Cartoon Wars Blade Review

How many cartoon guys must die before the violence ends? If Cartoon Wars Blade is to be believed, that number is immeasurable, as lots of stick figures meet their demise at the hands of the stick figure protagonist. Instead of donning a gun-suit or commanding armies, this time the goal is to slice and dice fellow stick figures to death in an arena.

The controls are simple: on-screen joystick on the left, and a slider on the right that can automatically attack in the left and right direction. Players get a short sword, long sword, and projectile weapon; the first two are regulated by an energy system where using them too much requires them to recharge, and projectile weapon serves as a special attack that is activated as damage is done. Credits and crystals can be earned to be spent on new weapons, armor, and stat upgrades.

The audience for this game is simple: the gamer who likes to build up a character, and really likes the cartoon style. I mean, really, really likes the cartoon style. The gameplay is mindless and repetitive, and that’s fine! That seems to be the point here. This is part of a long-running series, and that’s part of the appeal, I’m sure. It is a grind-fest, and players interested in this game should be absolutely ready for it. Some of the levels in the dungeon can feel overly-long, but it’s pretty much the only variation in the game: wave after wave of stick figure enemy doesn’t allow for much variety, it seems.

While there is a two-currency system, coins and crystals, crystals can actually be earned in the game itself, and on a regular basis too! While the game does make it a lot easier to pay for upgrades, the system does actually make sense from a gameplay perspective, or is at least designed as such.

There is a simple charm to fighting enemy after enemy, though only in short bursts because variety is not Cartoon Wars Blade’s strong point. It’s a free download, fans of stick figures fighting would do well to give it a shot, though it’s far from the elite category of hack ’n slash games on iOS.