Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games have been around for more than a dozen years. I remember playing Total Annihilation and Starcraft in the late 90s, and building epic robot armies and space-aged military bases to defend my territory on a Windows 95 PC. Invasion for iOS is the 2015 rendition of an RTS game, bringing great graphics, touch controls, and a build-your-own-army dynamic to the iPad to the iPad or iPhone.
Overview:
Invasion (Free Universal App in the App Store) is, in the simplest form, a modern-era war game, allowing you to build your military base, construct various vehicles, and attack invading armies. What helps invasion stand out from other similar games is the use of 3D graphics and environmental elements to add a sense of dimension and realism to the scene.
Upon starting Invasion, you are greeted with a brief tutorial, walking you through the basics of building structures, doing military research, and constructing your army. As the game progresses, the tutorial becomes less obtrusive, but remains at the bottom of the screen, suggesting your next move to keep your base in an ever improving state.
As you become more familiar with the Invasion world, you have the opportunity to join a Guild, or team of other Invasion players, which enables you to request their assistance in constructing or upgrading your base. This reduces wait time for various tasks, meaning you can play longer and (hopefully) spend less. It also allows you to chat with your guild with the built-in messenger system.
On the topic of spending, Invasion – much like many popular games – offers a large collection of In-App Purchases for various items. Ranging from $0.99 to $99.99 (seems excessive, doesn’t it?), these In-App Purchases provide you with build speed boosts and diamonds (the game’s currency for various tasks and supplies). I’m not a huge fan of the constant IAP model, and you can easily wait out many of the projects around your base and let time work on your side, enabling you to produce the necessary supplies or complete the projects as needed.
When it comes to attacking enemy bases, Invasion allows you to scour the map, scout your enemy, and choose what forces to send into battle. Doing this enables you to boost your commanders ranks, and eventually earn talent points which can be allotted to combat or economic areas, improving your bases efficiency.
Verdict: [rating: 3.5]
While Invasion is a very nicely designed game, I found the interface to be a little cluttered, and at times, a little confusing. The graphics are well done, and the tutorial helps keep game play moving, which was helpful in keeping me interested in playing.
One major drawback of Invasion – at least in my testing – was that it seemed to have a dramatic impact on my iPhone and iPad battery life. Playing Invasion for about an hour resulted in more than a 30% drop in battery on my iPhone, and 15-20% on my iPad.
Invasion also lacks (from what I could see) any syncing between iPhone and iPad, which meant that all the progress I’d made on my iPhone was entirely lost when I switched to the iPad.
Price: FREE – Available in the iOS App Store. [GET IT HERE] An Android version of the game is also available through the Google Play Store.
Pros:
- Nice graphics
- Fun concept
Cons:
- Battery drain
- No game syncing (iCloud or otherwise)
If you’re into war games or strategy games, Invasion is certainly worth a look, and at the unbeatable price of Free, it has a lot going for it. For more information about Invasion, visit the Tap4Fun website.
*Note: The above review was commissioned by the developer in accordance with our app review policy, and has been written in an objective, unbiased fashion.
