The Battle of Polytopia
- August 4, 2020
- Midjiwan AB
- 7h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on Play Store"The Battle of Polytopia" is a turn-based civilization strategy game with 4X gameplay . Players can choose from 16 tribes, each with unique attributes, and engage in exploration, warfare, farming, building, and technology research. The game offers auto-generated maps, diplomacy, stealth attacks, and three game modes, with support for single-player and online multiplayer for up to 16 players. Online leaderboards track top scores.
iPad
iPhone
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Phone
Windows
Android
Linux
Mobile Platform
Tablet
Reviews
- Engaging and addictive gameplay with a good balance of strategy and simplicity.
- Beautiful graphics and charming art style that enhance the gaming experience.
- No ads and reasonable pricing for additional tribes, making it a fair monetization model.
- Recent updates have introduced bugs and crashes, making the game unplayable for some users.
- Multiplayer requires purchasing a tribe, which limits access for some players and lacks random matchmaking.
- The AI can be unbalanced, often ganging up on the player or making illogical decisions.
- gameplay770 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 41 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this strategy game is widely praised for its intuitive mechanics, engaging and addictive nature, and minimalist graphics that enhance the experience. Players appreciate the balance between simplicity and depth, allowing for strategic planning while remaining accessible to newcomers. However, some users express frustration with the repetitive gameplay and the need to purchase additional tribes for a fuller experience, which can detract from long-term enjoyment.
“It has lots of possibilities for strategy, but at the same time it's simple to learn and has pleasing, minimalist graphics. There are no ads and gameplay is challenging.”
“The gameplay is fantastic; just want to suggest that there should be some tribes that you can get only after completing some gameplay achievements, and if you want them soon, you can opt for in-app purchases.”
“The gameplay is simple yet addicting for a long-time RTS player such as myself. I have ridiculous hours on this game, I love it; so many options packed into such simple gameplay, the randomly generated maps make every game feel different.”
“The gameplay gets dull and boring from the gameplay loop always being the same.”
“The game crashes constantly, and whatever the new 'infiltration' mechanic is just ruins the game, even on easy.”
“The gameplay is typically very similar between tribes and the game can get boring.”
- monetization684 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 15 % neutral mentions
- 35 % negative mentions
The monetization model of the game is generally well-received, with many players appreciating the absence of intrusive ads and the option to make reasonable in-app purchases for additional tribes. While some users express frustration over the necessity to pay for multiplayer access and additional content, they acknowledge that the game remains enjoyable without these purchases. Overall, the lack of ads and the fair pricing of optional content contribute positively to the gaming experience.
“No ads, 100% free to play, great game experience.”
“A genuine free-to-play game, all in-game purchases are totally optional and the game is ad-free from the start.”
“No ads, no annoying prompts to buy things, no pay to win.”
“I think it's fine when you give some in-app purchases, but when 90% of the factions are behind a paywall, it feels kind of forced.”
“I love the game, but I wish paid features (like different tribes and multiplayer) could be free by watching ads.”
“The requirement to make an in-app purchase to access the multiplayer is ridiculous, if not just plain gross.”
- graphics578 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 35 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their beautiful, minimalist, and charming art style, often described as cute and reminiscent of retro games. Many users appreciate the clarity and effectiveness of the visuals, which enhance gameplay without overwhelming the player, although some suggest that improvements could be made in certain areas. Overall, the graphics contribute significantly to the game's appeal, making it visually engaging while maintaining smooth performance.
“Absolutely beautiful graphical style.”
“The graphics are clear and attractive, and even with the diverse terrain types (each nation has its own) it is easy to tell what is what at all times.”
“The graphics are fantastic, they are somehow exactly as simple as you want them to be and, at the same time, use a perfect combination of colors.”
“The graphics are terrible, the idea sucks and the way they made the game is horrible.”
“I just love the graphics and the amount of strategy there is amazing!”
