Fangs
- June 16, 2021
- Hidden Leaf Games
- 5h median play time
Fangs is a free-to-play 4v4 Action MOBA currently in Early Access. Developed by Hidden Leaf Games, an international studio led by veteran developers from League of Legends, PUBG, VALORANT, Teamfight Tactics, and more.
Reviews
- The game offers a unique blend of fast-paced action and strategic team play, making each match feel dynamic and engaging.
- The augment system allows for significant customization of characters, enabling players to adapt their strategies between rounds.
- The developers are responsive to community feedback and actively working on improvements, showing promise for the game's future.
- The game suffers from numerous bugs and performance issues, leading to a frustrating experience for many players.
- Visual clarity is lacking, making it difficult to track abilities and understand what's happening during chaotic team fights.
- The balance is off, with certain characters feeling overpowered and others underwhelming, which can lead to one-sided matches.
- gameplay125 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players enjoying the core mechanics and fast-paced action, while others criticize it for being repetitive, clunky, and lacking depth. Many users noted that the game feels unpolished and buggy, with issues in balance and character mechanics that detract from the overall experience. Despite these criticisms, there is potential for improvement, as the developers are actively updating the game and some players find the gameplay loop engaging and fun.
“The mechanics of the characters are very enjoyable to use, and the game structure is uniquely challenging and interesting.”
“Fangs has a very fun core gameplay loop that is both simple to get into and becomes decently complex the higher you go.”
“The core gameplay loop is really satisfying, and the characters are interesting.”
“The gameplay was repetitive and monotonous, offering little in the way of challenge or excitement.”
“The core gameplay is not very fun.”
“Gameplay feels really bad at the moment.”
- graphics33 mentions
- 21 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 18 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with many players criticizing them as outdated and reminiscent of older mobile games, leading to a lack of visual clarity and immersion. While some appreciate the improved character animations and art style, others find the overall quality lacking, particularly in terms of optimization and user interface design. Despite these criticisms, there are indications that the developers are actively working on enhancements, suggesting potential for future improvements.
“On the plus side, the graphics are nice, from cool hero design to animation everything looks neat!”
“- the graphics are gorgeous.”
“The core systems in the game are fantastic and the graphics and sound effects continue to rapidly improve.”
“The graphics were lackluster, resembling something out of a decade-old mobile game.”
“Seems like a mix of hots and battlerite, but the game feels unfinished; the graphics look old and outdated like a game from 2010.”
“The graphics are also mediocre at best; the defeat and victory screens straight up look like they were from a mobile game, which I would've ignored if the game art didn't raise my expectations.”
- stability20 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is currently experiencing a range of bugs and glitches, which can detract from the overall experience, though many players find the core gameplay enjoyable despite these issues. While some users report significant problems, such as character freezing and buggy mounts, others note that the developers are responsive and actively working to address these concerns. Overall, the game's stability is considered subpar, typical for an early access title, but players are encouraged to engage with the developers for support and feedback.
“If you are thinking about paying anything for the game, don't. It is riddled with bugs and glitches.”
“I've heard this game is buggy, which is to be expected, but my character locking up and not being able to use any abilities or autos isn't cool and shouldn't be happening even in early access.”
“The game is plagued by a significant number of visual, UI, animation, and gameplay glitches even for an early access title, and the beginnings of a predatory FOMO freemium model, including premium currency and a battle pass, are fully implemented.”
- optimization18 mentions
- 22 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The game's optimization has received largely negative feedback, with many players reporting significant performance issues, crashes, and a lack of intuitive menus, particularly on older systems. While some users with high-end hardware have experienced smooth gameplay, the consensus is that the game is currently poorly optimized and requires substantial improvements to enhance the overall experience. Despite these issues, there is hope among players that the developers will address these concerns as the game progresses through early access.
“I've followed this game for quite some time now, and they have definitely made strong strides in terms of optimization, game feel, etc. I hope they continue iterating and don't get disappointed by the generally negative reviews.”
“This feels like a unique take on the genre with a lot of interesting optimizations.”
“Polish and optimization are a work in progress, also!”
“If you have an old system, the game is poorly optimized, so don't expect a playable experience.”
“My major gripe with the game is how badly optimized it is and how unintuitive and lacking the entire gameplay feels. It's not smooth at all; I won't recommend it until it improves.”
“Very unoptimized; it gets my higher-end GPU working overtime for a game with mobile graphics.”
- monetization17 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 24 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has been heavily criticized for being overly aggressive, with frequent pop-ups and ads that detract from the overall experience, leading many to perceive it as a cash grab. Reviewers express frustration over the inclusion of microtransactions, a battle pass, and founder's packs in an unfinished product, arguing that these elements prioritize profit over game quality and player satisfaction. While some acknowledge that the currency systems are fair, the overall sentiment is that the monetization approach feels lazy and reminiscent of low-effort mobile games.
“The monetization as it stands now doesn't seem too egregious.”
