App Army Assemble: Gun Rounds - Is this turn-based take on Downwell worth playing?

Gun Rounds is a turn-based game that's been influenced by the excellent Downwell, a popular mobile title to draw inspiration from that's for sure. We decided to put the game in the hands of our App Army to see what they thought.

Here's what they said:

First of all, I love the art style and retro graphics reminds me of Gunman Clive. Turn-based game with a variety of guns. Innovative controls which will take more time to get used to of it. I think more interactive tutorials needed here. Especially the way you defend, you have to be super quick.

So when I first launched Gun Rounds I was simply interested because I love retro graphics and feel of it. I like turn-based shooters but it has very unique block gameplay as you tap on the screen to block and you need a good reflex to block them, the bullets come very fast if you play the hard mode...oh boy, played that mode and no, will not try that. It's a good game though, the weapons are unique and you can change colour pallets like in Downwell. Reached World 3 in easy mode. The only downside personally I feel is lack of achievements but that's just personal choice. Recommended if you have a good reflex because you will need that and I am not good at it.

I am not a fan of turn-based games and this game is no exception. It seemed strange to me that I had one go at shooting at three enemies and then all three enemies had three attempts each at shooting me. I know there were different weapons that could shoot at more than one enemy at a time but it still didn’t help much. There was a shield to protect me however it didn’t work every time and when bombarded with 9 or more shots from enemies, I frequently died. I found the game short-lived and repetitive and not for me.

Gun Rounds are a fresh take on aim-and-shoot games, that have been so popular during the early years of App Store existence. However, there is a twist here: the battles take place in a turn-based fashion and besides that deflecting enemy shots is paramount for your survival and progress. Your arsenal consists of quite a number of different weapons, but your ammo capacity is limited, so you have to choose wisely which attack to use.

As soon as you run out of ammo you have to reload, which makes your deflecting radius much smaller. This game is truly the test of your reflexes and more often than not I perished because I was not quick enough to activate the defence shield. I am not a big fan of turn-based games with frenetic shooting action, so I'll delete this game from my iPad as soon as I finish writing this review. However, if you are a mobile gamer looking for a fast-paced pick up and play the game to test your reflexes rather than wit, Gun Rounds might be a good choice.

Gun Rounds is a turn-based shooter with very basic graphics. Armed with various weapons, you take potshots at enemies and then have to block return fire by tapping the screen at the right time. The non-existent backgrounds remind me of an old game on the ZX Spectrum called Chaos.

I found the game quite difficult as timing your taps to block return fire is hard to get right and I would quickly get killed even in easy mode. Perseverance helps of course but the difficulty rather kills the fun of playing the game. If you like retro-looking games and have fast reflexes you might enjoy this game more than I did.

A shooting game with simple yet stylish pixelated graphics and turn-based mechanics. During your turn, you can select a variety of guns, which use a different amount of ammo and produce different weapon effects. During the enemy turn, you have to time your shields to try to block the incoming missiles from the 3-4 enemies you face each round and reduce the damage they do against you.

While the game mechanics are simple, the timing required seems to be brutally sensitive. Neither easy nor normal game modes are easy, and I suspect that if I could actually survive a whole game that it might open up an even more challenging option. Fun distraction of a game, if you don't mind being viciously ripped apart.

I’m going to be showing my age here a bit but Gun Grounds made me think of Missile Command the moment I started playing. The gameplay is very simple, you use weapons with varying attributes to attack the enemies on screen, and you also block their attacks by tapping on your defence field. The graphics and colour palettes add to the old school feel, reminiscent of an Atari or original GameBoy. Sometimes this aesthetic adds to the charm of a game, but in this case, I feel it’s a time and money-saving decision. Not that GG looks bad, but it could look better.

As a bonus, you win new palettes upon completion of a stage. The music and sounds are that kind of forgettable that mean they fit the game, but aren’t good enough to be memorable. The best part of GG is the gameplay, which allows you to customize your attack types and bonuses that you earn along the way. This also adds to replay value and allows you to develop strategies that fit your play style. It’s a fun game, great for 5-10 minute sessions where you want something light and easy. I recommend it.

