This is Gaming Cypher’s review of Wand Wars by developer Moonradish.
2D arena, local multiplayer game Wand Wars totally surprised me with hours of great fun! All you need to do in order to enjoy the game, is to simply use three buttons as well as directional input. You have the choice of either playing Arcane Arena or Merlinball. In addition, you can choose to play every mode in team or free-for-all.
The gameplay is easy to learn but hard to master. I let out more than a few “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOs” when the AI nailed me with a difficult shot. The premise of the game surrounds a small magical sphere that players have to catch and then fling back at their opponents or into the goal, all depending on which game mode you are playing. If players choose to send the magical sphere back, they can either tap the button right away to turn it into their color or have the option of charging it in order to make its speed and size bigger. Note that the faster and bigger the sphere, the more difficult it will become to stay out of its way and prevent death.
While trying to stay out of the huge sphere’s way, you have several options in your arsenal. You have an arcane arrow, which you can utilize on your opponents rendering them unable to grab the sphere. The arrow can also be used to fire at the sphere, in which case it becomes harmless until it is flung again. You will also have several power-ups, such as huge death beams or becoming a wizard munching demon. If you are lucky, the giant sphere might get hit by the environment itself, turning it into several smaller spheres. You’ll have your hands full playing Wand Wars and keeping super alert to your environment.
This game is incredibly fun and makes for a fantastic party game. I found the super fast Wand Wars great to play with friends, however. I do wish that the online multiplayer wasn’t so lacking, but playing with a group of four was totally fun.
The art direction is incredibly well fitting with the game, as well as paying homage to the arcade era games. The art direction pairs incredibly well with the music direction. The music is a great mix of nostalgic and modern music, similar to Undertale.
Here is the Wand Wars gameplay trailer:
In summary, I really enjoyed my time playing it and would definitely recommend Wand Wars as a buy and give it a 8/10 rating.
Wand Wars is now available for PC at the discounted rate of $10.79 on Steam.
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8/10
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