Infinity Blade review: Greatness cut down to size
71
I dodge, since even my hefty shield can't save me from a gorgeously rendered mechanical titan and his crushing boot. I curse myself for not wearing my magical healing ring. It was stupid, but I wanted the experience point from leveling up my weaker fire ring. I slash at the titan's hammer, trying to match the angle of his swing so I can successfully parry and hit him with a flurry of blows from my poison-tipped blade. I pull it off and move in for the kill, leaping skyward, the sun glinting off my armor as I bury the sword in the monster's metallic head.
This is Infinity Blade. And it's all happening on my iPhone.
In Chair/Epic's new release, you are one of a long line of warriors trying to infiltrate an ominous castle and bring down a god king who dwells within. Well, "infiltrate" is the wrong word, I guess, since you're really just killing a series of increasingly imposing guardians while scavenging whatever weapons and armor you can find. As you use those items, they will eventually max out and grant you an experience point that can be used to improve your attack, defense and magical powers.
This system constantly encourages you to try different combos, because battling with maxed out gear means you're missing out on experience. It can also lead you to tempt fate by taking weaker, easily maxed gear into a fight to try for an easy experience point.
But be aware: You'll want your best gear equipped when you finally make it to the god king, who will, almost always, kill you.
You see, in a kind of brilliant story contrivance, your death isn't the end. No, your son will return 20 or so years later to attempt what his father could not, armed with all his armor, weapons and experience points. When he dies, the process repeats. So, technically, you're not one of a long line of warriors. You're all of them. It's kind of goofy from a narrative standpoint, but it's a great way to create bite-sized campaigns for players on the go. Don't worry about things getting repetitive, as the castle and ever-changing enemies are always a joy to look at.
Oh, that reminds me: This is on a phone. You'll likely have to remind yourself too as you ogle drop-dead gorgeous graphics that wouldn't look out of place in the earlier years of the Xbox 360. It's a technical marvel -- but Chair does overreach a bit, leading to too-frequent slowdown even on my 3GS.
The real shock? Infinity Blade's diminutive size isn't its most impressive feature. No, that'd be its sword combat, which blends blocking, parrying and dodging into a system that makes perfect use of the iPhone's control limitations and strengths. Slashing is as simple as swiping across the screen, blocking (a limited resource that doesn't require timing precision) is triggered by touching the bottom middle of the screen, and dodging is mapped to either edge of the screen. Picking the right response in a split second is crucial, which ensures you have little time to catch your breath mid-battle.
It's the kind of deep, well-thought-out combat system that puts most console sword fighting to shame, and it's still only part of what makes this one of the easiest recommendations I'll make all year. You might find games that are a more perfect fit for the platform, but in terms of recreating a console-level experience on the iPhone, you simply will not do better than Infinity Blade.
This review is based on final code of Infinity Blade provided by Chair.
This is Infinity Blade. And it's all happening on my iPhone.
In Chair/Epic's new release, you are one of a long line of warriors trying to infiltrate an ominous castle and bring down a god king who dwells within. Well, "infiltrate" is the wrong word, I guess, since you're really just killing a series of increasingly imposing guardians while scavenging whatever weapons and armor you can find. As you use those items, they will eventually max out and grant you an experience point that can be used to improve your attack, defense and magical powers.
This system constantly encourages you to try different combos, because battling with maxed out gear means you're missing out on experience. It can also lead you to tempt fate by taking weaker, easily maxed gear into a fight to try for an easy experience point.
But be aware: You'll want your best gear equipped when you finally make it to the god king, who will, almost always, kill you.
You see, in a kind of brilliant story contrivance, your death isn't the end. No, your son will return 20 or so years later to attempt what his father could not, armed with all his armor, weapons and experience points. When he dies, the process repeats. So, technically, you're not one of a long line of warriors. You're all of them. It's kind of goofy from a narrative standpoint, but it's a great way to create bite-sized campaigns for players on the go. Don't worry about things getting repetitive, as the castle and ever-changing enemies are always a joy to look at.
Oh, that reminds me: This is on a phone. You'll likely have to remind yourself too as you ogle drop-dead gorgeous graphics that wouldn't look out of place in the earlier years of the Xbox 360. It's a technical marvel -- but Chair does overreach a bit, leading to too-frequent slowdown even on my 3GS.
The real shock? Infinity Blade's diminutive size isn't its most impressive feature. No, that'd be its sword combat, which blends blocking, parrying and dodging into a system that makes perfect use of the iPhone's control limitations and strengths. Slashing is as simple as swiping across the screen, blocking (a limited resource that doesn't require timing precision) is triggered by touching the bottom middle of the screen, and dodging is mapped to either edge of the screen. Picking the right response in a split second is crucial, which ensures you have little time to catch your breath mid-battle.
It's the kind of deep, well-thought-out combat system that puts most console sword fighting to shame, and it's still only part of what makes this one of the easiest recommendations I'll make all year. You might find games that are a more perfect fit for the platform, but in terms of recreating a console-level experience on the iPhone, you simply will not do better than Infinity Blade.
