HoloParade
- November 30, 2023
- Roboqlo
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"HoloParade" is a single-player strategy game where you collect, nurture, and watch hololive VTubers and mascot characters in a 2D tower defense setting. The game offers depth and strategy, with stages that require specific character development and formations tailored to enemies. It takes about 4 hours to beat, but subsequent high-difficulty stages will demand more precise character usage. This game is published under CCMC Corp's Indie game brand "holIndie."
Mac OS
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Fun and engaging gameplay that appeals to Hololive fans.
- Cute graphics and animations, with a variety of characters to collect.
- Gacha system allows for strategic team building and offers a sense of progression.
- Grindy mechanics with slow ticket acquisition and high character costs can lead to frustration.
- Difficulty spikes can make certain levels feel unfair and unbalanced.
- User interface and navigation could use improvement for a smoother experience.
- gameplay75 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 13 % negative mentions
The gameplay is a mix of enjoyable mechanics and repetitive elements, with a fun gacha system for unlocking troops and a variety of strategies to explore. However, many players find it can become grindy and lacks depth, leading to a sense of monotony over time. While some appreciate the straightforward nature and charm of the game, others criticize its balance issues and the limited variety in team-building and combat strategies.
“The art is nice, the gameplay is quite fun and has loads of different possible strategies with the big roster as well as synergies, skills, instruments, and a bunch more modifiers.”
“Overall, great update that has streamlined the gameplay as well as making it much more enjoyable.”
“The whole attribute-based bonuses, attack type squad arrangement, and battle 'frenzy' mechanics are pretty neat.”
“The gameplay is bland and boring.”
“The combat is very simplistic and repetitive once you get the hang of it, and there just isn't enough depth in either the team-building, the combat system, or the gameplay levels themselves to provide that type of long-lasting replayability.”
“The gameplay is tedious, the system is tedious and its overall just a mediocre experience.”
- grinding50 mentions
- 2 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 98 % negative mentions
The reviews indicate that the game features significant grinding, particularly for coins and character upgrades, which can lead to repetitive gameplay and frustration, especially during difficulty spikes. While some players find the grind enjoyable and manageable, others feel it detracts from the overall experience, suggesting that the game's systems could be better designed to make grinding less tedious. Overall, the game is seen as charming but flawed, with a need for improvements to balance the grind and enhance player engagement.
“There is no grinding necessary in terms of gacha or other resources to beat the game.”
“And this game is a grindy gacha, which makes these long-term flaws rather impactful.”
“The gameplay is tedious, the system is tedious and it's overall just a mediocre experience.”
“Difficulty spikes are a bit harsh and getting coins through farming older stages manually is really tedious.”
- music30 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 60 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received largely negative feedback, with many players finding it overly repetitive and poorly looped, leading to frustration during gameplay. While some appreciate the upbeat nature and catchy elements, the reliance on simple freeware tracks and the limited variety—often gated behind DLC—detracts from the overall experience. Overall, players recommend turning off the in-game music in favor of personal playlists to enhance enjoyment.
“Hololive fanbase game with cute animations and music, love it!”
“10/10 sounds (the music is addictive ngl)”
“Music is good, graphics are very easy on the eye and the gameplay is enjoyable.”
“The OST is a huge downer since there's only 1 song that plays during stages, and it doesn't set the mood properly when the difficulty ramps up.”
“In the very first level, the music track (which in this game seems to be all royalty-free BGM) has a very annoying and very noticeable looping point with nearly a second of silence before it restarts - and the track isn't that long.”
“Gameplay is pretty nice but the music is looped so badly that it annoyed me after 2 minutes of playing.”
- story21 mentions
- 14 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The story in Holoparade is criticized for being minimal and repetitive, primarily serving as a backdrop for the game's strategy and combat elements. Players report that while the story missions provide rewards that help progress, the overall narrative lacks depth and variety, leading to a grindy experience. Many feel that the reliance on gacha mechanics detracts from the enjoyment of the story, as it limits the ability to utilize favorite characters effectively.
“Having recently cleared the first 4 story parades (and 3 tours), I can confidently say this game embodies the heart and spirit of Hololive; even if there are some quirks that might be head-scratching.”
“The rewards from the story missions and the tours are enough to pull your units up a few ranks each time.”
“You get a lot of tickets going through the story, and any stage you do relevant to your progress will net you a chance to drop more.”
“A lot of games with strong strategy/RPG elements balance their combat with story or exploration in between, whereas Holoparade is almost exclusively strategy and combat with very little else to do.”
“Seemingly no story, no achievements, repetitive annoying music, very few Hololive talents are actually in the game. Rushia seems to have been deliberately excluded; you get units from gacha, so if you want to use your oshi, chances are you're out of luck even if they are in the game.”
