Hexapolis: Civilization wars
Hexapolis: Civilization Wars is a strategy game with stunning mechanics and good graphics, where you wage turn-based wars to protect your polis from outlanders. However, be prepared for a lot of grinding and encounters with excessive advertisements that may hinder your gaming experience. The game is all about building and defending your civilization while making strategic decisions to defeat your enemies.
Reviews
- Fun gameplay with a mix of strategy and turn-based mechanics.
- Graphics are appealing and the game is easy to pick up.
- Optional ads for rewards, allowing players to progress without mandatory ad viewing.
- Significant difficulty spikes make it hard to progress without spending money.
- Frequent ads can disrupt gameplay, leading to frustration.
- AI opponents often have unfair advantages, making the game feel unbalanced.
- monetization646 mentions
- 2 % positive mentions
- 3 % neutral mentions
- 96 % negative mentions
The monetization strategy of the game has drawn significant criticism, with many players noting an overwhelming presence of ads, even if they are labeled as "optional." While some appreciate the ability to watch ads for rewards, the sheer volume and length of these ads often detract from gameplay, leading to a perception of the game as a cash grab that heavily favors pay-to-win mechanics. Overall, players express frustration over the balance between enjoying the game and the constant need to engage with ads to progress.
“In-app purchases are not pushy like most games.”
“No ads, good strategy game, turn-based.”
“So far hasn't shoved microtransactions down my throat.”
“⚠️ Warning ⚠️: you will spend more time watching ads than you will playing the actual game.”
“It's just another game that's meant to take more money out of your wallet or force you to keep watching ads.”
“The game is designed so that the only way you can win is to constantly watch ads.”
- gameplay155 mentions
- 44 % positive mentions
- 47 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay of the game is generally described as entertaining and easy to pick up, with solid mechanics and enjoyable turn-based strategy elements. However, many users express frustration with the heavy reliance on ads, pay-to-win mechanics, and a lack of meaningful progression, which detracts from the overall experience. While some find the gameplay addictive and fun, others criticize it for becoming repetitive and overly simplistic, especially as monetization strategies overshadow the core mechanics.
“Entertaining gameplay, not too complex and easy to get into and progress.”
“Gameplay is addictively fun.”
“Great gameplay for turn-based style, along with above average animation and graphics.”
“I came back to play after a year (more or less) not much changed, the gameplay is basically the same but the things they changed are the things that try to force you to spend money, watch more ads, etc.”
“The game is decent enough, but when a game heavily relies on watching ads for gameplay rewards that you need, and the ads don't give said rewards...makes the game not at all worth playing.”
“Gameplay quickly becomes repetitive but is closer to actually being fun than most games on the play store.”
- graphics59 mentions
- 76 % positive mentions
- 19 % neutral mentions
- 5 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics of the game are widely praised for their quality and engaging art style, with many users noting that they are above average for an animated game. While some players appreciate the unique and fresh visuals, a few express concerns about performance issues, such as freezing and the impact of ads on gameplay. Despite these minor drawbacks, the graphics contribute positively to the overall fun and strategic experience of the game.
“The game has great graphics and gameplay.”
“The art style is also fresh and unique, making it stand apart from other titles.”
“Great graphics and game mechanics, but adfestation kills the fun.”
“A great game but it keeps freezing every few turns, even on 30 fps and low graphics.”
“Throws away the minimalist beauty in favor of exaggerated graphics, and the peaceful strategy becomes a grindy slog.”
“Graphics are just not amazing enough to want to watch 50+ single AI moves per turn.”
- grinding29 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be excessive, especially following recent updates that have increased the time and effort required to progress. While the gameplay is enjoyable and strategic, many reviewers feel that the balance between grinding and advancement is skewed, often leading to frustration as the difficulty spikes and resources become harder to obtain without spending real money. Overall, while some appreciate the challenge, the consensus is that the game leans heavily on grinding, which can detract from the overall experience.
“With the last update, a lot of progress has been undone and the necessary grinding has increased.”