This review is based on final code of Infinity Blade provided by Chair.
Reader Comments (71)
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:06PM elusiveaura said
This game is fn epic lol. Best iOS games hands down. EVAAARRRR
Reply
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:41PM Antilight said
@ScottG13
I bought it last night (west coast time) for my iPad. Quite frankly, I'm amazed at how much fun I had. I only played for about an hour, but I got hooked on the "just one more battle"...
What the review doesn't touch on (or if it did, I missed it) is the "exploration" of the citadel is limited. After a battle, your character just kinda stands there. You can pan the camera around to find secret treasures, treasure chests, or new battles. Progress is made by tapping on blue halos that indicate where you can go. I have no idea if you can backtrack, but I doubt it. This isn't a downside though, i'm glad they did it this way. Navigation would be a pain without any d-pad, just like every other iOS game...
Reply
I bought it last night (west coast time) for my iPad. Quite frankly, I'm amazed at how much fun I had. I only played for about an hour, but I got hooked on the "just one more battle"...
What the review doesn't touch on (or if it did, I missed it) is the "exploration" of the citadel is limited. After a battle, your character just kinda stands there. You can pan the camera around to find secret treasures, treasure chests, or new battles. Progress is made by tapping on blue halos that indicate where you can go. I have no idea if you can backtrack, but I doubt it. This isn't a downside though, i'm glad they did it this way. Navigation would be a pain without any d-pad, just like every other iOS game...
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 3:15PM Snowleopard233 said
@ScottG13 I just played through the first descendant at lunch. It was neat but I was kind of disappointed given the tech demo they had released earlier this year. I was hoping that Epic had been working on something a little more open world and exploration based. This is very on the rails and (from an environment perspective) kind of repetitive. It’s pretty-looking and the combat while imprecise is still fun. I’d pick it up, just don’t expect it to be anything like the Epic Citadel demo.
Reply
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:24PM Dale P said
@ScottG13 I had a weird bug on the iPad. When it first tells you how to pick items up, the items weren't on screen so I couldn't progress. Works fine now, though, must have been a one-off glitch.
It looks far more impressive on the iPhone 4, though, you don't notice the texture compression so much with the higher pixel density.
Reply
It looks far more impressive on the iPhone 4, though, you don't notice the texture compression so much with the higher pixel density.
Posted: Dec 10th 2010 1:26AM sigma8 said
@ScottG13
I'm late to the reply, but, yeah, the game is great on the iPad. It's probably a little harder to dodge (you have move ground to cover to move your finger to the corners), but it's a little easier to see what's going on.
Sandbox this is not. It's more like Mortal Kombat with items and XP. My favorite it when it gives me two movement options:
Brave soldier, do you wish to open the chest that inevitably contains either a valuable item or a leprechaun's annual salary in gold? Or would you prefer to skip it and just move on to the next fight.
Yeah, I will open the chest first. Thanks for letting me ponder this difficult decision, though.
Reply
I'm late to the reply, but, yeah, the game is great on the iPad. It's probably a little harder to dodge (you have move ground to cover to move your finger to the corners), but it's a little easier to see what's going on.
Sandbox this is not. It's more like Mortal Kombat with items and XP. My favorite it when it gives me two movement options:
Brave soldier, do you wish to open the chest that inevitably contains either a valuable item or a leprechaun's annual salary in gold? Or would you prefer to skip it and just move on to the next fight.
Yeah, I will open the chest first. Thanks for letting me ponder this difficult decision, though.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:12PM nicecanofspam said
This game is about the only reason I wish I had an Iphone of somesort. I can't wait til they're able to do this with the 2.3 Android OS coming out with the new availability of OpenGL unlocked :D
Reply
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:19PM baby sea tuna said
@Gemini Ace
As a 3G owner, I fully agree that this sucks. However, as an Internet user in almost-2011 I still downvoted you for typing "Fail."
Reply
As a 3G owner, I fully agree that this sucks. However, as an Internet user in almost-2011 I still downvoted you for typing "Fail."
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:19PM Arkanaloth said
@Joeybeast
No worries, I was at the midnight download launch and saw plenty of electrons for all!
Reply
No worries, I was at the midnight download launch and saw plenty of electrons for all!
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:21PM baby sea tuna said
@NaeemTHM
I wonder how much they'll give you back when you try to trade it in towards your preorder of Uncharted 3 (which I assume they'll start pushing today since it was announced like 3 hours ago.)
Reply
I wonder how much they'll give you back when you try to trade it in towards your preorder of Uncharted 3 (which I assume they'll start pushing today since it was announced like 3 hours ago.)
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:16PM baby sea tuna said
B-B-B-B-B-But iOS isn't a viable platform because there's no buttons!
