$4.99

‘Xenome: Episode 1’ Impressions – Grand-Scale Open World RPG Now Available

TouchArcade Rating:

Last week we previewed developer Nine Pound Studios post-apocalyptic open world RPG Xenome: Episode 1, and the game has since been released worldwide. We’ve had a chance to give the game a spin, and while it’s hard not to be impressed with the scope of the game, there was still a lot left to be desired. Xenome is an ambitious game, claiming 5 square miles of in game territory to explore with nary a load screen to be seen. And while this technically does hold true, it’s at the expense of a poor framerate and occasional stutters while the terrain is being drawn.

In fact, due to the immense scale of the game, it’s only currently playable on iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, or 32 and 64GB 3rd gen iPod touches. An update is in the works to make it playable on 2nd generation iPod touches, but anything older than that will likely not be able to run Xenome. For those that are able to play, the gameplay wasn’t particularly enthralling to me. Your character can equip different armors and weapons, and generally level up in traditional RPG fashion, though the combat seemed a bit tedious. There does seem to be a decent storyline to the game, but the presentation of this story amounts to walls of text. The draw distance is phenomenal but the landscape in general is somewhat barren.

This isn’t to say that there aren’t some good aspects about Xenome, and it’s certainly offering a game unlike anything currently available for the iPhone. The developer’s roadmap for the franchise is that Episode 1 and 2 of Xenome will be stand alone single player affairs, with Episode 3 being a full blown MMORPG, all set in this same game world. In that regard, Xenome: Episode 1 feels a bit like a working demo for what they have planned down the road.

The developers are actively discussing the game and further player impressions (both positive and negative) are being collected in our forums.

(Only works on iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS or 32/64GB 3rd Generation iPod Touch)

  • Xenome Episode 1

    *** In honor of our new Verizon users, Xenome is now on sale! ***

    NEW! Support added for 2nd generation devices…
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