Terra Battle advertisements bombarded me. For months prior to Mistwalker’s iOS and Android release, I’d see ads for it on my favorite websites, it appeared on Facebook, my friends were pre-registering, and the Japanese blogs I follow kept talking about a starter campaign that would provide more music, characters, accessories, and even a console port if at least 2 million people downloaded it. Terra Battle was everywhere.
Most recently, I’d seen all kinds of alerts telling me I could play. Soon, even! On October 9, 2014, a whole new world would open to me! So, when the day came, I did what any reasonable gamer with both an iPhone and Android tablet would do.
I downloaded Terra Battle .
It was free. I couldn’t resist. Now, I’m glad I did. This isn’t one of “those” mobile RPGs. You know the ones I’m talking about. They promise RPG gameplay, but never require any strategy and are all about paying to win.
That isn’t to say it doesn’t have some of those elements. Players do have energy, and entering into battles with Predators requires a certain amount to take part. Real money can be spent to recruit a guaranteed, rare fighter, restore energy, or get items. The key is, none of those are necessary to enjoy a play session of Terra Battle . None of it is necessary to win. All it takes is time.
Time that people will have no problem spending, because Terra Battle is a delight to play. Players recruit heroes, either with in-game cash earned from battles or lightning earned from completing chapters. These are put into a squad of six. When a player goes into a mission, Metal Zone, or arena battle, they choose a squad, then find themselves on an 8 by 6 grid. The characters, represented by squares, appear, as do opponents in waves. The goal is to surround an enemy on two sides on your turn. When this happens, the heroes attack. One hero can be moved each turn. Opponent types must be considered, because there are sword, spear, arrow, and magic attacks, and the sword, spear, and arrow have a rock, paper, scissor dynamic.
It sounds simple, but Terra Battle is really a lot like chess. You have to have two and three moves ahead in your mind. Movement is important, as dragging a hero in the right direction over another one can cause its position to shift on the field. Enemy movements have to be considered, as do abilities. Positioning allies near each other, or along the same lines on a grid, can improve attack power or cause skills to trigger. It’s all surprisingly complicated.
Plus, it’s incredibly thrilling. There’s nothing like seeing enemies spawn in a position where three are in a row, one hero is already at the end of the line, and it’s easy to move another player into a place at the other end. Then, all the enemies in between will be wiped out, a gauge that will allow for more powerful attacks will fill, and bonus experience will chain. It’s invigorating when things go right.
By the way, I love the Metal Zone. It’s an area that only appears at certain times throughout the day. When this fight begins, only metal monsters appear. They will immediately flee from battle when their turn is up, so it’s up to a player to defeat them before they run. Why? Because they provide far more experience than standard encounters. You can only challenge it once, each time it’s open, and it’s something you won’t want to miss.
It’s made me realize that all of Terra Battle ‘s hype was completely warranted. I loved this game. I could see myself playing every day, chaining up log in rewards, and grinding just for fun. I even caught myself leaving the music on, just because it sounded good. Most of all, I now wish I had “pre-registered” by following it on Twitter so I could have gotten bonus energy when I started my game.