Android MMO: Avabel Online
So this is the first MMO I decided to play, mainly because the graphics seemed to appeal at first glance. Now before I start, I want it to be known that since this is just a side-site, I'm not going to get into too much detail about the games I review. This may sound like an easy way out from putting in the usual amount of effort into a review, but this is a place for me to write the sort of opinions that could repulse PR's in the gaming industry. (Which would be detrimental to my day job!)
Back to AO, as I originally stated, the graphics were the first thing that caught my eye about this game. I've played many (and I mean many) games throughout my life, and one of the things I enjoy the most is the environments that are created for the player to explore. The graphics in AO were great considering that it is a mobile game. The character graphics seemed to follow the usual image that comes with F2P games; the spikey haired hero, but I can put up with that if a game offers more in other areas.
The music was pretty good and matched the game play; it was definitely reminiscent of Final Fantasy, so I enjoyed it alot to say the least.
I must say this game was a grind fest... You're basically tasked to kill as many monsters as possible to level up - a task which I've been brought up with on countless games - but it seemed so much more boring than say Dragon Quest IX. With DQ9 I relished the grotto grinding side of the game, so much so that I've sank more hours into that game than I'm willing to admit. But with AO, I found it easy to turn the game off and forget about it, and its for this reason, I have to say I wasn't impressed. The UI seemed too overbearing compared to other MMO's I've played on my phone before, and it was off putting when attacking random creatures that spawned on the map. These days, I tend to compare most Android MMO's with Order and Chaos (and the same with MMORPG's and World of Warcraft), and in comparison I'd rather play Order even though its a clone; a clone of a seemingly unbeatable MMO.
All in all, if you like mindless level grinding in a nice looking environment with great music, then I'd say grab this game. It's free and most phones can play it to a degree; although having low RAM seemed to cause a few problems with the graphics. If you don't like the things I've mentioned, then you're probably better off trying something else, although finding a free game with great graphics is rather hard these day.
Bon Appetit
