WWE Immortals

As I said last year when I reviewed the WWE Network, I'm a stan for professional wrestling. And as I also said last year when I reviewed the Network, this is going to be a lengthy post so....well, deal with it. If you just want the gist, skip down a little bit for the quick details; the pros and cons are right under that. Anyway, I know that according to the WWE machine I should be saying 'sports entertainment,' but bump it. They're wrestling in that ring and that's what I've been calling it for 28 years, so that's what it is to me. But regardless of how you describe it, I'm a lifer. I've been watching for as long as I can remember, and minus a few years where I took sabbaticals (but still kept up with the happenings for the most part), it's always been a big part of my life. I've played some of the games over the years as well; just to kick it old school for a minute, I still own Day of Reckoning 2 for the GameCube; it's probably scratched all to hell by now but I'd still play it. lol I'm not really one for sports games in general (I tried Smackdown vs Raw on the Wii, lost horribly and decided that the Wii style of fighting wasn't for me LOL), but I'm open to trying something new when the mood calls for it. Well, such a mood has been called for (lol) and that brings me to the latest game release from WWE, the mobile-exclusive WWE Immortals. 

Source

What is it? 

A card based fighting game using some of today's most popular WWE Superstars....with a little supernatural help. Think of it as a little WWE with some Injustice and a touch of HellFire (if you play that game) thrown in for good measure. 

Available platforms: 

Android, iOS, PC (but you'll need an emulator for whichever mobile system you use first)

Price:
Free, unless you want extra items from the store


Ease of gameplay:
Very easy, the tutorial during the first match explains everything very clearly and in a way that is easy to remember, and there are always helpful prompts, like when to perform a power attack


Extras:
For an app game (a preface that is quickly losing resonance lol), this is a rather detailed game. In addition to the main storyline, there is also the option to go online, where the player can participate in online matches or daily quests. From time to time there are also challenge modes, which consist of 5 separate requirements and you get to choose which ones you'll do--but in order to reap the reward of the challenge as a whole, you must complete all of the individual quests first. You don't run out of things to do until your team's stamina is depleted, but depending on your collection, you can probably just swap out the players for those with full stamina and keep going. If you play regularly, you will most likely accumulate some stamina cards so you'll be able to use those to replenish your team's energy as well.

Kane's character art. How badass does this look, right?

Pros:

• Great graphics
• The wrestler likenesses are pretty accurate for many
• Opportunities to upgrade/strengthen your characters are layered, so you don't get to max them out easily or quickly (unless you're adding a lot of money to your account to afford upgrades)
• Challenge mode is varied
• The matches aren't as long as traditional console matches
• There are differing rewards but they're all useful; none are pointless
• Many challenges have coin payouts so its not hard to earn money and upgrade your character cards if you play regularly
• When there's no lag, you can see that the concept for the game is well-executed and the matches fast-paced
• Online mode isn't just limited to fighting with no purpose
• The character's level is always at the top of the card (except for in mystery fights), so its not often that you'll be unaware of when your cards are not evenly matched with your opponent's cards

Cons:

• LAG/FREEZE CITY!!!
• The game is very large so it can take quite awhile to download, but its still significantly smaller than Injustice
• Buying characters without loading money to replenish lost coin can leave you broke pretty quickly
• Some of the Superstars' "superhero" concepts are rather....underwhelming
• Not enough variety with the characters being offered
• Long loading time when starting a match
• Sometimes the finger taps don't connect; this happens most often with trying to block or activate Signature moves
• Challenge mode doesn't go on for very long and this doesn't leave new players with enough time to build up their cards to play
• Minor point but the major storyline of the game gets kind of lost with all of the side challenges

This part of the store is where you can buy various perks for your characters,
such as the Rock's Cooking that we don't get to smell anymore. I see what
you did there, Vince. Very cheeky. lol

My thoughts: (this is where it gets lengthy)

I didn't read any other reviews prior to my downloading the game; I wanted to find out everything on my own as I played the game so I could write an unbiased review. Moving on to expand on the pros and cons, I'm really loving the graphics and execution of this game. It reminds me a lot of Injustice, and that's not a bad thing at all. Injustice, in both console and mobile form, is an amazing game and WWE Immortals takes a bit of that concept but makes it something all its own. The facial likenesses and mannerisms are very accurate for many, and the character art, as you can see in the screenshots I've sprinkled throughout the post, was superb, in my opinion. One of my biggest complaints with games that intend to be inspired off of the likenesses of real people is that often times, it falls flat. Immortals nailed it. Check out the character art for Paige and Kane. I love it.

