Game Reviews

Battle Supremacy: Evolution - The future isn't all that bright

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Battle Supremacy: Evolution - The future isn't all that bright
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Did that tank just transform into a plane?

It did. This is Battle Supremacy: Evolution, the futuristic sequel to World War 2 vehicle shooter Battle Supremacy.

Futuristic? So space tanks and space planes?

More like shiny, chunky wheeled tanks and planes. That fire lasers. You can be a drone as well, which sort of hovers around all futuristically. And fires lasers. There are a lot of lasers in this game.

Okay, sounds interesting. Tell me more

I shall. I shall tell you more. Here I go. There's an extensive campaign mode here, all about defending a city from attack, protecting cargo deliveries, and generally bezzing around blowing up stuff that flashes red on your HUD.

Explosions. Gotcha

Yeah. They're pretty cool. You're fighting against tanks, planes, and other vehicles. But unfortunately there's a crispness lacking in the control scheme that makes the whole thing a bit of a chore.

Uh oh. Like doing the dishes?

Er, sort of. More like trying to get a cat into a cat basket while giant assault vehicles are peppering you with deadly shells. I quite often found myself driving around in circles and smashing into things, rather than gliding around the attractive vistas like a sci-fi legend.

Guh, no one wants to drive a tank into a cat basket

I don't think you got that analogy. Never mind. There is a way to bypass these shenanigans by giving the game control of your vehicle, but being a passenger and tapping the fire button every now and then isn't all that much fun.

It doesn't sound like much fun

Indeed. There are moments when the combat flows wonderfully, but then you come to a corner or an ambush and you spend 30 seconds performing an awkward three-point turn in your tank before you can get back into the fray.

Are the controls any better on the other vehicles?

Eh, not really. The plane is probably the best of the bunch, and it's fun swooping through the sky engaging in neon-hued dogfights, but the drone is a bit confusing and I kept flying into the ground and crashing into buildings.

None of this is really making me think I should spend any money

Probably not. This review only covers the iPhone and iPad version of the game, and it's available on Mac and Apple TV as well, which might be sharper. But if you're looking for tanky action with the word Supremacy in the title, I'd get the much better original.

Battle Supremacy: Evolution - The future isn't all that bright

Floppy controls mean this evolution is less of a successful mutation, more of a weird gangly third leg no one wanted
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.