Robotek Review - Slots, and Robots, and Lasers OH MY!

Have you ever wondered what a game where you mixed slot machines and giant robots with lasers would look like? Well neither have I cause the very thought of that invokes a state of full retard, and if Robert Downey Jr. has taught us anything it’s that you never go full retard. Hexage, however, has gone against the grain. They’ve dared to take that next step into the unknown and I’m glad to say the results are pretty awesome. The results, by the way, are called Robotek.

The premise of Robotek is rather simple. You travel the world as a robot driven by a human (I believe the last on Earth) that travels the world kicking the crap out of other robots. Through the slot machine attack mechanic you summon helper droids, raise defenses, and send a flurry of attacks at the enemy robot in a battle of strength and endurance. Though the slot machine does make play a little luck of the draw, there is a heavy strategic element. What this means is that you are going to have a few wins and losses due to outrageous circumstances where a perfect storm occurs. However, by planning strategically you should be able to calculate your ability to win against each foe.

One of the best pieces of Robotek is its pricing model. Robotek comes as a free to play game, and from anecdotal evidence I can say it’s completable without purchases. The being said Hexage has a solid track record for taking care of customers that choose to make purchases and Robotek is no exception. Unlike many freemium games purchases in robotek are restorable in the event that Robotek is re-installed or you decided to start over. This means all purchases are permanent (which I feel is how it should be with ALL games). Purchase options include sets of energy and coins. Energy is acquired by winning and depleted from losing (so you many need more to keep playing), and coins are spent on skill benefits used to make your various skills and attacks more effective. Even better the most expensive purchase is a whopping $3, which furthers the point that Hexage is truly an ethical game developer.

The graphics and sounds of Robotek are polished, even for a game that was released today. The music has gotten particular attention among much of the fan base. The graphics are solid overall, but the lack of variety in backdrops and character models is a little off puttings. Additionally it would be nice to see robots and skills become bigger and better as they level up, but unfortunately this isn’t the case. What’s there is pretty awesome, but the downside is that there isn’t a lot of “it” to be had.

Robotek is a highly recommended game for anyone, but I would specifically like to recommend it to those thrifty gamers that what to get a solid experience without lightening their wallet too much. I highly recommend supporting devs like Hexage due to their solid business practices, but there certainly is a lot of gameplay in Robotek that can be enjoyed for free.