The cards are another one of my favorites in this game because they're far from one-dimensional. Every match helps increase the player's level, which in turn increases the stats. You can add on additional perks (extra health, damage, etc.) to the character, you can unlock their signature moves then gradually strengthen the impact of those as well, and equip them with up to 3 pieces of gear. That brings me to another piece of the game that I like; all of the characters have certain allies and enemies, which also has an impact on how the card plays. And if you don't like a particular card or don't wish to have that Superstar in your collection anymore, you can always sell it. That reminds me a bit of HellFire, where you can just level up a stronger card by merging them together. This particular card is for Roman Reigns (I chose this card at random, of course). I think the Signature moves are friggin' awesome and I love watching my opponents' health level deplete after completing one. LOL There are bronze, silver and gold characters, all of whom have differing attack and health levels.

I just took this screenshot yesterday, so obviously I've leveled up quite a bit
from the next photo I'm putting in, but this is what a character's page looks like.
Roman was one of my starter characters; I'm not sure if everyone gets the same
three cards or if they're selected for everyone at random. 

Challenge mode is varied as I said above; you get 5 smaller quests, and each of them require about 10 matches. Each match is no more than 5 minutes, so you don't get stuck in the matches like on consoles that take 15-20 minutes. Most of the rewards are in the form of coins, which definitely come in handy as all character upgrades gradually increase in cost. When the game isn't lagging or freezing (which I'm going to get to in a minute), you can see how fast-paced the game is and how well it actually plays. Everything is executed quickly and the tag partner switches keep the matches exciting, as does the ability to unlock new locations. And finally, you won't often be overmatched with opponents when playing regularly; online it's a bit of a toss-up but the system-operated opponents always have their levels above the card on clear display. 

This is what the chain of fights in a battle looks like. As you gradually move
up the totem pole, the levels of your opponents will increase and the final
level will either be a leveled mini-boss by themselves or a regular tag match
that includes a mini-boss. This screenshot is from when I first started playing.

And now for the cons. This game lags and freezes like nobody's business. That was the only part of other players' reviews that I did read, so turns out that it is a universal complaint. Most of the matches I've played since downloading this game have lagged horribly, almost to the point where I can barely see my hits connecting. It's extremely irritating, has caused me to rage quit on a few occasions and has made me lose a number of matches, because even though my hits aren't connecting due to lag, the computer's hits sure are. LOL Said lag results in this problem happening frequently, more so when trying to block a hit or activate a Signature move. It's crashed my phone a few times now, most of which was mid-match, and that's incredibly annoying too. If you're pressed for space on your phone, don't bother downloading WWE Immortals--this game is nearly 2GB. 

Some of the Superstar concepts are a little underwhelming...to me anyway. Big Show is a behemoth of a man, so the possibilities of supernatural stuff they could have done is limitless...and they made him a lumberjack?? And did they really make Daniel Bryan a goat?? When I first saw one of Trish Stratus' cards, I thought it was Beth Phoenix. I think it was the outfit. But meh, some of the Superstars' concepts are a little underwhelming for me. But while I'm on the subject of the Superstars, the initial offerings for purchase aren't very varied. Each Superstar has two forms, but I keep seeing the same folks over and over in the store. I'm hoping that I simply haven't unlocked the others yet, because I'd love to see some HoF'ers and more of the current roster in this game. I think amped up versions of BNB's Bullhammer or Dolph Ziggler's Zig Zag would look sweet. I'm also digging the concept of forming and saving certain combos of characters that have particular perks when teaming, like reforming The Shield (and that totally wasn't a biased opinion....) or putting together certain members of DX or The Authority. Get on that, Vince, these are good ideas. lol Finally, unless you're ready to put some major coin in the shop, you won't be getting your hands on cards like these very easily. 

These are some of the other forms of the offered Superstars. Check those prices.

Do I recommend this game?

Yes, if you're a WWE fan and you liked Injustice, or if you're a WWE fan and like the card concept of gaming. The common denominator here though is that you should probably already be a WWE fan as I don't think the game will be as interesting for players who aren't already fans of the product. Because the concept of professional wrestling in general already holds little weight to most of mainstream society, I can't see many people who don't watch wrestling liking a game centered on said industry quite as much. I also recommend it if you're a fan like me who doesn't own the current console games and wants something with gameplay that's a bit shorter. 

Overall, I love this game. I'm really enjoying leveling up my characters and unlocking new stuff, and because I've always had a hard-on for the supernatural in general, the premise of the game isn't ridiculous to me. It's quite the contrary for me, actually. I know the realists, the "wrestling is fake and this game is dumb" folks aren't all that pleased with this game, but I don't care. Immortals is a solid game, it has a lot of potential, and I'm having a ball. There are some parts of the game that require work, so I'm hoping that future upgrades include fixes. I think a lot of attention and detail went into the development of this game in many areas, and I appreciate that. Many games are one-dimensional these days, and its easy to get bored or max out your characters quickly. Immortals deftly avoided that trap and makes it fun in the process. That lag really is for the birds, though.