“Monetization is simple: there's a battle pass and a daily shop (skins, emotes, etc.).”
“This game has some potential, but clearly misses the mark in a lot of ways that are very unlikely to be fixed now that the game is released into early access with founder's packs, microtransactions, and even a battle pass.”
“Moreover, the in-game purchases were aggressively pushed, constantly bombarding me with pop-ups and ads, making the whole experience feel like a cash grab.”
“Seriously, why put in the resources to add microtransactions instead of putting in the resources to fix what everyone is criticizing first?”
“This game should not have any monetization on it currently, it is still so unfinished.”
- character development9 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with some praising the character designs and gameplay loop, while others criticize the overall lack of originality and depth. Many players find the character designs uninspired and generic, often comparing them unfavorably to other games. Additionally, issues with animations and skill impact detract from the overall experience, leaving some players feeling that the character development lacks the thoughtful design seen in similar titles.
“Fangs has great character design and the gameplay is quite enjoyable.”
“I enjoy the character designs and gameplay loop.”
“Character design is hit or miss; some characters are fun and flow well, but still have really lackluster sound design and feedback, like Ethryn who has a great kit.”
“The character design is so bland; excluding Tufts and Belroth, everyone is just a young, attractive person. Wow!”
“I wanted to like this game really badly; I loved Battlerite, but the bland character design and the unbalanced core gameplay loop just ruin it for me.”
“Skills seem very unimpactful, and some character designs were mostly lifted from games like BLC and BR, but without the thought into why they had those skills in the first place.”
- music7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 29 % negative mentions
The music in the game is described as calming and soothing, creating a welcoming atmosphere that helps players relax. While some users appreciate the soundtrack and specific audio elements, others criticize it for being repetitive and lacking dynamic variation, feeling unpolished and quickly assembled. Overall, the music elicits mixed reactions, with some finding it enjoyable and others feeling it detracts from the experience.
“Once I opened it up and listened to the calming and soothing music, it immediately made me feel welcomed and I relaxed instantly.”
“I relaxed for 5 minutes to this music long enough to realize that I was going to be okay.”
“Some of the music is a nice and exciting addition, and some of the ability audio is appreciated compared to where it has been.”
“The maps, visual effects, characters, sound effects, background music, and voice lines are unpolished and feel quickly thrown together.”
“As for audio, the current soundtrack is repetitive and in no way dynamic—instead of, for example, ramping up in intensity the closer the aspect gets to either side, the music more or less stays the same from round beginning to round end.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 83 % negative mentions
Fangs offers a refreshing take on the MOBA genre by eliminating traditional mob farming, allowing players to dive directly into action. While the game provides enjoyable feedback and minimizes grinding, some players find the augment and loadout system confusing and tedious, suggesting that core elements should be more accessible. Overall, it caters to those who prefer fast-paced gameplay over slow progression.
“Having good feedback is the most important thing in a game like this; it's what keeps the game fun while grinding for augments that should be free since they're such a core part of the game.”
“Augment/loadout system and business model is confusing and tedious at best.”
“Great game for those who like intense action instead of slow farming.”
- story5 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 40 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game is criticized for being cliché and predictable, lacking depth and engagement. Players find the narrative uninteresting and feel that the quest system is flawed, with bugs detracting from the experience. Overall, the storyline fails to captivate, leaving players wanting more complexity and substance.
“Moral of the story, you never know what life holds in store for you, and if I would have given up when all the odds were stacked against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
“Additionally, the storyline was cliché and predictable, failing to engage me in any meaningful way.”
“Yeah, I don't know about this one. It doesn't seem complex, but I also don't feel like reading a short story every time I want to try a new champion. Also, the community is kind of lame.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is characterized by a bittersweet irony, as players find it amusing that the game's promotional material boasts about its creator's prestigious background while the game itself struggles to gain recognition, overshadowed by giants like League of Legends and Dota.
“Funny stuff.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users highlight the emotional aspect of the game as deeply impactful, noting that the calming and soothing music creates an immediate sense of welcome and relaxation.
“Once I opened it up and listened to the calming and soothing music, it immediately made me feel welcomed, and I relaxed instantly.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 200 % positive mentions
- -400 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players note that the addition of objectives enhances the replayability of the game by introducing more strategic depth, moving beyond just tracking enemy cooldowns and ability baiting. This added complexity encourages players to engage with the game in varied ways, increasing overall enjoyment and replay value.
“The variety of characters and strategies keeps each match feeling fresh, making me want to jump back in for another round.”
“With multiple game modes and dynamic events, there's always something new to experience, ensuring that I never get bored.”
“As someone who played both Bloodline Champions and Battlerite, adding objectives to the game really improves its replayability, adding more depth beyond just keeping track of enemy cooldowns and baiting abilities.”
“The lack of diverse game modes makes it hard to find motivation to replay the game after the initial experience.”
“Once you've completed the main storyline, there isn't much incentive to dive back in, as the side quests feel repetitive and uninspired.”