Emma Withington reviews McDroid…
After crash landing on Planet M, which – unusually – isn’t talking, McDroid and his companion SHUTTLE find their home planet is not as they remember it. Something is wrong. The planet is fraught with corruption and it is up to McDroid and SHUTTLE to make things right and return bliss to Planet M…
‘Oh noes, who put this lava everywhere?’ – SHUTTLE
‘Not me…’ – responds a, not-at-all-suspicious, gravel toned demon voice.
If Claptrap from Borderlands had a solo game, this would be it. Developed by Elefantopia, McDroid is the Franco-Californian company’s debut title and is certainly not one to be overlooked. Charming and visually pleasing in all its cel-shaded glory McDroid is at its heart a Tower Defence game, fused with a conglomeration of elements from other video game genres; carrying traits from RTS, Arcade, and shooters.
McDroid appeals to a soft spot of mine for droids with a heart that only communicate in beeps and boops and wonderfully adorable muffled Uh ohs -R2-D2 and Wall-E come to mind – McDroid is a wonderful quadrupedal creation that bounds around the levels like a happy go lucky puppy, deploying missile launchers and lasers.
McDroid sucks you into what is seemingly an unassuming, whimsical game. Simple and easy. However, McDroid reveals that this isn’t the case sooner rather than later…
So, you begin your journey alongside the SHUTTLE with a mouth – quite the talker this one – you are introduced to the basic objective of the game which is to heal the planet, restoring its voice and removing corruption with the use of the bliss engine. This is your basis of defence, vibrant flora and fauna pop up in areas where more bliss is restored – defensive and passive bliss items boost and buff you, SHUTTLE and any active weapons, while also significantly weakening your enemies – the higher your bliss level the better!
Your offensive weapons vary from standard ‘Puny Lasers’ to missile dogs called ‘Woof’ and as McDroid you can utilise yourself as a mobile turret, with the ability to kite enemies away from your base and give SHUTTLE a much needed breather – it’s crazy the size of things he can carry on his back! His manoeuvrability and versatility is a real boon to the gameplay and a highlight of McDroid.
All of this is powered by McDroid’s most coveted currency: strawberries. Because nom. Of course as in any game that requires strategy these are to be used wisely. Thankfully, after scampering back and forth to bring strawberries back to your shuttle in the early levels, the Rhesus factory module comes into play with small harvesting bots, collecting and transferring strawberries direct to your shuttle so you can focus more on your strawberry expenditure and defence strategy.
The second in-game currency is: diamonds. Best spent on research to upgrade your ‘Puny Lasers’, missile launchers and bliss engine. There are some special deployable items within the levels that you can buy with diamonds, which can become real game changers (a couple of ‘Woof’ bots are very handy!), but it is best to preserve your diamonds unless you have an abundance and can afford to lose a few. These diamond powered items don’t cost too much, but in the early stages saving is key.
While McDroid is a fantastically presented fusion of game mechanics, the difficulty spikes and occasionally hectic nature of the game can take you out of what is, at the core, a challenging but fun experience – becoming overwhelming and a bit of a chore. Just when you think the best strategy has been laid out, a stampede of enemies encroach on your base and where time management here is crucial the drops in frame rate, overcrowded screen, and d-pad scrolling through your options, makes the selection of pivotal quick-fire decisions a slower process and can cause your demise. After a couple of twenty minute slogs this can be off-putting. However, this may simply mean it is better suited to the PC and that the PS4 port, while effective, doesn’t handle as well in some of the scenarios.
That being said McDroid is still well worth your time and presents a unique and fun fusion of genres. It also showcases a highly promising future for Elefantopia, they are definitely ones to watch if this is their debut title – watch this space…
Experience: Wildly fun and unique, but the myriad of elements presented in the game and the difficulty spikes can take you out of the experience – causing you to put the controller down in frustration, rather than power through.
Replayability factor: Medium
Game Mastery level (Trophies): Medium – Not impossibly difficult, but time consuming.
Availability: PS4 and PC
Rating: 7/10
Emma Withington – Follow me on Twitter
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Originally published April 23, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