/butthurt
Reply
/butthurt
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 5:18PM pkpk523 said
@NaeemTHM
actually, just to be a stickler, in demon souls, after you die, you actually get much, much weaker. your healthbar gets depleted, and your weapons continue the wear and tear process. and in my personal and frustratingly wonderful experience, they break when you can least afford them to.
i don't have an iphone just yet, but i was debating getting myself one for a christmas gift. this will be the first game i buy when i eventually break down and get one either this christmas or early next year.
Reply
actually, just to be a stickler, in demon souls, after you die, you actually get much, much weaker. your healthbar gets depleted, and your weapons continue the wear and tear process. and in my personal and frustratingly wonderful experience, they break when you can least afford them to.
i don't have an iphone just yet, but i was debating getting myself one for a christmas gift. this will be the first game i buy when i eventually break down and get one either this christmas or early next year.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:27PM Arkanaloth said
@Jawmuncher
I'd expect it to play a little slower on the 3GS due to the slower proc. I've seen a few reviews that says it does get some slowdown on a 3GS. So far my iPhone4 has been fluid.
Reply
I'd expect it to play a little slower on the 3GS due to the slower proc. I've seen a few reviews that says it does get some slowdown on a 3GS. So far my iPhone4 has been fluid.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:24PM Munny Swirl said
it's cool but it reminds me of a point and click adventure game. you can't free roam, it's basically on rails. the little cut scene that plays every time when an enemy staggers gets old quick.
graphics are top notch though.
Reply
graphics are top notch though.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 2:59PM Jack Kevorkian said
@fohf Okay I marked it in my calendar to remind you.
Reply
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 3:04PM Hawaii Jeff said
And why is this game "on rails"?........ because of the TOUCH CONTROLS.
This is why iPhone gaming will NEVER get as good as games that are controlled with physical buttons i.e. on consoles or handhelds with buttons.
Reply
This is why iPhone gaming will NEVER get as good as games that are controlled with physical buttons i.e. on consoles or handhelds with buttons.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 3:10PM Jack Kevorkian said
@Hawaii Jeff Hey but guess what? I can also make a call on it and create a spreadsheet. So I guess phone wins again eh?
Reply
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 3:29PM aykay77 said
@Hawaii Jeff
I doubt the reason this game is on rails is because of the touch controls. The Epic Citadel demo was free-roaming. It would have been pretty logical in my opinion to allow the free-roaming of Epic Citadel, then lock into the punch-out style gameplay of Inifinty Blade when you encounter an enemy. Throw in wooden crates to smash, some herbs to gather, a romance sub-plot with a controversial sex scene, and you have yourself a respectable fantasy RPG.
Reply
I doubt the reason this game is on rails is because of the touch controls. The Epic Citadel demo was free-roaming. It would have been pretty logical in my opinion to allow the free-roaming of Epic Citadel, then lock into the punch-out style gameplay of Inifinty Blade when you encounter an enemy. Throw in wooden crates to smash, some herbs to gather, a romance sub-plot with a controversial sex scene, and you have yourself a respectable fantasy RPG.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:44PM Levi said
It's $25 for 2GB. And you can opt to keep your $30 "unlimited" plan if you upgrade your iPhone. Since the plan was iPhone specific, you can't keep it if you buy somethin else, like an Android phone though.
And yeah, I went through 4.5 GB the first month that I used 3G Unreestrictor to watch uncompressed YouTube at work. You have to be jailbroken for that though. Normal iPhone YouTube (sucks, er) doesn't use nearly as much data.
Reply
And yeah, I went through 4.5 GB the first month that I used 3G Unreestrictor to watch uncompressed YouTube at work. You have to be jailbroken for that though. Normal iPhone YouTube (sucks, er) doesn't use nearly as much data.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:04PM Vidikron said
This game is overrated. It's an on rails series of sword fights and control layout is terrible, especially on the iPad. For example, why is the block button at the center of the screen while the dodge buttons are at the sides? I'd rather have the block button just above one or both of the dodge buttons.
And, really, why have dodge buttons at all? It's a bit tedious to have to go from swiping the screen to attack and parry to hitting the left or right doge buttons in the bottom corners to hitting the block at the middle bottom of the screen. They should have used multitouch and, for example, made the dodge a two finger swipe left or right. Maybe there's a weapon that uses that already further in the game, I don't know, but so far the controls are less than ideal.
Reply
And, really, why have dodge buttons at all? It's a bit tedious to have to go from swiping the screen to attack and parry to hitting the left or right doge buttons in the bottom corners to hitting the block at the middle bottom of the screen. They should have used multitouch and, for example, made the dodge a two finger swipe left or right. Maybe there's a weapon that uses that already further in the game, I don't know, but so far the controls are less than ideal.
Posted: Dec 9th 2010 4:22PM JustinMcElroy said
@Vidikron Is it:
1. Terrible, especially on the iPad
or
2. Terrible on the iPad, which is what you played it on?
Reply
1. Terrible, especially on the iPad
or
2. Terrible on the iPad, which is what you played it on?
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