Tower of Fantasy is an action-adventure MMORPG developed by Level Infinite and is available for PC, the Apple App Store, and Google Play Store. Aiming to strike at a similar audience of fans of a similar game, Genshin Impact, Tower of Fantasy combines open world, adventure, MMO gameplay with bright anime-styled graphics and design all in one big gacha package. Obviously, with the success of a game like Genshin Impact, competitors were sure to rise. Does Tower of Fantasy do enough for fans of Genshin Impact to steal away and dedicate their time (and hopefully money) to it? Is Tower of Fantasy appealing to new fans of the genre? Or is it doomed to live in the shadows of its outrageously successful predecessor?
Attack of the Clone?
Tower of Fantasy, on first impressions, is strikingly similar to Genshin Impact. You play as a Wanderer who wakes up in a world rife with conflict and only your main protagonist energy combined with your incredibly effective ability to make friends will save the day. That, plus the goodies the gacha gambling machine decides to give you after hours of grinding or a quick trip to the bank. The world is beautiful and something I really liked is that in the settings, you can actually put a filter on the game to fit the mood you deem appropriate. I really appreciated this since it helps sell the post-apocalyptic dystopian vibe Tower of Fantasy has, the first major difference it has to Genshin’s fantasy setting. The world is beautiful, and I will always be surprised about how much processing power devs are extracting from mobile devices.
Tower of Fantasy’s gameplay loop is familiar ground for anyone who’s played Genshin Impact, though. Story missions allow you to meet some of the characters featured in the gacha and learn more about the world, co-op dungeons reward loot at the cost of a painfully slow regenerating stamina pool, and ruins, training courses, and challenges strewn throughout the open world and in individual instances ensure that there’s usually always something to do. However, Tower of Fantasy breaks from Genshin in one very key and important factor. Tower of Fantasy is an MMO, Genshin Impact is a single player game. What do I mean by this?
After finishing the tutorial story missions, you’re thrown into the open world where, if you look closely, is not just populated with NPCs and enemies, but also players running about. Tower of Fantasy is designed from the ground up to be an MMO. Enemy camps constantly respawn, meaning when AnimeFan420 kills all the enemies you needed for your bounty, you can just wait for them to leave and complete your bounty once the enemies respawn. There’s also PVP, a staple of many MMOs, something Genshin doesn’t offer. You could argue that in Genshin, you’re usually penalized for playing co-op, with restrictions preventing players from looting their friends’ world or helping them with story missions. In Tower of Fantasy, co-op is encouraged and with Joint Operations (co-op domains) tracking damage dealt, healing, and damage taken for all players involved, there’s pressure to do your best even if you and your team are stomping on a bunch of adds. Add on the high level of player customization for your protagonist and it’s clear that Tower of Fantasy is designed as an MMO first.
The difference that I think will convince any Genshin player or doubter to try Tower of Fantasy is the combat. Speaking as an AR 55 Genshin player with several level 90 characters (one of whom is Amber, yes, I’m crazy), I can wholeheartedly say that Tower of Fantasy’s combat blows Genshin Impact’s out of the water. Instead of a team of 4 characters, you equip 3 different weapons in Tower of Fantasy and, oh boy, are they fun. Weapons are acquired through the gacha and each one has a unique and fun playstyle. The best thing, though, about Tower of Fantasy’s combat is the sheer mobility you have. Standard movement being as fast as a sprint, an actual dodge button, double jumps, air dashes, and aerial attacks baked into most weapons means movement is just as important to combat as swinging a sword or shooting a gun. Maybe it’s just Genshin fatigue, but it’s hard to go from the fast-paced fighting in Tower of Fantasy to the (in comparison) more mundane, grounded gameplay loop of Genshin.
Another way in which Tower of Fantasy deviates/improves on Genshin’s is in the weapons that you can use. Instead of having to gamble for both top tier weapons and characters like in Genshin, when you roll for a weapon, like Nemesis’ Venus, you also get the character, also known as the Simulacrum, associated with that weapon. That means you get the best of both worlds. Want to use Venus but love your custom character? You can do so. Want to play as Samir or King? Once you get the weapon they’re associated with, you can play as any character you want. I think this is probably Tower of Fantasy’s best move to help differentiate itself from Genshin Impact. Cutting out an entire extra gambling machine means as a player, you can focus on what you want, whether it be focusing on building the perfect arsenal for your self-insert custom anime protagonist or wanting to play as Tsubasa or Zero because they look cool. Plus, it means unlike in Genshin, your favorite waifu or husbando is restricted to being D tier because their kit is bad, because any Simulacra can use any weapon you have unlocked.
Towering Over Expectations
As someone who’s been enjoying Genshin Impact since it’s launch, I initially started playing Tower of Fantasy out of curiosity, almost pity. Aw, this rip-off game is trying to be like Genshin, how cute. 30 levels and hours later, I can safely say that my expectations have been shattered completely. With its focus on multiplayer gameplay as an MMO first, its fast-paced combat, and an excess of player customization, Tower of Fantasy puts its best foot forward and makes a strong case for it becoming a staple in your gacha game lineup. I really can’t stress just how fun it is to play. Activating 20 abilities while swapping through your team in Genshin can be fun, especially when big damage numbers come up, but I don’t think I’ve had an experience in Genshin that can compare to me mowing down a camp of enemies, dashing from a boss to a minion then back to the boss, upper kicking into an aerial attack before unleashing a devastating electrical burst from my main weapon. Tower of Fantasy is a hoot to play and for that reason alone, I think it’s more than worth a shot.
For more information, visit: https://www.toweroffantasy-global.com/
Related: Matt Tran Reviews
My name is Matt Tran and I have been playing video games since I could remember holding a controller. I've always been a hardcore gamer growing up, from the hectic MW2 and Halo 3 lobbies, my many journeys through several Halo clans and my current exploits with my Destiny 2 clan. I love shooters and RPGs and overanalyzing every component of every game I've played, from weapon stats to ideal perks. When I have time to play other games, I currently play Genshin Impact and Star Wars Squadrons.
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