As a kid I’d often wonder what a Pokémon game would be like if it was an action game instead of a turn based game. What if you threw out a ball and then started battling just like the anime. The game, Adore attempts to bring that concept that I wondered about to life. The Brazil-based Cadabra Games, created a game with some unique concepts, some that work really well and others that feel a bit off. So who is the game for and should it be in your video game backlog?
Let’s dive into it.
Narrative:
This game tells the story of Venba and her husband, two Tamil Immigrants who are residents of Canada. They struggle with adapting to the new language, lack of job
In Adore you play as Lukha, who is a citezen of the world of Gaterdrik. Gaterdrik is ruled by two dragons, a good one named Draknar and a Bad one named Ixer. Ixer defeats the good dragon Draknar, but Draknar in a last ditch effort to save the world imprints a piece of his soul to the protagonist, Lukha. Lukha then uses his ability to tame and summon the monsters around him to take the fight to Ixer to save the world.
The game’s narrative is interesting enough, but sadly didn’t do much other than provide the surface level motivation and lore. Unfortunately the story doesn’t really level up from here. Which in turn makes the gameplay do most of the heavy lifting.
Gameplay:
In Adore, you choose a level try to clear each room in that level, tame some monsters and the go back to your sanctuary after the level is complete. The levels are randomly generated and you’ll run across all 39 of the obtainable monsters in the overall campaign.
As I mentioned earlier, this game isn’t turn based. Instead it is a real-time action game. You have to stand continuously in the right angle to tame each creature, all the while avoided killing them and letting the kill you. If you do a solid amount of damage to the creature then it becomes easier to catch it. This mechanic is fun and can cause some gripping/tense gameplay moments.
The monsters come in four different types, with each monster possessing a hidden attack and ability. This is unlocked by giving it a monster power up that syncs up with a type of monster that is on your current teams. This motivates you to mix and match your roster a bit. The certain types are also good against other types so it is smart to use your opponents elemental weakness against them. You can also level up your skills as well as your monsters to gain new perks and abilities.
Additional Pros:
I like that this studio took a swing and tried something different. The concept and the the overall idea is one that is intriguing.
Cons/Flaws:
When I played Pokémon for the first time, I quickly find not only Pokémon that I liked, but also ones that find memorable and iconic. To this day I can remember most of the Generation 1 Pokémon. Even after playing Adore, I never found any companion that felt memorable and iconic. They felt more like a gameplay function/power than they did an ally. In this beast/monster collecting type of game you want to have some attachment to your companion.
Unfortunately I also can across some frame rate dips. Most weren’t the end of the world, but a few caused me some problems in this action-centric game.
The biggest flaw of the game is that it feels repetitive. The missions and each area sort of blends together, and as a result not much stands out. I spent a vast amount of time mindless going through the motions and clearing each area in each zone. While the difficulty ramps up, the gameplay’s loop and mechanics don’t. This might cause you to feel that repetition after completing the entry levels.
Overall/Should you Play Adore:
Adore is a fun game that suffers from a fair amount of issues. Its repetitive, has performance issues, grindy and lacks a strong narrative. That said it features layered team customization, fast-paced combat and takes a swing at bring something new to a well worn monster collect-and-fight-em genre. While this probably won’t knock your socks off if you are looking for an innovated indie alterative to games like Pokémon Scarlett and Violet then you should check out Adore.
Where Should Adore fit in your video game backlog:
Here at the ProNerd Report and on the Single Player Experience Podcast, we practice the 10 games backlog rule. In this practice, you log down 10 games, those games are gonna be your video game backlog. To be as productive as you possibly can be, we recommend that you only play three games at one time. One single player narrative game, one game that’s gonna be your chill and relaxed game, and another game that’s going to be your palate cleanser game, which is a game that you play when you’re not in the mood for your other narrative. When you complete or get tired of one game, it leaves the backlog list. Then you decide which new game is added to the list, and which game on the list advances to your active three games.
Adore – Adore fits well as a chill and relax game. It doesn’t have a compelling enough story to be in that main narrative spot, but it’s grindy gameplay loop locks it in a a decent pallet cleanser game.
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