Not sure how I got on the mail list but somehow a mobile game for Dungeons and Dragons entered early access (yes, that damn thing again..) and out of sheer curiosity I downloaded it.
The gist of the game is a top down, class and group based dungeon crawl. You get XP and levels and abilities are tied to equipment (which can be upgraded). You get packs of cards for completing new dungeon areas under “Play” and once you finish off a section of the dungeon you can do a “Challenge” mode. The challenge mode allows you to do the same boss over and over with increasing difficulties (And rewards). At the end of the crawl, you get an option to “keep rewards” or “continue”.
After a challenge mode you get a chest with a timer. The better the contents of the chest the longer the timer (minimum 3 hours so far, longest I have received was 12. There is at least a 24h one that I have seen an “ad” for.) So the game manages to hit all the right monetization notes – gold (in game currency farmed) or gems (paid for, and you can exchange for gold) card packs (get on completion or buy) and chests (timer unlocked that gems can speed up).
Outside of levels on equipment (number of cards to upgrade, gold to pay for the transformation) and levels of the characters (equipment is gated by levels) they also have a “renown” levelling mechanic which is the total “fame” of the party. Unlocking renown gives new character unlocks (of which you get a choice of at each unlock). So there is plenty to grind out and level here, and plenty of ways to spend your money (if you aren’t patient like me).
So far it has been fun and taking up more of my time than Clash Royale lately and there is enough carrots and “next level” points to keep me going for now. My only real complaint is that it is very slow to play and unlock. For example, if I do a 3 round challenge it takes me over 10 minutes (whereas three rounds of CR is 3-4 minutes each) so you can’t bite-size it as much. It is also pretty hard and I haven’t even unlocked the second challenge mode yet – because my group is only around level 6 each and there are creatures already one-shotting me. (You can also continue if you die in a dungeon, but that costs gems…)
I think it is a bit uneven and they will have to make it easier to unlock the first 2 or 3 challenge modes or people will lose interest. Going from level 6 to 7 on each charcater will probably take me a few weeks and I need level 7 to finish off the second dungeon leg. I have the patience many may not.
All in all, will see how it progresses but at this point I don’t feel the need to reward with cash yet, but happy to help them sort through their balancing before they go live. Which is probably in 2020. (Yes, getting cynical on EA titles…)