Axes & Allies is a unique mixture of real-time strategy, tactical combat, and role-playing that revolves around a trio of heroic ogres who will do whatever it takes to rescue one of their own from the clutches of a villainous dragon.
You're in control of three types of characters here - a warrior, a healer and an arrow-shooting ranger - each of whom can be made more powerful during the course of the journey. You'll need those upgrades too, as enemies get tougher and tougher with each new round you face.
The Good
The battles in Axes & Allies are really fun to watch, as your ogres do battle with skeletons, zombies and other beasts throughout each stage. This variety helps keeps things moving along nicely, as you don't just face the same old repetitive waves of enemies. Having a number of items to unlock helps too, and these include power-ups for each character, as well as more powerful skills.
The Bad
If there's an area where Axes & Allies could really use some improvement, it's the controls. They can be inaccurate at times, and when you're trying to keep all of your team members alive, that can be a little frustrating. That's compounded by sometimes overwhelming odds that will have you reaching for a revival gem - and yep, you've guessed it, once you've used up your free gem you'll be heading to the in-app purchase store.
Lastly, the audio really is very repetitive and grating.. The ogres spew out the same mythical phrases throughout the game, which does very little doing very little to make your heroes likeable. It's not just the basic audio either - the music also wears out its welcome pretty quickly.
The Verdict
Although it takes an interesting approach to real-time strategy combat, and features some nice visual work, Axes & Allies gameplay is just too much of a drag, thanks to those tetchy controls and the rather trying freemium model at play here. Sadly, this axe just wears down into dullness rather quickly.
You're in control of three types of characters here - a warrior, a healer and an arrow-shooting ranger - each of whom can be made more powerful during the course of the journey. You'll need those upgrades too, as enemies get tougher and tougher with each new round you face.
The Good
The battles in Axes & Allies are really fun to watch, as your ogres do battle with skeletons, zombies and other beasts throughout each stage. This variety helps keeps things moving along nicely, as you don't just face the same old repetitive waves of enemies. Having a number of items to unlock helps too, and these include power-ups for each character, as well as more powerful skills.
The Bad
If there's an area where Axes & Allies could really use some improvement, it's the controls. They can be inaccurate at times, and when you're trying to keep all of your team members alive, that can be a little frustrating. That's compounded by sometimes overwhelming odds that will have you reaching for a revival gem - and yep, you've guessed it, once you've used up your free gem you'll be heading to the in-app purchase store.
Lastly, the audio really is very repetitive and grating.. The ogres spew out the same mythical phrases throughout the game, which does very little doing very little to make your heroes likeable. It's not just the basic audio either - the music also wears out its welcome pretty quickly.
The Verdict
Although it takes an interesting approach to real-time strategy combat, and features some nice visual work, Axes & Allies gameplay is just too much of a drag, thanks to those tetchy controls and the rather trying freemium model at play here. Sadly, this axe just wears down into dullness rather quickly.
