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Wild Arena Survivors review: Engage in a battle royale on an exotic wild island

Join the wildest battle royale with Ubisoft!

Ubisoft has been a key name in the gaming industry worldwide for a long time now. They have been churning out high-end games on all platforms, and their next release for mobile devices is finally here. Wild Arena Survivors is a brand new multiplayer game featuring a different take on the classic Battle Royale concept. In this article, we will review Wild Arena Survivors and share our first impressions of the game.

In Wild Arena Survivors, 40 players are dropped into an exotic, isolated island, as they battle it out to be the last person standing. Other players aren’t the only enemies – untamed wild animals roam the island freely and will engage with any player they come across. Combined with a variety of unique heroes and a wide arsenal of weaponry, this game certainly has potential. Ubisoft has recently released the game globally after soft-launching in selected regions.

Select and enhance heroes to prepare for the battle island

Starting with the Wild Arena Survivors review, the game offers a variety of different heroes to be used in-game – 10 in total as of now. Each hero differs in playstyle – whilst some excel in close-range combat, others have equipment better suited to fighting from long-range. All heroes have their own set of weapons, as well as varying attributes for Health and Attack. In addition, heroes are all unique in their appearance, which suits both the theme of the game and the character’s playstyle.

Wild Arena Survivors Character Selection
Image via Ubisoft

All in all, there’s a wide range of possible characters a player can use. There is certainly something for everyone, and Ubisoft has done well to get that kind of balance. Players can also choose to upgrade heroes by using the in-game currencies.

Upgrades follow a node-like system, where each upgrade will unlock the next. All these enhancements improve things like damage, health, movement speed, cooldown times, etc. It’s an intuitive system that is simplified, yet still offers a variety of ways to improve the hero. Those that have played Brawl Stars may spot some similarities here.

Dive into the exotic battlefield to be the last person standing

The gameplay in Wild Arena Survivors is relatively simple. After sky-diving onto the map, the player will already be equipped with some weapons from the chosen survivors’ pre-set loadout. The task now is simply to get better loot and survive.

Looting can be done in a variety of ways: from harvesting rocks and trees to searching through chests and supply crates, to battling with players or wild animals. Doing these things earn HP, Crystals, and support gear, such as grenades, speed boost drinks, etc. Crystals are the main currency though, as these are used to upgrade weapons and items on the spot.

Wild Arena Survivors Map
Image via Ubisoft

Combat is also planned quite effectively as well. Shooting automatically targets the enemy, and players can use a variety of skills with cooldowns, unique to each weapon – kind of like in MOBA games. For example, the Assault Rifle has the Rubber Bullet which fires a high-damage bullet at the enemy and also temporarily reduces their movement speed.

The controls to do all these things feel natural, and it should only take a couple of matches to understand the game completely. In addition, the environment holds a few special features, such as bushes that hide the player from other entities. There are a variety of wild animals, from crocodiles to buffalos, and they act as another threat to make matches more interesting.

Traversal across the map is a key part of Battle Royale games. Wild Arena Survivors has maps with varying terrain and water, which impact the players’ movement speed. The game even offers a horse, which can be used to travel across the map at a faster speed. It’s slightly random and how it appears and disappears through thin air doesn’t make sense at all considering the backstory behind the game. Nonetheless, it’s a useful mechanic, which is balanced fairly well too.

Lack of maps, modes, and content leads to a loss in interest over time

At the time of writing, there is only 1 playable game mode, although there are 2 others that are currently locked off. Right now, players can hop into Solos matches to fight off in 40-player lobbies in a usual free-for-all system. Of the locked modes, there is a Trios option and a mode that’s titled Free. It has the following description: “Practice makes perfect! Enjoy a more relaxed, danger-free mode“. It isn’t entirely clear what this is all about, though it will likely be a mode centered around exploring the map.

After playing a good bunch of matches, the game did start to feel repetitive. With only 1 map and 1 mode, there was little variety in each match, and some players felt too easy to beat – perhaps even AI-controlled. Because of that, matches got a bit stale over time.

Wild Arena Survivors - Modes
Image via Ubisoft

There aren’t any challenges to work towards or anything to encourage a different way of playing (such as exploring new locations or hunting for animals etc.) Perhaps there will be more to play for ahead of the game’s global release. Looking at the game that is available to play right now though, there is a lot of room for improvement in terms of replayability.

Wild Arena Survivors offers a simple and balanced Progression

After a match, players earn trophies and currency based on how well they performed, and the system by which all of this works is very easy to grasp. Trophies count towards a “trophy road“, which has milestones unlocking more resources. Each Survivor also has its own trophy road, and playing with that Survivor will give out further resources. These resources go towards upgrading Survivors to then use in-game and the cycle repeats.

Wild Arena Survivors Trophy Road
Image via Ubisoft

There does not seem to be a big pay barrier or an overpowered item that requires hours of gameplay. Of course, there are ways to get Gold and Diamonds to quickly upgrade survivors, but that kind of concept is common in most games nowadays. Furthermore, those that play more often will be at an advantage too, however, the way in which the game mechanics work means that the more casual players can still keep up fairly well.

The game offers a vibrant experience in comparison to other battle royales

Since this is a Ubisoft game, the graphics and performance are expected to be of a high level. Fortunately, they are for the most part. Though as the mobile industry progresses, we have seen how some games stress the importance of medium to high-end devices for an optimal experience.

Similarly, Wild Arena Survivors may cause issues with lag, crashes, or overheating on lower-end devices. On a sufficient device, the game runs well and is very responsive.

Wild Arena Survivors - Gameplay 1
Image via Ubisoft

Wild Arena Survivors sets itself apart with a cartoon-like graphics style and an isometric camera. With the fictional island being advertised as exotic, the in-game environment holds that status – it looks bright and vibrant with color. The game’s look and feel share some similarities with the likes of Brawl Stars and Fortnite. Ubisoft has done well to create a game that matches other famous titles yet still offers its own unique aspects.

Final Verdict

The Battle Royale genre has been around for some time now. Having spent countless hours trying to wipe out everyone else in the lobby, seeing new games pop up in this genre has become less exciting. However, according to our review, Wild Arena Survivors feels more than just a Battle Royale.

The game takes inspiration from popular titles like Fortnite, Brawl Stars, and MOBA games, and combines them to provide an experience unique to anything on the market right now. Whilst there are slight problems such as the lack of replayability, and some issues with lag, these are things that can either be fixed with time or are simply a result of a progressing industry.

Considering how congested the market is for the Battle Royale genre, it will be difficult for Ubisoft to leave its mark with Wild Arena Survivors. However, they’ve got a really promising game here, that is well planned and easy for anyone to pick up and play. It’s all about how Ubisoft approaches the game’s Global release and how they keep it refreshing with new maps, modes, and other content.

Wild Arena Survivors review by GamingonPhone

Gameplay Mechanics - 8
Game Progression - 8
Replayability - 5
Graphics and Performance - 6
Controls and UI - 7
Free-to-Play Elements - 7

6.8

Average

Considering how congested the market is for the Battle Royale genre, it will be difficult for Ubisoft to leave its mark with Wild Arena Survivors. However, they've got a really promising game here, that is well planned and easy for anyone to pick up and play.

What are your opinions on the Wild Arena Survivors game and your review of it? Do let us know in the comments!

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