Infinity Blade III Review – Going where no mobile game has gone before

Our rating:

By: Chair Entertainment Group

Version #: 1.0.3

Date Released: 2013-09-20

Developer: Chair

Price: $6.99

User Rating:

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Many of us were heart-broken when Chair announced that they’re shutting down Infinity Blade: Dungeons which was shown off at the iPad 3 launch. Our hopes found a new leash of life when Infinity Blade III was unveiled at the iPhone 5S event. We’ve been waiting and finally got our hands on what is claimed to be “the epic climax to the epic series“. Lets see if the wait and the bucks were worth it!

The setup

If you’re reading this review, it is likely that you’ve already had your piece, especially after Infinity Blade was given away on App Store’s 5th anniversary. In case you haven’t heard of it, bang your head first and read on.

The game revolves around Siris, an assassin clothed in heavy armour, shining swords and tough shields, who has to fight through a series of monsters, dragons and villains to reach the God King. Plunging a dagger through his heart and avenging Siris’ land is the point at the far end.

The gameplay

Similar to its predecessors, Infinity Blade III is also an RPG, based on ‘hack & slash’ fights and ‘point & click‘ navigation. Swipe to parry, tap on sides to dodge an attack or the middle to block it. Use the correct ones and at the right time to stun your gigantic opponent for a few seconds. Unleash your fury as slashes, stabs, special powers and combos. Be the last man standing to proceed.

The progress is not as simple as it sounds, though. As you play more villains, you climb up in levels, unlock more goodies and become more powerful, just like other RPGs. However the change here is that, though you can ‘Retry’ fights with the minions, failure to a Boss means, ‘Restart’! Yup, you have to play again from square one, till you grow and become more capable to beat up the metal boss. This setup is really repetitive and widely criticized, but unique and addictive at the same time.

What’s different?

To begin with, Infinity Blade III provides a new character to play as- Isa. This is not a mere clone of Siris in a female attire, but a whole new experience with new looks, her own level ups, perks and powers. In fact, they have very little in common. When Siris is all manly with more emphasis on strength, Isa hardly has any armour. She’s more of a strategic, stealthy and thief assassin, like.. Catwoman? And my favorite, she can pick-lock chests which Siris can only stare at, without spending money.

Aside from that, this one also provides a great story line, controlled from the Hideout. Outside the building is a map, from where you can enjoy this massive 1.4GB game spread across eight different worlds. Yes, you have 8 different maps, each the size of the first game, and Chair says, they can provide more downloadable maps anytime they want. Exciting times! You can also conjure potions and buy or sell stuff to the merchants at the hideout. I’m not sure if its just me, but I’m constantly reminded of the Assassins Creed game, here.

Spend more?

It is disappointing to see shops within Infinity Blade III even after paying 7 bucks. Fortunately, they aren’t as necessary as I thought. If you’re patient and donot want a swift progress, you’re safe.

Gold coins and Silver plates are the two currencies available for purchase. Gold can get you new swords, heavy weapons, dual steels, helmet, armour and rings while Silver deals with more sophisticated potions, ingredients, prize wheels and keys. Don’t worry, you can find these in the wild, steal them or loot from defeated enemies, too. Adding gems and wearing rings gives you great edge in fights, by the way.

I can bare with others purchases, but not the nasty Timers. Potions take hours to be cooked and demand silver to speed things up. No, you’re not getting my money that way!

Graphics

But, the Infinity Blade series has been never about the gameplay, has it? If so, one could get Blood and Glory for free, which sports the exact action as above. It’s the stunning visuals, which are so good that Apple uses them in keynotes and boasts as an ‘iOS exclusive title’.

To be honest, I couldn’t find such a great improvement from the last one on my iPad Mini, but is certainly not worse. I also noticed a few dropped frames especially while parrying, which makes me think, it might be due to my ‘under powered device’. I read some user reviews saying that the game comes out really well on iPad 4 and the iPhone 5S, of course.

The verdict

The gameplay though tweaked a bit, retains what we’ve been seeing from the past couple of years. And the graphics is not very appreciable on older devices and might even show some lag. In short, Infinity Blade III as such, is a phenomenal game which pushes the limits of mobile gaming, but at the same time, I see no reason for a person having a previous title, to jump right at it.

The take away: If you just got your iPhone 5S, this will be a great game to show off; especially to all those droids and I bet, they wouldn’t have a thing to show you back! Again, if you’re a hard core IB fan or have been waiting too long for this one, you wont be disappointed by Infinity Blade III. To all others, my advice would be to grab it when the price drops!

Now to some tips for the user:

• Always look for chests, items and purses in the surroundings, even during cut scenes.
• Complete goals and collect coins regularly
• Don’t forget your skill points
• Don’t waste blocks. Save them for tight situations. Master dodge and parry as if there were no Block!
• During combats, observe the manouevres of the opponent and wait for the last moment to strike.
• There are plenty of forums out there, discussing exactly this. Just ask Google!

Aslo check out: Best RPGs for iPhone and iPad