Would you rather hunt or be hunted? It’s a basic question, perhaps the most basic, primitive one of all. So is it any wonder it remains, across hundreds of thousands of years, an important theme to this day? If you think about it, most stories or games take the form of a hunt, in one way or another; everything from detective stories to certain sci-fi stories utilise the same basic structure. It’s infinitely appealing to us. Evidently, the good folks at Play One games have cottoned on to that fact, and have duly presented us with their offering, the back to basics hunting game 4Force Online. It’s big, it’s brash and it’s out now for iOS and Google Play.
4Force Online is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Game, or MMORPG for (kind of ) short. This means it throws a whole load of players into the mix and lets them duke it out, or indeed team up, with each other. As the internet becomes more prevalent in gaming culture, this type of play has had serious success, especially over the last five years or so. The move to smartphone was an obvious and logical one; everyone loves playing multiplayer, we’ve known that since the eighties; so what better way to utilise the solitary gaming experience of the smartphone by integrating it in to a global community? Some of the most popular smartphone games, Clash of Clans for instance, are of the MMORPG variety, so clearly, the developers of 4Force Online are on to a winner. But how does it stack up?
In a word or two, very well indeed. It’s a solid, beautiful-looking game that’s nowhere near as shallow as some of its competitors. It’s clear that a lot of time and thought has been poured into the game, which is clear from the outset as you stumble into the first world, a gorgeously-rendered woodland with sparkling sunshine and wavy grass. And also crocodiles and lions. The game pulls no punches with its opening; there’s no tutorial videos or explanations. You’re thrust into the world clean, and must make your way as best you can. Fortunately, the controls are intuitive and responsive, making moving very easy. You can control the point-of-view by manoeuvring your right hand anywhere on the screen – character directions are operated by your left hand.
It’s simple to pick up but hard to master – as the best games often are. The ability to team up with your online pals is a great addition, and you can have buckets of fun trying to destroy a werewolf or other humungous beast that won’t go down to a simple slash and hack approach. There are four character classes to choose from too (Knight, Troll, Barbarian or Dwarf), and you can save four different lads to your account, so you can try out each different class to find out which one suits you best. Have a crack at 4Force Online – you won’t regret it.
Fight the bestial hordes at the App Store or Google Play to join the hunt today for free!
