Review: Battleship
by Jason Cheow
December 29, 2009
Overview:
Hasbro's ever-popular classic Battleship, the naval combat game, has just arrived on the shores of the App Store. The new rendition has multiplayer modes, modified versions of the original mode and salvo mode, but is it an improvement from the original or a sinking ship? Let's find out.
Features:
Gameplay for the most part is simple. The game takes place on a blue board similar to its plastic predecessor and the rules aren't much different either. The object of the game is to take down your enemy, but first you have to get organized. Setup your naval fleet of boats and submarines on the 10x10 grid and aim to gun down all of your opponent's fleet. You do this by selecting a spot on the grid and hoping the coordinates are the locations of your opponent's ship. At the same time, your opponent is doing the same thing, so you're always on guard, in a race to sink more ships than your opponent. In Classic mode, you and your opponent take turns to launch missiles and other weapons at each other, much like the original, however Salvo mode is slightly different. In Salvo mode the basic rules are the same as in Classic mode, but you get an extra turn whenever you get a hit. This makes the game more challenging. Multiplayer can be played over Bluetooth or Wi-Fi and is very similar to how the game was originally played on the big blue grid.
Each scene, whether you're launching an attack, getting a hit, a miss or just the sheer delight of finally sinking an enemy cruiser, is rendered beautifully in full 3D. Watch jets drop bombs on an aircraft carrier, or a submarine get hit by land mines. This adds a new dimension to the game, but if you don't want to watch the explosions simply skip through each cutscene by tapping the screen, or just disabling them from in the options menu.
The game also features a leveling-up system similar to mainstream RPG games. Battleship rewards you for the amount of time you invest in playing, by giving upgrades in the form of unlockable Superweapons.
These weapons will give you an edge in any battle, and adds to the replayability of the game. Each of these Superweapons differ from each other in their charging times, area of fire, and movement. For example, a Mine will float until it reaches an enemy ship and then explode, whereas an Air Strike will scatter 3 shots in a horizontal line across your opponent's grid.
The Breakdown:
The Good: It's nice to be able to play this classic game virtually, as compared to its physical counterpart. It's not only convenient, but simple to play. There's no need to arrange the pins in order of the grid, no need to wait for your opponent to contemplate his next move and lastly, no need to worry about your opponent cheating by looking over your grid, or shifting the coordinates of his ships halfway during the game. The AI is pretty intelligent and it lays shots in a systematic matter without making any silly moves. It shows no mercy, and goes in directly for your ship, sometimes using Superweapons. The Bad:
The graphics in the game are usually in the same predictable tones of blue and grey, with a palette that rarely deviates further from that. I know this is a game about metallic ships and weapons in the vast blue ocean, but it would be nice if the ships could feature different colors. Overall, this doesn't hinder gameplay, but does make it mundane.
Superweapons add to the replayability value of the game, but playing through to sink as many ships as possible often feels more like a chore than an enjoyable experience. Some of the Superweapon's requirements for unlocking are just sheer insanity. For example, the immensely powerful 'Sky Sword' requires the player to sink all enemy ships within 10 turns before it's added to your arsenal.
Due to these limitations, the game does not have as much replayability value as one would hope for.
