Available on: Mobile
Played on: Mobile
As much as I like the concept of collecting and empowering RPG heroes, there are precious few gacha-RPGs that pique my interest. Enter Marvel Mystic Mayhem, a mobile RPG from the designers of Marvel Rivals. Like Rivals, Mystic Mayhem features impressive visual and audio designs, as well as engaging combat that blends real-time action with a turn-based card game.
Read on for our review of Marvel Mystic Mayhem!
Stranger Things
Similar to the Doctor Strange films (and shows such as Agatha All Along), Marvel Mystic Mayhem is all about the magical side of the Marvel universe. The villain Nightmare has invaded the waking world, including the minds of several prominent heroes such as Scarlet Witch and Moon Knight. Doctor Strange gathers heroes to rescue them, and defeat Nightmare and his many monstrous allies.
The setup is a fun excuse to use a variety of heroes and villains, and give them spiffy new mystical glow-ups, like Hulk with his tattoos and facial hair, or Black Knight with his hilariously gigantic sword that would make Cloud Strife jealous. Plus, the main campaign can smartly focus on characters and their internal drama, such as showcasing Moon Knight’ multiple personalities.
Mystic Mayhem gradually unfurls new game modes as you increase your overall team level, which acts as a level cap for each hero. There are fun side missions called Story Branches with even more character interactions (plus Bats, Doctor Strange’s adorable ghostly Basset Hound!), Nightfall for maximizing the score against a rotating boss, Memento for longer missions that require multiple teams, and several smaller modes designed to grind for all those precious materials you’ll need to upgrade characters’ levels, skills, highlights, and artifacts. Whew!
At level 40 the grind has begun to settle in, as the wave of easier matches and quick rewards starts to fade. Thankfully, the combat remains fun and interesting.
Dreamweaver
| Free to Pay? |
| Marvel Mystic Mayhem is a gacha game, which means players mostly earn new characters through randomly pulling on character banners. Pulls cost keys, which are (slowly) earned through regular gameplay, or purchased with real money. Players can also purchase the occasional gift pack that features a character, as well as the seasonal DreamPass, which unlocks additional goodies through gameplay.
After several weeks of play I’ve acquired three 3-star heroes, and close to achieving two more. The main story can be completed with 2-star characters. I haven’t felt the need to spend any money so far (though the premium DreamPass is a decent deal), and the pull rate and rarity levels feels about on par with other similar gacha RPGs. |
Combat in Mystic Mayhem pits three heroes against the forces of Nightmare, typically in waves of enemies — or a big, multi-stage boss fight. Each character has two skill cards and one ultimate ability that must be charged. After placing them on the field, characters will auto-battle using basic attacks — but it’s up to the player to time and target their skills.
As an added wrinkle, players only see three of their team’s skill cards at a time (out of a possible 6), and each skill costs mana to deploy. Mana constantly recharges, but never quickly enough to just fire everything.
I enjoyed working out the right timing to execute certain skills, and learning the importance of positioning. Damage dealers like Psylocke and Lady Bullseye have ways of targeting hard-to-reach enemies in the back that could be healing others, while Hulk can knock enemies backward to reposition.
Grouping and targeting multiple enemies with big AOE attacks is also important. Storm and Misty Knight can weaken groups of enemies and strengthen their own skills, while Man-Thing and Juggernaut can charge into (and across) groups in a line.
Team composition is obviously a big strategy as well. My first 3-star hero was Moon Girl, who summons her giant dino friend, Devil Dinosaur. Thanks to that two-in-one duo, I’m able to run a team without a Defender in many battles, using Devil to tank while damage dealers such as Storm and Lady Bullseye can deal devastating damage across the battlefield.
I was disappointed at first with the 3-character party limit within a large (and ever-expanding) roster. But after hours of gameplay, three-person teams offer enough tactical options without being too chaotic or overwhelming on the smallest of screens.
The Rating
Like many Marvel video games, Marvel Mystic Mayhem has a T for Teen Rating by the ESRB, with Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood, and Language.
The Takeaway
As a long-time strategy gamer, I normally balk at any attempts at auto-battling RPGs. But Marvel Mystic Mayhem hits the sweet spot. It’s not quite an auto-battler, not quite a card game, and only flirts with tactical positioning, but the smart combination of these elements, not to mention the fantastic art, animation, music, and voice lines, make it a mobile RPG worth playing (though being a Marvel fan certainly helps!).
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