Frantics game review
When Elliott asked the writers who wanted to review this game I replied yes simply because I thought it would enable me to have an excuse to play on my Playstation without my wife asking me why I am hogging the TV.
I didn’t really know what I had signed up for or what to expect, but what I got was a very pleasant surprise, not just for me, but all the non-gamers in the family.
Playlink usability
You see, traditionally with PS4, you need to be versed on how to play games, how to hold a pad, buttons etc, and for technophobes, non-gamers, older family members and indeed much younger ones, it is just an alien concept that they feel they cannot be a part of. But with Frantics, you don’t even need a pad. It is brilliant.
At first it takes a bit of selling to get everyone to download an app on their phone, for some reason with people, my family anyway, people are very protective of what they install on their phone. But, that aside, it is a seamless experience. The app is downloaded, it picks up the game and we are good to go.
You take a selfie to create your little profile and then you are given a character. The animals assigned are, as I was told, pretty ugly, so being assigned any character got a giggle.
Simple but fun
The games are pretty simple but, surprisingly, competitive and fun. They take the premise of simple mobile phone games with the multi-player aspect. So you have games that range from racing, almost a Mario Cart/ Temple Run hybrid where you race by swiping left right or to jump on your phone, you collect coins and jump over obstacles. What makes it more mischievous is that you can bump your opponents into obstacles or piggy back onto them. You have three lives and if you lose all three you are eliminated. But the fun doesn’t stop there, as you then have an option to sabotage another player. The other games include a jump where you have to land last by deploying your parachute, deploy it too late and you go splat, too early and you land last. However, the most fun games are the ones for the end.
The premise is you are on a icy platform and must try to not slide off and try to bump the other players off, each of you equipped with a ‘weapon’ that you bid for before the game with coins collected. You have a time limit and whoever gets bumped of the least wins.
As you play more the games vary, so it is not all samey samey.
MFFrecommends
So as pro, I would say it is very accessible and easy to play, the smart phone element and seamless nature a massive up for me. The games are more fun than they would seem at first and easy enough for all age ranges to get involved.
As a negative, if you can call it that, you need at a minimum if around three players to really get enjoyment out of it. Also, as you are using your phone and phone alone, it means if the kids want to play you have to sacrifice your phone and battery for them to do so.
Overall, I think this is a great alternative to board games at family get togethers, birthday parties, or Christmas, or to keep a number of kids entertained for a period of time. For that reason alone, I think it is worth the investment.
Check out the Playstation website for more information on Frantics.
Written by JJ Jabbal (@JJabbal)