Developed by Dreamnauts Studios comes as journey of galactic epicness. Dodge and blast your way through this real time strategy bullet hell and reclaim what was lost. A dazzling combination of MegaMan Battle Network and One Step from Eden, get ready to soar like a comet.
The bridge is yours, Administrator. This is Grid Force – Mask of the Goddess.
A Shattered Memory
Grid Force follows the story of Donna, an amnesiac who is supposedly born and chosen of a goddess, tasked with saving the world around her. She is joined by her allies, who all seem to remember her and her past, each to varying degrees. With no other way to move than forward, Donna plunges ahead, ready to save the world, discover her memories, and maybe, this time, get it right.
The story of Grid Force is told not just in cut-scenes, but well drawn comics pages as well. When not in cut-scenes, the games animation and styles is very reminiscent of Adventure Quest. The music is well orchestrated pieces, giving the right ambiance and emotion to the scenes, not to mention having a banger battle theme.
There was a Fire Fight!
A combination of half bullet hell and half tactical RPG, the game-play of Grid Force is primarily in the combat. You have a grid for a battlefield, half of it yours and the other half the enemies. Defeat the waves of enemies to move forward in the stage, fairly basic. Enemies do have elemental types, and matching those types with the corresponding element will lead to extra damage and possibly staggering them. The element types work sort of like paper-rock-scissors, but with more options leading into a wheel of damage types.
The flow of combat is constant, allowing you to maneuver around the battlefield to dodge incoming attacks. Most enemies have attack patterns that are fairly simple to memorize, allowing you to avoid them with practice. You also have the ability to block, in addition to perfectly timed counter attacks, which you can send them back for massive damage. It is highly advised you learn to do this, as it will save your life early on.
Power of Friendship, or something like that
Donna is not alone in Grid Force. Each of her companions have their own attacks and special abilities, as well as a corresponding element. Being able to swap out to deal more damage, or to keep an ally from falling if their health gets too low. Juggling all these features take a little getting used to, but it’s worth it in the long haul.
However, nothing is without its problems. The game crashed multiple times in the run I’ve had with it, which makes progression frustrating. Some of the enemies can also get buffs that have no real explanation to them or how to counter them. Unlocks are extremely convoluted and hard to figure out, which to me is one of the reasons I like to play games in the first place.
Final Verdict
Grid Force is an interesting piece of entertainment, combining the bullet-hell mechanics with RPG elements makes for a good time. The flaws are there, and I think that in time they could be ironed out, but until that time happens, I’d say pick this game up if it’s on sale. Not bad, not spectacular, but just alright.
Grid Force – Mask of the Goddess is available on PC through Steam.
VERDICT
AVERAGE
AVERAGE
Grid Force is an interesting piece of entertainment, combining the bullet-hell mechanics with RPG elements makes for a good time. The flaws are there, and I think that in time they could be ironed out, but until that time happens, I’d say pick this game up if it’s on sale. Not bad, not spectacular, but just alright.
