When Monotony and Trite Combine
Champions of Avan is Early Morning Studio’s attempt to cash in on the high fantastic RPG market. Players will protect their base camp against vicious adversaries and unlock the surrounding area in this follow-up to Vampire’s Fall: Origins. However, even the most novice of players will be disappointed after the primary gameplay. Calling Champions of Avan an action RPG is an overstatement. From its lack of story to the minimal role-playing engagement, Champions of Avan leaves much to be desired.
Immediately after the opening title, players are tasked with upgrading the base and recruiting heroes, and then collecting wood, stone and iron. There are zero instructions or guides to help you understand what is going on. And the rewards never seem to be enough to continue playing. What Champions of Avan does have are ads and lots of them. The game is overrun with ads. Every attempt to advance will be prompted by an ad. The ads are so abundant, players will spend more time watching and waiting than playing. Of course, Champions of Avan does offer a small pay-to-play option. Players can purchase gold coins for new weapons and armor or a hero’s speedy recovery.
Patience is More than a Virtue
In Champions of Avan, it’s player versus the environment, no question. If players want to advance heroes or upgrade their base camp, they better be ready to develop some extreme patience. There is a lot of sitting and waiting. Players must wait for supplies, wait for heroes to heal, wait for surprise attacks to upgrade their warrior and camp. Since Champions of Avan is an idle RPG, the player will accrue base camps supplies when the game is inactive.
The fastest way to upgrade heroes is to send them into combat. The scenes of the battle feature characters’ headshots groaning and bashing into each other. There are enemy camps scattered throughout the map. As you defeat and take over the surrounding lands, the map will expand, revealing terrifying landscapes.
Some Light in all the Darkness
The artwork is well done. The landscape is a creepy, dark and gory backdrop of bloody trees in a dimly lit forest. The characters are battle-scarred champions or horrifying monsters. However, during gameplay, the battle scenes are reduced to miniature characters running into combat. The different landscapes are fun to look over once unlocked. Champions of Avan soundtrack, on the other hand, is calming as birds chirp and the wind blows in the distance. There isn’t much for sounds effects besides the rapid drum beat and grunts during battle.
Another positive is the surprise attacks that pop up sporadically. The enemy attacks help level up players’ warriors when nothing else can be done to move things along. The attacks do happen often, but not often enough to elevate the gameplay. Players can also help to level up their fighters by obtaining new armor and weapons. You can achieve items by foraging in the base camp or purchase them with gold coins. Again, it won’t change much, but every bit helps.
Not All RPGs are Created Equal
Between ad interruptions and tiny little figures running long distances, Champions of Avan isn’t much to rave about. Players will quickly discover the lack of gameplay, from battle sequences to actual role-playing options. Champions of Avan doesn’t hold up against similar games of genre and style.
Is It Hardcore?
Not even a little.
Between not enough to do and too many ads, Champions of Avan is lackluster at best. Frankly, it is worth sitting through the innumerous amount of ads. Players are best to skip it and find better RPG options.
