Monsterz’ Revenge, the latest game from Astro Ape Studios, is a free-to-play iOS social game that puts you in charge of a band of monsters bent on revenge against human… fast food restaurants. It seems that horrible human fast food chains are taking over the neighbourhood, and the monsters are out to prove that their cooking is the best.
Like Astro Ape Studios’ other titles Office Heroes and Dessert Heroes, the latest game combines ‘farming’ elements that generate currency with monster themes graphics and spooky sound effects. “Monsterz’ Revenge is the most advanced and feature-rich social game we have produced yet and we believe it showcases some of the best graphics available in the genre,” said Chieh Huang, CEO of Astro Ape Studios, in a press release. As the monsters, you control a graveyard where you can have burners that prepare delightfully eerie dishes, like Pupil Pasta or Brain Cake. Ghosts come and consume the meals once they’re ready, giving you XP and Coins. The occasional human will also wander in, who you can capture to garner monster energy, which is used to play minigames.
As you wait for your dishes to cook, you can amuse yourself by playing various minigames. Each day there is a scratch card for bonus coins, as well as different characters to unlock, which lead to various minigames. For example, unlocking Frank N. Stein gives you access to the Electrify Frank game, where you must match as many coloured lightning bolts as you can in a given amount of time.
The main minigame, however, is the Battle. You have a Monster car, and you can upgrade various abilities of the vehicle, including defence, speed, power and so on. The car is then used, battering ram style, to smash down one of the fast food restaurants that are taking over the neighbourhood. Special attacks can also be used, to stun your enemy, or to deliver a fully charged blow to the restaurant. All the while the proprietor of the restaurant is hurling food at you, so it’s all quite humorous.
When you first begin the game, you are guided through the first few level ups in a tutorial mode, which is short but still fun. You will notice the quality of the graphics is high, and that the music is well suited for the mood, and well written. As with most social games these days, the game can be played without buying anything, but potions and coins are available as in-app purchases should you wish to speed things along a little.
The game includes plus+ network integration, so you can add your friends, send them gifts, and visit their graveyards. It’s always nice to visit your friends’ graveyards, isn’t it? As you progress through the game, you are able to buy more decorations for your graveyard, like nicer floors, better cooking fires, and nicer chairs and tables for the ghosts to eat at. The more elaborate your decorations, the higher your graveyard’s “Boo” rating, which leads to bonuses, so it’s a goo idea to try to keep your place looking scary.
What’s Macgasmic?
The game is definitely more of the same social gaming that you’ve played before. However, the graphics and the music are polished, and the minigames are varied and entertaining. The music in particular I found very well done. There are new elements that unlock as you progress through the game, and I got a laugh out of watching the various ways you can capture the humans. I thought the inclusion of a daily scratch and match game, while completely trivial, was a unique move and really keeps you coming back to the game each day.
What’s Not?
The only issues I had with the game were minor. Sometimes trying to click on the food that was ready, I would instead send them inadvertently to another square. Also, patience is required if you’re a cheapskate like me, and don’t want to pay for any coins or potions! I would also like to see Game Center integration, perhaps in a future update.
Conclusion
Monsterz’ Revenge is Astro Ape Studios’ third iOS game, and it shows. The game is creatively made, entertaining, and fun to play, with lots to do as you level up. It’s a fanciful take on monsters vs. humans, and an enjoyable social game.