“I love this game and play it a lot on my other device but please just update the graphics; it is the graphics that ruin it all.”
- music144 mentions
- 53 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its charm and variety, with each tribe featuring unique soundtracks that enhance the overall experience. Many players find the music catchy and enjoyable, contributing to the game's addictive nature, although some have noted issues with volume control and interruptions from other audio sources. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature, complementing the game's colorful graphics and engaging gameplay.
“The music is catchy.”
“The music is lovely and I like that every tribe has its own theme.”
“Amazing strategy game, unique music for each tribe, fun gameplay, easy to learn, hard to master; truly a good game with infinite potential in its genre.”
“The music is annoying, and there's no tutorial, but I'm certain that if you figure it out, it'll be fun.”
“Just recently after I decided to purchase a tribe for the game, the main screen and tribe choice menus messed up. Now, any time I try to choose a tribe, the background music specific to the tribe plays, but nothing pops up and I cannot click anything.”
“I love the game, it's so far the game I play the most in my life. I just would like to report a bug ... I normally mute all the sounds in the game, but once I activate Bluetooth to listen to songs on Spotify, the game sounds start to play without my permission.”
- replayability136 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 32 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
Overall, the game boasts high replayability due to its simple mechanics, strategic depth, and varied gameplay through different tribes and randomly generated maps. While many players find it endlessly engaging and addictive, some express concerns about potential repetitiveness and limited content without in-game purchases. Despite these criticisms, the majority agree that the game offers a substantial amount of replay value, making it a favorite among mobile strategy enthusiasts.
“The game is simple in design and easy to learn, but the depth of strategy and difficulty curve creates great replayability.”
“The variations in play style enabled by the other tribes add real replayability to the game, and there's genuine challenge in mastering all of them.”
“It's a great well-rounded game with tons of replayability to it.”
“It's still a great game, but after thousands of games played, forcing me to join a 4-player game on a small map reduces the replayability significantly.”
“But as is, the game has very short replay value.”
“All civs feel the same and there is not much replayability.”
- stability100 mentions
- 5 % positive mentions
- 4 % neutral mentions
- 91 % negative mentions
The game's stability has been a significant concern among users, with many reporting frequent glitches, freezes, and crashes that hinder gameplay. While some players appreciate the game's design and mechanics, the overwhelming feedback highlights that recent updates have exacerbated these issues, making the game frustratingly unplayable at times. Overall, the stability of the game is seen as a major drawback, with calls for urgent fixes from the developers.
“Great, deceptively complex game which runs great.”
“The only bugs I've seen are occasional flipped dialogue boxes and glitched out text, but no glitches or bugs that adversely affect gameplay.”
“No lags, no glitches so far and keeps me entertained.”
“Great game, but so many glitches.”
“The game is fantastic but it freezes and shuts down every match after about 2 minutes.”
“I love playing this game, but since it updated yesterday there are so many glitches that I can't even play it anymore!”
- story98 mentions
- 26 % positive mentions
- 71 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The reviews indicate a strong desire for a more developed story aspect in the game, with many players suggesting the addition of a campaign mode or missions that would allow them to unlock tribes through gameplay rather than purchases. Users feel that a narrative-driven experience would enhance engagement and provide a more rewarding challenge, as the current gameplay can become repetitive without a storyline or objectives. Overall, while the game is praised for its mechanics and enjoyment, the lack of a compelling story mode is seen as a significant missed opportunity.
“Would be great to add a campaign with a story.”
“It's one of the best I've played, but I think it would be even better if you could add a storyline or levels/campaign to it.”
“A story mode would be a fine addition to this game but is fine as it is.”
“Without a single player advancement such as play/achievements to unlock, army advancement or single player story, it quickly lost appeal after winning a few times.”
“The only thing missing is a campaign mode and storyline!”
“You should add some kind of story mode and we will choose a tribe then we will travel around the world fighting every kind of tribe; it's boring if you're just fighting without a story.”
