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With a pretty unique mix of some monster collecting concepts with real-time strategy, Adore has appeal but it isn’t all upside
Ever since the arrival of Pokemon and its various similar competitors, monster hunting has really taken off in popularity. In general, to this point, the gameplay for this subgenre has been pretty locked in, with turn-based combat and trying to build up and/or evolve your various critters as you go. Adore shares some aspects of that design, in particular the element of looking to capture new minions that you’ll be able to build up and use in combat. The big difference is that you’ll be doing this in real-time, moving around, deploying your creatures, and then looking to either defeat them or weaken them enough for you to then capture them for yourself. Since this very different method of combat is central to what makes the game unique, it sort of lives or dies as an experience depending on how you feel about it. While it’s certainly workable enough, and you can develop some methods to help better ensure your success, it’s also hardly ideal. In particular, keeping on the move and effectively deploying your units at the same time can be aggravating and seemingly more clumsy than it should be. Throw in the fact that gamers have been spoiled by pretty sizeable sets of monsters to encounter, discover, and then capture, the pretty meager menagerie offered doesn’t bode well for the experience remaining very fresh for long. It absolutely has some elements that work, but in the details there are still some kinks to work out.
Justin Nation, Score:Fair [6.8]