Addictingly difficult and challenging | Review - Wizard of Legend Mobile
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✨Overview
Wizard of Legend Mobile is a a portable port of the popular PC title that successfully recreates the magic of the original game while adapting to touchscreen controls. This game delivers a fast-paced and challenging roguelike adventure, which is well suited for gaming on the go.
The timing of this mobile release couldn't be better, especially with the recent announcement of the upcoming Wizard of Legend 2. With the sequel on the horizon, fans and newcomers to the series alike have an opportunity play the first game on their mobile phones.
🟩Pros
+Fast-paced satisfying spell-based combat
+Challenging roguelike elements and progression
+Procedurally generated dungeons
+Spell and Item customization
+Touch and Gamepad support
🟥Cons
-Stunlock is overused as a combat mecahnic
-Progression system can feel grindy
⭐️Score: 9/10
Story and Premise
Set in the Kingdom of Lanova, Wizard of Legend Mobile immerses players in the annual Chaos Trials held by the Council of Magic. The game doesn't dwell heavily on storytelling, but its Museum tour style of introduction adds a touch of charm and context. At the end of the day, the game is not about an intricate plot but rather about spellcasting and battling foes.
Wizard of Legend is all about gameplay. The short but sweet backstory doesn't interfere with the primary action, which revolves around battling through the trials, mastering the art of spell combinations, and exploring this world of magic.
🎨Graphics and Art Style
The transition from the PC version to a smaller screen is basically translated 1:1, preserving the pixel art style and visual charm. The retro pixel art style is wonderfully animated, Every spell, every enemy has a unique character, and there is attention to detail. The visuals are both captivating and charming, even during the visual clutter of combat. The heroic orchestral soundtrack that reminds me of the Superman theme, complements the pixel art and magical theme beautifully. Each element, from spells to characters, fits seamlessly into the overall aesthetic.
🎮Gameplay
Wizard of Legend Mobile is basically the fast-paced gameplay of the original version while adapting to touch controls, with optional gamepad support. The controls are pretty easy to grasp, left touch for movement and right touch for the skills. It is noticeably harder to control the character because of the touch controls as oppooed to using a gamepad, so this adds an extra challenge to the already difficult nature of Wizard of Legend.
You start with a choice of four arcanas (spells), and as you explore the dungeons, you can collect, loot, and buy additional spells. The spells you loot are instantly unlocked for future runs, eliminating the need to repurchase them. Wizard of Legend Mobile boasts an impressive list of spells and items, including around 200 spells and 180 relics.
Relics, on the other hand, add depth to the game by modifying various aspects of the gameplay. Some offer significant advantages, while others come with drawbacks. Careful relic selection can lead to powerful character builds, allowing you to crush the Grandmaster.
The procedurally generated dungeons called Trials is pretty linear in terms of progression, but the maps themselves are a labyrinth that the player will need to explore. You’ll encounter NPCs along the way that provides services to the player such as Relic, Arcana, or Potions vendors, with color coded portals that can bring you back and forth to the start of the dungeon. The end of the dungeons lies a mini-boss and completing them advances you to the next level. This is the basic gist of the game, and you’ll find not much variety in the dungeons and bosses except for the elements and colors, and it can get repetitive over time due to the limited level design and enemy variety. However, since the dungeon layouts, enemy encounters, and available spells are randomized, each run presents a fresh challenge, replayability is high even if it can get repetitive.
The progression in the game is engaging, as you aim to unlock new items and enhance your character with the currency you collect. The game heavily relies on RNG for spell and item acquisition. While this randomness adds unpredictability and replay value, it can also lead to frustration when players are unable to access certain spells or items that would enhance their preferred playstyle. This can make the game very grindy and leave players feeling like they've made no progress even after playing for hours.
⚔️Combat
You'll encounter a wide array of enemies, each with distinct abilities and attack patterns. The game's challenge lies in your ability to adapt to different enemy tactics. You'll need to learn when to dodge, when to strike, and when to use your spells strategically to overcome your adversaries. When you die, you reset back again and can go right back into runs again, or perhaps you’d want to tweak your starting Arcanas and Relics.
You'll rely on a wide array of Arcanas to take on conjured enemies and prove your magical prowess. The combat system allows for creative spell combinations, making every encounter a puzzle to solve. Chaining these spells together to unleash devastating combinations is incredibly satisfying. Maybe you want to unleash AOE spells all the time, maybe you’ll want to have defensive spells, or perhaps you’d want to disable the enemies first before dealing damage, just to be safe.
The game is designed to keep you on your toes, as you can go from full health to defeated in a matter of seconds. The game is notorious for heavy use of the stunlock mechanics, which is a double edged sword. It can be overpowering for the player to constantly stunlock enemies to death, but it can also be frustratingly unfair when groups of enemies catch you offguard, back you into a corner and basically chop half your health because you got stunlocked. At these times, the game feels floaty and unresponsive, and I found this not to be a great combat mechanic.
The game can also become visually cluttered during intense combat scenarios, especially in crowded rooms with multiple enemies and numerous spell effects. This visual clutter can make it challenging to track incoming attacks, leading to unintended stunlock situations where players are unable to dodge or counter effectively.
📊Technical Performance
Performance wise, Wizard of Legend Mobile ran absolutely well on my Snapdragon 888 device. I’ve experienced no slowdowns or FPS drops even during visual clutters and you will pretty much forget that you’re playing on a mobile phone instead of the original game on PC or consoles. Controller support is implemented, complete with its own UI navigation and button prompts. The game has no graphics settings, and adjusts accordingly based on your phone’s specs. There is also an aim assist/auto target support option to assist the player.
⚖️Conclusion
If you enjoy action-packed combat, highly difficult roguelike challenges, and the thrill of playing as a mage, sorcerer, wizard, or basically any casters, Wizard of Legend Mobile offers a satisfying gameplay experience. The touch controls work well to bring fast-paced combat and spell combinations to mobile devices, and it's basically a 1:1 well-made port. I found it immensely difficult to master and progress in, but it's a game that encourages creativity and adaptability, making every run a unique adventure.
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