“I've beaten the 'main story' (and saw the end credits), and I regret wasting time on this.”
- monetization12 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
Holoparade features gacha mechanics similar to mobile games but notably lacks predatory microtransactions, allowing players to grind for in-game tickets without the pressure to spend money. While the absence of monetization is appreciated, some players feel the game's design still encourages grinding in a way that mimics mobile titles, leading to frustration. Overall, the game is priced at $4 with no additional purchases, but comparisons to other free titles in the genre highlight a perceived lack of passion in its monetization approach.
“Holoparade is a Battle Cats-like game with the same gacha mechanics, but without predatory microtransactions.”
“It is your idol/comedian game from Hololive, thumbs up for no microtransactions.”
“There's also a gacha system, but as far as I can tell, there's no microtransactions, so you can grind out more tickets to pull in-game and it comes complete with a pity system.”
“This means you will 100% reach a point where the game practically stops giving you tickets and forces you to grind out levels in the hope it randomly gives you one, just like a mobile game would, except this isn't a mobile game and there's no monetization, so who knows why it's designed like this.”
“The gacha system feels designed like one in a mobile game, one intended to annoy players into paying money for rolls (or skipping problematic levels), but without any actual monetization system in place it just ends up feeling bad for everyone.”
“For Cover to go the route of paid games, this isn't a very nice strong entry when Kay Yu of Holocure will remain free and has more passion in his project than this, which I feel Cover wanted to go into monetization.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a charming art style and cute character designs, which many players appreciate. However, the overall presentation is inconsistent and lacks polish, with issues such as typos and poorly explained mechanics detracting from the visual experience. While the graphics are easy on the eyes, they are considered somewhat simplistic and in need of a more refined implementation.
“The strongest point of this game is the art style; all the characters are extremely cute.”
“Music is good, graphics are very easy on the eye, and the gameplay is enjoyable.”
“Some of the artwork and animation has charm to it, but the presentation overall is inconsistent.”
“The game does have some charm in regards to its visuals, and I can tell it's not a cash-in; it really just needs a better implemented system, that's all.”
“Can't recommend right now, not polished enough, a lot of typos, weird graphical settings, a lot of mechanics not explained, the balancing is really bad (I got to summon a UR only one time), the mini-game feels like it was made in a rush before release.”
- humor4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game resonates particularly well with fans of Hololive, who appreciate the comedic voice lines and character interactions. The quirky and amusing nature of the characters, along with their entertaining voice performances, adds a layer of humor that is best appreciated by those familiar with Hololive's content.
“Fans of Hololive will probably find the voice lines chosen to be very funny.”
“The battle cat features funny characters.”
“The voice acting of Hololive girls is so funny; if you watch their livestreams every day, you'll understand.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -67 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
Players note that while the game is enjoyable, later levels require careful timing and strategy, indicating a need for optimization in gameplay mechanics. Additionally, there are calls for improved performance on the Steam Deck and adjustments to the ticket earning rate, as the current system can feel overly grindy.
“But when you reach some of the later levels, the timing of when you send out certain units can actually greatly affect your performance, so surprisingly, the parades actually take a good amount of focus as you progress!”
“I am enjoying this game so far, but I hope this gets optimized on Steam Deck.”
“Fix the performance, and improve ticket earning rate; it takes 20 pulls for a guaranteed holomem, which is quite a long road to get everyone when it's possible for duplication to appear.”
“I am enjoying this game so far, but I hope it gets optimized for Steam Deck.”
“Fix the performance and improve the ticket earning rate; it takes 20 pulls for a guaranteed holomem, which is quite a long road to get everyone when duplication is possible.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized as wholesome, though some users feel that the developers may lack insight into players' emotional motivations, which could impact engagement and interest.
“Absolutely wholesome game.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is described as a cheerful escape for Hololive fans, providing a lighthearted environment reminiscent of vtuber interactions, particularly highlighting the playful banter and teasing found in Miko's chat. This creates a unique blend of joy and camaraderie, allowing players to immerse themselves in a vibrant, supportive community.
“Captures the unique atmosphere present in Miko's chat, where Miko receives a wave of bullying and taunting whenever she makes a mistake.”
“In conclusion: if you have a few bucks and you are a Hololive fan, you can spend some hours here to keep yourself in the happy atmosphere of VTubers and away from the suffocating dark world outside your room.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviewers note that the game's simplistic and repetitive combat, along with a lack of depth in team-building and gameplay levels, significantly limits its replayability. Players may find little incentive to revisit the game after mastering its mechanics.
“The combat is very simplistic and repetitive once you get the hang of it, and there just isn't enough depth in either the team-building, the combat system, or the gameplay levels themselves to provide that type of long-lasting replayability.”
