Format: iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch
Developer: Zynga Inc
If when you read the title Respawnables and your mind immediately thinks of the action movies The Expendables 1 and 2 then that is for a good reason. As clearly this over the top action packed 3rd person shooter was inspired by those movies as well as all the action classics from the 80’s. I think a 80’s action movie is actually the perfect comparison for this game. What it lacks up for in plot and story it certainly makes up for in mayhem and action.
Respawnables is a game that grabs your attention right away with its graphics. They have a somewhat cel-shaded look to them and the developers were clearly influenced by games like Team Fortress 2. That is not a bad thing however as it is nice to see a 3rd person shooter that is not all gritty realism for once. Now while the art style is great and I am sure that if you are looking at a screen shot right now you will think the graphics in the game are amazing. There is one little downfall and that is the animation. It can be quite jerky and stiff in some places and look downright odd in others. It is not a game breaker by any means.
There are two game modes to Respawnables single player and multi player. Lets take a look at what the single player mode has to offer. In truth the single player mode really just serves as a training mode of the games main focus its multi player, but that does not mean that the single player mode is not worth while. It does a great job of helping you sharpen your skills and to make things interesting instead of every battle being a case of kill all the other guys on screen. You will have certain objectives such as kill a certain number of bad guys or cover a certain amount of distance. This stops the single player mode from getting boring. You also will earn in game currency from playing the game in single player mode.
Once you feel like you have mastered the games controls you can then head into the multi player. Respawnables is clearly a game that was built with multi player as its number one focus. There are two modes here the first one is free for all. What this does is drop you in a battle and it is every man for him self. You take no prisoners as you try and blow everyone away. As well as this there is the team vs mode where you are part of a squad and you can work together to take the other team down.
What makes this such a fun shooter is that it is so easy to play. Many 3rd person shooters on the iOS try to hard to use complex controls. Respawnables does away with this and it makes for a much more fun game. You pretty much just run and shoot and this simple control scheme is what makes the game so much fun.
Respawnables is a little rough around the edges, but for the most part this is a ton of fun. If you want a shooter that is just pure arcade fun then this is the game for you. I am sure that in the coming updates that many of these animation problems will be addressed. Still despite these animation flaws Respawnables is one of the most fun 3rd person shooters on the iOS. And to be honest the game is so full of action that you in most cases will not notice the graphical issues.