Aesthetics[/h1]
I don't want to make a huge point of this as you can determine for yourself whether you like it or not, but it's worth noting that it does have a unique feel in the autochess space. Everything from the menus and UI, to the character and level design fits the cel shading / cartoonish art style well.
[h1]TLDR Verdict[/h1]
Overall I'd say this is a great beta launch...definitely worth checking out if you're interested in the genre. The meta seems interesting, and I've only encountered one small bug to this point. Let's hope Pay to Win doesn't wreck this game...there is a lot of potential here.