“There was a very clear progression, then you just hit a cliff where the enemy spawns super wizards constantly. After months of grinding to level all my units to orange and close to max level, I still can't compete with the AI in the campaign regardless of using appropriate counter units.”
“The game is fun initially, but the gold growth does not keep pace with the AI health and difficulty, so eventually you can't win without spending real money or grinding gold for months.”
- story24 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The game's story aspect is criticized for its lack of depth, with many players noting the absence of a traditional campaign or narrative structure, leading to a repetitive experience dominated by randomly generated levels. Suggestions for improvement include the addition of a cohesive story with unlockable units and cutscenes to enhance engagement. Overall, players feel that the current mission system is unsatisfying and lacks meaningful rewards, diminishing the overall enjoyment of the game.
“Suggestion to the developers: include a story where you unlock units one by one and have a narrative to follow with cutscenes. This would really enhance the game and make it more fun and engaging to play.”
“I found out that if you complete 6 out of 10 of the story act quests, it automatically takes you to the next act.”
“Fun times! The hard missions can quickly ramp up above your rate of growth, but missions and normal mode offer constant fun.”
“Basically, this is almost a rogue-like where there's no story or anything and just randomly generated levels.”
“It lacks a campaign/story mode; you get random level-based maps.”
“A string of nothing but campaign missions where there are no factions.”
- stability24 mentions
- 8 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 92 % negative mentions
The stability of the game is a significant concern among users, with frequent reports of freezing during gameplay, particularly after watching ads, and issues with loading progress. Many players experience crashes that require restarting the app, and glitches that hinder gameplay, such as missing enemy stats and unresponsive rewards. Overall, the game is described as buggy and slow, detracting from the initial enjoyment.
“It's bug-free and runs smoothly.”
“No glitches, easy to learn.”
“Like the concept, but the app needs some serious work on recurring problems: 1) sometimes freezes after completing an ad, and I must close and restart.”
“The game is buggy and slow now, and everything has changed for the worse.”
“Game freezes frequently after watching ads.”
- music10 mentions
- 30 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising specific tracks and the overall quality, while others find certain pieces jarring or out of place. Many appreciate the ability to turn off the music, and a few highlight the successful reinterpretation of popular themes, particularly from Game of Thrones. However, issues such as music pausing during ads and a lack of variety in the soundtrack detract from the overall experience.
“Well-made with pleasant graphics and music.”
“Just 3 minutes in and the music is 5 stars for me.”
“It's rare that a small game succeeds at reinterpreting a popular music, but this game of throne remake is on point!”
“Some music tracks are fine, others are jarringly out of place.”
“I have only background music and a black screen after the end of loading.”
“During ads, you're forced to pause all music on your device or the ad stays paused and will not progress.”
- replayability4 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- -25 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game offers high replayability, particularly for mobile, with players noting that it remains engaging even after breaks. However, some users mention that the grind increases significantly at higher levels, which may affect long-term enjoyment.
“The replayability is very high, though the higher you get, the worse the grind is.”
“Adds more replayability than most on mobile.”
“I quit for a while and came back, so it does have replay value.”
“The replayability is very high, though the higher you get, the worse the grind becomes.”
“I quit for a while and came back, so it does have some replay value.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with users finding it amusing and entertaining. However, there are some technical issues, such as installation problems on certain phones, that detract from the overall experience.
“Funny.”
“Funny enough, the ads never freeze.”
“Funny enough so far.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Reviews on optimization are mixed; while some users report perfect performance on their devices, others express skepticism about the game's reliability and potential monetization strategies. Overall, the game's optimization appears to work well for some, but concerns about performance after payment linger for others.
“Great game! I like it because it's a mixture of strategy and hex. I'm very excited to see what else will be added in the future. 5 stars for perfect performance on my phone.”
“It probably wants to force you to buy instead, but I wouldn't trust that it would work after paying based on its performance.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users find the emotional aspect of the game to be positive and wholesome, contrasting it with frustrations about the current state of the game industry. They suggest that "Polytopia" offers a more uplifting experience for those seeking a feel-good vibe.