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I started playing the game today and - wow - this is probably my favorite Supercell game, if not my favorite third person shooter game (sorry Splatoon. I love you but you're #2 now). I'm usually not one to play shooter games in the first place. I'm a terrible aim and its also nearly impossible (in the free-to-play games) to get new clothing/skins or characters without paying an inordinate amount of real cash for it. The only reason I do play them is if my friends are playing and want me to join in. Besides that, I haven't seen much variation in the prevalent style of gritty realism in the shooter genre (a recent exception would be Super Animal Royal which I will be playing on more, but Brawl Stars currently has my full attention). Brawl Star's cartoon art style coupled with an obvious anime influence makes for a neat visual experience, and it was what initially drew me into the game. The gameplay is why I played it obsessively all day.
At first, I thought I would be lost in all of the mechanics and would suffer a limited experience. I'm usually overwhelmed with all of the weapon and menu options in some shooter games. Brawl Stars does not have this problem whatsoever. The tutorial teaches you how to do things step by step, making sure that you've mastered one action before moving on to another. I was surprised to find that this process even extends into the home menu. You need to battle a few times before unlocking more menu options, and even then, you have to level up at certain number of points to unlock the fullest potential of the game. Before long, you have about 15 different widgets that you can swiftly operate and can even coach someone on how to use them. For some gamers, this may feel like hand-holding, but it's really not a long process, and you're enjoying the game so much that developing options and modes come as a natural progression.
Another thing that I don't enjoy about some shooter games with a cast of distinctive characters is how some of them take a long time to unlock and you're stuck with playing 2 or 3 characters unless you want to pay for the really special fighters. Once again, Brawl Stars has risen above this problem. On the first day of downloading the game, I have unlocked 8 characters. ON THE FIRST DAY! Granted, I have been playing most of the day, but this is amazing for me.
Another thing about the the game is how addictive it is. There are so many characters to unlock. So many quests for each character. So many arena modes. So many brawl pass and trophy road unlockables. Not to mention there's a shop that actually has some affordable items! I will say that it's mildly off-putting that you have a limited number of experience points you can gain each day, but there is so much other stuff to collect and unlock that it's barely noticeable.
I've been researching recently what gives a game replay value. If there is an official checklist for this, Brawl Stars checks all of those boxes. I'm going to have to force myself not to play on it for over an hour tomorrow so I can get some work done. I've seen some rumors floating around online that Brawl Star's popularity is declining and I sincerely hope not. This game deserves the same level of audience as Clash of Clans or Clash Royale. It's just that good.
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