Tap Wizard 2 developed by TopCog and Ultimate Games SA for the Xbox One is a solid top-down shooter that focuses on modernizing the experience for this era of gaming. As for how it does this is through automating the gameplay for console to ensure the player can focus on other tasks at hand in the game. Aside from the gameplay the visuals for the game are quite jarring for a top-down shooter trying to modernize the genre, by being retro themed which can be off putting for people. This leaves the player to focus on the other mechanics in the game and get used to some of the more automatic features of the game. TopCog and Ultimate Games SA have made a pretty solid game and the experience on Xbox One while feeling a little weird at times due to the controls can be adjusted to over the first 30 minutes into the game.
Gameplay wise the game is focused on automatically playing the game for the player while receiving diminishing returns over time. This makes Tap Wizard 2 somewhat similar to games like AFK Arena, for allowing the player to gain resources while they are not playing the game. Moreover, while this makes farming in games easier to accomplish makes the game simple in that respect. While this can be seen as a cop out for some gamers those who appreciate the grind in games and automation will greatly appreciate the service. As for other elements tied directly to the gameplay are the shops, Obelisk Shard, and upgrades. The shops in this game provide some cosmetics, buffs, and equipment for the player to use for the development of their character to reach even higher levels. These added buffs can be beneficial especially anything related to XP generation which will allow the player to level up even faster overall.
As for the Obelisk Shard it allows the player to rest their power in order to gain better stats over time making the grind easier for those who are influenced to check the game every now and then when playing sparingly. In the long run the best possible way to maximize the experience would be focused on obtaining items and equipment to increase the XP gain while offline.
Visually the game is retro themed and for a top-down shooter it fits the role and can latch onto the nostalgia for older gamers. This is reminiscent of older retro styled games like Galaga, old school Space Invaders (if the ship in space invaders moved around in a 3-dimensional plane). The retro styled graphics are greatly appreciated for those nostalgia driven fans who want to remember some of the older days in gaming. This bit styled graphics can also be seen as a simplified way to focus on other mechanics that take a lot more time to develop such as the narrative. Moreover, the graphics while feeling a bit old school fit into the theme of the game as the player will most likely be focused more on the story driven elements presented in the game overall.
The other mechanics in the game include, a store, narrative, and spells all contribute to the overall gameplay in the background as the automated gameplay takes center stage. The store focuses on providing the player various items from cosmetics all the way up to game changing equipment in the form of rings. These rings can provide additional set bonuses towards XP, souls, and power to ensure that the player has all the necessary resources to progress in the game even faster. As for the narrative it is based on time and some of them can be unlocked around 1 to 2 minutes based upon the time the player spends playing both online and offline. Moreover, to clarify the narrative it is unlocked through the player over time and needs the player to confirm it to move on to the next set of lore.
Without revealing too many spoilers about the narrative, it all centers around the player character’s ability to revive and get stronger overtime. Furthermore, it goes into some detail as to why the player is at that spot in particular and why the player’s hp will not drop pass 1. By tying in narrative elements with gameplay in this way is creative and possibly not to be expected from people so having this level of depth is nice to have. There are also spells the player can equip and the player has a decent selection of wizards to select for their first time with a focus on elemental powers. These spells can have various additional effects attached onto them based upon the luck of the player as some can be re-cast after a certain percentage of enemies have been hit by it, or splinter off to do more damage.
Tap Wizard 2 is a surprisingly fun game when the player can focus on the micromanagement portion of the game min-maxing their potential to get to higher rounds in the game and even getting towards the end game bosses. The overall feel of the gameplay is centered around the fact that it is automated and will be great for those who are familiar with AFK concepts in video games that play themselves. Aside from that, the retro styled graphics compliment the overall feel of the game as the player can focus on other elements tied to the game. These other game mechanics provide a nice change of pace to the game as the player can have the wizard automatically fight the enemies as they focus on other things such as the shop, narrative, and spells. TopCog and Ultimate Games SA have made a solid game for the gamer they know will enjoy it quite well, plus this is a nice game to check in on every now for a surprise making this game a solid 7/10.
For more information, visit https://topcoggaming.com/
Related: Reviews by Kyle Manila
I would describe myself when interacting with games as a strategist with a pension for stealth and loud explosions.
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