Recently we had the opportunity to check out Dodreams Ltd’s Fading Fairytales, a free-to-play tactical RPG being published by Crescent Moon Games. While an actual freemium tactical RPG (i.e. not simply an IAP cash grab) would be noteworthy enough, the story itself might be worth keeping it on your radar.
Firing up Fading Fairytales for the first time, the biggest thing I noticed is the game’s unique storyline. Set in a prolific fairytale world where lots of well-known heroes have turned evil, players take the role of three mercenaries hired to return the land to its former not-quite-as-evil glory. While it’s certainly weird experiencing a story with so many beloved characters gone rogue, it was certainly interesting enough that I wanted to continue the tale to see where it goes.
As a tactical RPG, Fading Fairytales employs a turn-based combat system set on a movement grid. Rather than focus on lots of enemies or abilities, the actual combat is relatively straightforward, at least on the onset. Heroes can be outfitted with weapons and armor (that can be bought or found after battles), and an experience/leveling also exists. It was also somewhat difficult, a welcome change considering a lot of “tactical" games are anything but these days.
Of course, some of the difficulty may be attributed to its free-to-play nature, but based on my limited playtime it appears to be relatively fair. There is a requisite dual-currency system, but even playing the first few battles awarded premium currency. Time will tell if there are any true paywalls, but in the early goings the game seems to focus more on actual tactics (with a touch of grinding) rather than forcing players to shell out for IAP.
Fading Fairytales is currently available in the Finnish App Store so folks proficient in App Store hopping can check it out there now. For everyone else, it’s slated to be released in about two weeks. Meanwhile, don’t forget to add it to your TouchArcade (Free) Watch List to keep track of when it actually hits.
