Tap Heroes Review
Price: FREE
Version Reviewed: 2.4
Device Reviewed On: iPhone 5
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Maybe it says a lot about gamers of today that 'tapping' games are so popular of late – or maybe it's simply a genre that takes things back to the purist form of gaming. Either way, I'm willing to admit there's something enticing about simply tapping and still gaining ground within a game. I'm not alone, either. However, while Tap Heroes tries to add more variety to the experience, it doesn't entirely work and won't get under your skin as much as other titles in the genre.
You're a warrior pursuing monsters and boss battles, but in a super-lite RPG. Each area is a matter of either watching as the action slowly unfolds or hammering a finger to the screen in order to inflict damage. As a twist to the usual format, a finger to the right attacks while a finger to the left heals you. You soon find that a mixture of both is needed when up against a boss battle.
It's also not long before you realize that backup is imperative to success. You can hire a mage and a rogue to help out, with the former healing you frequently and the latter shooting poisonous arrows at your foes. Both characters cost gems to unlock, but these are easily gained through regular pay. It paves the way for unlocking even more gems than that though, and Tap Heroes does feel like a game where 'pay to win' is more important than good old-fashioned perseverance.
So, there's a lot of repetition and grinding here. It's kind of fun in that perversely satisfying way that works for 'tapping' games, but by trying to complicate things a little more than elsewhere it's just not as gripping as simpler fare. The difficulty curve means that grinding feels more commonplace due to having so many different skills to level up, and it's not as satisfying as it should be. Throw in the fact that gems play an increasingly important role (they can be used to inflict special Godly attacks), and Tap Heroes is a passing distraction rather than anything to see through to the end.