- grinding27 mentions
- 4 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 96 % negative mentions
Overall, players express mixed feelings about grinding in the game. While some appreciate the absence of excessive grinding and the focus on strategy, many find certain aspects tedious, such as repetitive tasks, lack of automation, and the need for a more streamlined purchasing system. Suggestions for improvement include adding mass recruitment options and a currency system to enhance engagement without making the gameplay feel like a slog.
“Good game but needs to work on improving the end game as it gets very tedious building roads, water temples, etc. Some kind of automatic building would speed up the gameplay in the end game.”
“This sucked out all the fun from the game, and just makes it a tedious, annoying slog.”
“Best strategy game on Android, but the addition of the cloak unit made the game so much more tedious; it lost lots of its appeal to me.”
- humor18 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is generally well-received, with players appreciating its cute graphics, funny characters, and engaging sound effects. However, some critiques point to moments of lazy programming and a desire for more creative content. Overall, the game is described as enjoyable and capable of delivering new humorous situations, making it a fun experience for players.
“The graphics are cute and funny.”
“Apart from that, I highly recommend that game because it's so enjoyable and funny, and also, you can play 5 minutes or 5 hours in a day, and continue the next day or the next month, and your game continues in the same point.”
“This is hilarious and engaging.”
- optimization15 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
Overall, the optimization of the game is a mixed bag; while many users appreciate its smooth performance and good graphics, recent updates have introduced issues such as stuttering animations, smaller UI elements, and battery drain. Some players express a desire for further optimization and improvements to the user interface, while others highlight the game's solid performance on various devices. Despite these concerns, the game remains enjoyable and well-optimized for mobile play, particularly for shorter gaming sessions.
“Its a nice game with good graphics and performance.”
“A fun and optimized mobile experience, and a boon on road trips.”
“Well optimized and looks great.”
“I have been playing Polytopia for a very long time, but this recent update has made the icons at the bottom smaller, the font harder to read, the camera can't zoom in as far, and what used to be smooth animations has been replaced with stuttering ones.”
“I would've liked to try the new features, but the performance and UI downgrades have ruined the experience for me.”
“This is one of my favorite games, but the recent upgrade (2020-12) has really degraded performance.”
- emotional8 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players express a deep emotional connection to the game, highlighting its engaging nature and the nostalgia it evokes. Many describe their experiences as heartwarming and breathtaking, with a strong appreciation for the developers' efforts in creating a beautiful and smooth gameplay experience. The loss of content is noted as particularly heartbreaking, but overall, the game is celebrated for its emotional impact and community-building aspects.
“The loss and subsequent non-replacement of $10 worth of brilliant content was therefore heartbreaking.”
“Having it recommended to me now with over 5 million downloads is such a heartwarming feeling; the game I basically grew up in has grown so much.”
“It is the most heartwarming, breathtaking, most amazing game I've ever played, and I give it 5 out of 5 stars, more if I could.”
- character development6 mentions
- 83 % positive mentions
- 17 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is highly praised for its unique and beautiful polygonal art style, which enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the engaging character designs and the fun, immersive environment, making it a recommended choice for those looking to enjoy gaming with friends.
“The graphics, landscapes, and character designs are beautiful, and are modeled in an entirely original polygonal art direction.”
“Awesome music, character design, and graphics.”
“Art and character design are also good.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- -150 % neutral mentions
- 150 % negative mentions
Polytopia is praised for its enjoyable and light atmosphere, complemented by a detailed world that enhances the overall experience. Players appreciate the game's ability to create a unique and engaging environment within its 4x civilization-like framework.
“Polytopia is a great little 4X civ-like game with a fun and light atmosphere.”
“The detailed world has its own unique atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere feels lifeless and lacks any real immersion.”
“Despite the detailed world, the atmosphere fails to evoke any emotional response.”
“The game's atmosphere is bland and uninspired, making it hard to stay engaged.”
