For Mobile Friday this week is i tried out Flat Machine, from Zxima, on my iPhone 14 Pro. This game is also out on Android.
On the Store Page, Flat Machine is described as a Gatekeeper Adventure and that got me excited. i haven't played a "Gate Keeper" style game since Papers Please on the PlayStation Vita but i do enjoy that style so i was excited to try this game.
The biggest disappointment whilst playing the game is the tutorial, but having played and beaten the game i will accept that having such a poor tutorial could be a deliberate choice. But i found it frustrating as it took at least two deaths to learn the basics before i felt i was actually playing the game. the game could use it's world and characters to create a good tutorial. The village chief is a character, he found us, he put us there, so it feels like not having him with us before, during, and after the first battle as a tutorial, is a wasted opportunity.
There seem to be two goals, levelling up and beating the Flat Machine. Levelling up wasn't detailed until it happened, but it did happen it seemed like doing so is one way to make beating the Flat Machine easier. In this video, i beat the Flat Machine and it turns out it was 1 of 7 possible endings. what's great is that the game gave hints as how to get the other endings so there is replayability in not just levelling up but also in trying to find all the ways to beat the game.
I would've liked a little more BGM, but the battle music and Flat Machine music was cool. i did enjoy the character art, it looked big, colorful, and detailed. but maybe a little more variety in enemies would be nice. What i did appreciate was how the game delt with in--game ads. the game made it our choice. if we wanted to, we could watch an ad and be revived. or we could watch an ad and have a bonus. it's respectful to us the player, our data plans, and gaming on mobile.
Flat Machine may not be the best game, but it is a satisfying one to play and one to keep on your phone as it's getting updates. so i do recommend Flat Machine, but the beginning is a little rough with it's poor tutorial.
(Version 1.07 Played)
