Little Masters Review
PROS
- Stripped back Pokemon-like gameplay; 'lite' approach to capturing and raising your monster army.
- Online battles, quests and 'selling' monsters provide a stable 'cash' income; IAP helpful, but not necessary.
CONS
- A little too 'on the nose' at times; all-too-similar UI and 2D graphics.
- Always online play has its obvious drawbacks for casual play.
VERDICT
For zero investment you net yourself a title that strips out the story, random-luck and complexity of raising monsters from Pokemon, leaving a battle-focused title in its place; Little Masters is fun, but otherwise dry in its execution.
- Full Review
- App Store Info
The freemium model has a tendency to get stuck in its tracks, spitting out titles with similar themes or at least based on similar genres. With this in mind it's no wonder gamers are clearly divided on whether they love or hate these sorts of titles. Little Masters takes a slightly different tack, modeling itself after NimbleBit's coin/bux driven system to speed up the Pokemon-inspired gameplay.
'Inspired' might be putting it lightly - those familiar with the classic monster-catching RPG will find themselves sliding in smoothly, picking up on the nuances of its combat almost immediately, while also (possibly) appreciating the streamlined approach to the monster collecting that forms the core of its addictive charm.
First things first, if you want to join in on the fun you'll need an internet connection - all game data is stored online, which does make the playing-field even, but otherwise frustrating to enjoy if you're having network issues away from your WIFI.
Once you've logged in, the game places you in control of a trainer who pits his monsters against other creatures captured thanks to various trackers. You'll be able to select the relative level of the monsters you face, as well as the kinds of creatures the trackers find, though it will take time for them to rest between hunts - hence the 'coins' you can earn. These speed up the process of tracking or hatching eggs to 'capture' new monsters for you to fight with.
Once you have five monsters you're encouraged to battle friends and random foes alike online for coin rewards. Disconnecting is discouraged by awarding winners three coins and losers two coins, but it's still relatively common to find yourself stuck waiting several minutes for a game to 'time out'; with any luck the developers will jump on this issue sooner than later.
Customization of your creatures via 'berries' means online combat is surprisingly varied, making it a great light alternative to Pokemon's far more detailed and time-consuming gameplay. Definitely worth grabbing if you loved playing competitively in Pokemon.
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