Wednesday App Review: King of Thieves

Platformers are easily one of my favorite kinds of games. I like that they require a bit more thinking than just shooting something, and they are often based heavily on timing and solving puzzles. However, most platformer apps are actually fantastically terrible and frustrating. While King of Thieves is definitely frustrating at times, it is one of the few apps that I intend to continue to play after my review is written. Created by Zeptolab, the minds behind the popular Cut the Rope series, King of Thieves has a colorful and kind of adorable graphic style that is reminiscent of the fun puzzle game that everyone loves. However, unlike Cut the Rope, King of Thieves also has a really neat community aspect to it. In the game, you play a thief (which looks like a little black blob) who is trying to become the richest thief in the world. You do this by navigating through trapped dungeons to collect the gold and even gems hidden there. There are dozens of levels that you can play through with steadily-increasing challenges, and while those are fun, the real excitement comes from the ability to raid the dungeons of other players.

Each player can create their own dungeon and arrange obstacles however they like in order to try and impede other players. When you attack someone’s dungeon and get through their traps (assuming you do, of course) you steal some of their gold and have a chance to steal a gem as well. But there’s a catch: other players can steal your gems and gold, resulting in a fun but vicious cycle. While there are in-app purchases for this game, patient players need never use them. The game itself doesn’t 100% require it, and a good player will be able to make do with simply using in-game gold and completing quests to gain orbs (which are a form of currency you can buy with real money).  Even better, earning orbs isn’t actually all that hard, and you can definitely progress without them. Keys to open dungeon doors to raid, which you can also buy with real money, refill over time and with in-game gold you can speed this process up. There are no ads to speak of, outside of ads to purchase orbs from Zeptolab, making for a smooth gameplay experience. Overall, I really can’t recommend this game enough if you’re a fan of platformers and are at all competitive. As I write this, I currently sit at number four in my guild and while I failed to steal back the gem that was just stolen from me, things are looking pretty good. King of Thieves is available on the App Store, Google Play, Amazon, and the Windows Store.]]>

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