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Gun Rounds is a stylish 2-Bit Roguelite Turn-Based-Shooter/Rhythm Game. This combination of seemingly incompatible genres confused me at first so let me lay it out in plain. You start as a bloodthirsty little chaos mage at the bottom of the screen with a random selection of monsters (specific to your region) patrolling at the top of the screen. You start with a pistol and one random weapon, weapon ammunition consumption scales with power.

Once you have established what you have to work with you can select the right weapon for the job, aim and draw it to fire. This is the turn-based combat section, once you have taken your turn, each enemy will fire their own weapon or power, these come at you in various patterns, your goal is to tap at your shield at the moment they reach your perimeter to parry them, if you get the timing and rhythm right you will be rewarded with ammunition, if you fail you will lose health. When all your ammunition is expended, you must reload during an especially tricky defence round. Once you have lost all your health you die and begin afresh.

Randomization keeps things interesting, and the skills here are learnt by playing. You will be making strategic decisions throughout, one axiom for this is choosing to replace one of the weapons you rely on for one you don’t need or fully understand for the sake of the +1 Max Health benefit of swapping in a new weapon, this is great because it incentivizes trying out new weapons rather than holding down a strong set.

At the end of each region, there is a shop which sells relics that will affect the way you play the game. So you’ll be in for a different game every time. The challenge is really tricky on the medium setting, but I feel myself getting better with every round. It’s a great marriage of concepts, and as with Downwell, there is a great depth provided you develop the skillset to go deep. Gun Rounds is well worth the asking price, and welcome addition to my insanely challenging but hopelessly addictive 2-Bit game Library.

I really was initially fooled by the seeming simplicity of this game. It just looks like a very low graphics turn-based arcade-like shooter. To be honest, I didn’t get that there was a technique to defence, so I died often and quickly. But even so, each time, you get upgraded weapons and more interesting experience. Changing palettes honestly did nothing for me. I preferred the original colour scheme and left it there.

Once I started to get more interesting weapons and I learned just how to defend from attacks, I enjoyed it a lot more. There is no great depth to the game, but there’s enough variety to keep you coming back for more. Controls are simple and work fine. I liked the music and sound effects, and the easy mode helped me get further into the game. If you like simple turn-based, arcade-like shooters, you’ll probably be a fan of this. It’s pretty well done.

This turn-based action game is pretty fun. It’s not just about offence, you must also learn the enemy’s pattern so you can block effectively and not take damage. There are various weapons that you pick up and each one has its own advantage. You upgrade over time and also acquire various screen palettes. This game becomes quite addictive and I found myself trying “just one more time” to advance further. Easy to recommend and I can see this staying on my phone for a while.

The game is a fast-paced, turn-based game where you travel further the more enemies you defeat:
Each encounter the aim is to defeat all the enemies get the treasure, block the attacks and don’t die. You have a life bar, an ammo bar and weapons to select from each weapon have a certain amount of ammo used per turn/attack. You have the option to reload and miss a turn or you can earn ammo by blocking enemies’ attacks. (Just with a tap).

During turns, you have to watch out for enemy attacks as they vary. Make sure you time your attack just right to hit the enemy as they are moving around the screen. Usually, you can have anywhere between 4-5 enemies ok screen and You also have chests which contain weapons the hook is every time you take a weapon you lose one from your set spaces but you gain +1 health total. Different weapons have different attacks and take differing ammo. The way the game is you find yourself constantly swapping out weapons to get more health.

Levels are usually 4 levels/waves of enemy encounters . 1 treasure chest level and the. The shop to regain health and spend any money you collected from killing enemies. The game is addictive and fun. Graphics are retro but work well the game has a nice charm excellent music to it and I really like it. More action than RPG I really like it. I will have to see about the longevity but yeah. It’s worth checking out.

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