CHAIN STRIKE Review for Android

Chain Strike is a turn-based, free-to-play hero collection strategy RPG developed by Com2uS. Underlying the game’s fundamental gameplay are the mechanics of chess, as players get to control characters that are situated on a chessboard at the beginning of each match. Just as in chess, different heroes move in unique paths and possess distinct abilities. Chain Strike also draws inspiration from the genre of anime both in terms of its visuals and plot. The game relies on its diverse cast of aesthetically beautiful playable heroes and its fantasy storyline to drive player intrigue.

When starting Chain Strike, players are immediately introduced to the game’s main plotline. In it, different heroes named Ameline, Lucian, and Finn fight against an evil empire led by Lord Stein that has taken over their world. The situation the heroes are in looks hopeless – they are overmatched by their foes and appear on the threshold of defeat. In a desperate move to give their world a chance of freedom from under the oppressive empire, the heroes determine to send Ameline into the past. In a heartfelt scene, Ameline leaves her companions to die and jumps back in time to prevent their reality from ever occurring, and the game begins in earnest.

Ameline almost immediately encounters the Lucian and Finn of the past, right when they got promoted to the Royal Guard and were patrolling Ramon Forest. She convinces them of the veracity of her story and that she is from the future, ultimately informing them about Lord Stein’s plan to take over the world. The three begin to work together to stop the empire from rising to power in the first place by collecting the seven pieces of the Philias. As the storyline progresses, the plot thickens, more characters are introduced, and tough boss fights ensue.

Despite some grammatical errors in the dialogue that may pull players outside of the story, the plot is impressively immersive for a mobile game. It situates players well in the world and provides a sense of meaning to the gameplay.

The gameplay is very well realized. Players’ heroes are placed on a 5×7 chessboard and need to work in tandem to defeat enemies. Like chess pieces, heroes can only move in certain directions. A lot of the game’s strategy comes in when figuring how to maneuver heroes such that they will be in an optimal position to inflict damage on their adversaries. By aligning heroes in certain manners, players can unleash attacks that all four of their characters can participate in. The strongest moves that a character has access to its chain strike, which are visually stunning attacks that devastate enemies by dealing massive amounts of damage.

Players begin the game with access to only two heroes, Lucian and Finn. However, they quickly gain access to many other playable heroes that they can use to advance the storyline. When playing in the story mode, players can use up to four heroes at once. Players can upgrade their heroes by equipping them with better equipment, level them up, or sacrifice excess heroes to boost their skills.

Chain Strike offers up the chance to gain new playable characters by giving players the ability to summon them for free every few hours. To unlock higher-quality heroes, however, players will need to use the in-game currency that they accumulate by advancing the plot. The variety of characters is pleasing, as employing a single new hero can alter the game in a significant fashion.

The game also boasts many features besides its main Adventure mode. Chain Strike offers a PvP mode called Promotion Battles, an endless dungeon mode called the Unknown Land, and more. Each specific mode focalizes itself through the same chess-like gameplay, and it is interesting to see how this form of play can be applied to so many different modes.

Chain Strike’s main drawback is that it shamelessly encourages players to invest real money in it. The Adventure mode becomes progressively harder until players need to acquire better heroes to win battles. The easiest way to do this is to engage in micro-transactions. Players can also repeat levels and grind until their heroes reach the levels necessary to win, although this can constitute an extremely time consuming business.

Chain Strike executes most of its concepts extremely well. The game’s storyline is engrossing, the diverse heroes are intriguing, and the visuals tend to be great. However, the clear emphasis on micro-transactions and the need to grind to progress makes one question how much skill players truly require to complete the game. One gets the feeling that developer Com2uS focuses primarily on how to induce players to spend real money rather than to encourage them to actually cultivate skill and incorporate strategy while playing Chain Strike.

Rating: 7/10

Watch the Chain Strike Trailer:

Chain Strike is now available for Android via Google Play as well as iOS via the App Store.

Jori Grossman

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I'm a recent graduate of Columbia University. Gaming has been a passion of mine my entire life; I enjoy everything from RPGs and FPSs to stealth and narrative-driven games. I love the deeply immersive quality that good video games inherently possess, and am looking forward to highlighting games worthy of acclaim. When I'm not studying or reading, you can catch me playing games like Uncharted, Dishonored, The Witcher 3, and Far Cry.

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