Boom Brigade 2: Lay waste on the rampaging alien horde!
Most readers would have played Flight Control and probably seen Gun Brothers, but what happens when you mash these games together?… You get Boom Brigade 2! Check out what we thought of this strategy game below…
Gameplay: This is an action strategy top down shooter hybrid. In simpler terms this means you have a birds eye view of the warzone and you draw paths to control your troops (like in Flight Control). The troops will autofire on the alien enemies if they’re within blast range and they’ll shoot whilst strafing too (hence the similarity with Gun Bros). The game is real time so it’s pretty intense, but there’s also a Tactical Mode which will effectively pause the game and allow you to plan your manoeuvres individually for each soldier.
Much like the real war films you only have a handful of specialists and you’re up against huge swathes of enemies. Your aim is to keep the bunker alive through all the waves of enemy attacks. Although you’re ridiculously outnumbered, your team has you, the master tactician who will guide your brothers to victory.
Good Stuff: The sensation from start to finish is fantastic! You start off being greeted by epic war music which then smoothly transitions into the instant action game. You don’t need to worry about how to play because the tutorial will steadily teach you the controls and show you the way to win.
Eventhough on the surface the game feels predictable and straightforward, it’s actually really addictive and players can easily get hooked. In each level you’re given specific units from a particular class (Machine Gunner, Shotgunner, Bazooka, Sniper or Flamethrower) and you need to select the right subunits to fit your strategy. For instance, you could have fast moving units with unlimited ammo, but then their damage output would be low so perhaps you would throw in one high damage slow moving unit to handle any clustered enemy waves.
After you get the hang of surviving the attacks you’ll naturally want to try and 5 star all the rounds. (Do this by keeping the bunker health high.) In case that’s too easy for you, then there are also several achievements to complete as well as a survival mode where you can compete with the world on OpenFeint.
Bad Stuff: Since the game is free, there are some adverts interleaved between the levels. But what’s really bad is that there are video adverts that you can’t close! Luckily there’s the option to buy “war bonds” which will unlock the game and allow you to access two other worlds and many more missions.
The controls are pretty intuitive, but they still need the player to be fairly nimble and dynamic. The biggest problem I found was that you can easily lose control of your units if they’re standing too close together and unfortunately there’s no zoom functionality to let help you click on the right soldier.
Rating: 4.5/5 Boom Brigade 2 lets you unleash your strategic skill. It’s definitely a must have game and the first 10 missions are free! The large variety of weapon upgrades and features justifies purchasing the extra “war bonds”.
Boom Brigade 2 Promotional Youtube Video
Boom Brigade 2 Tips from Android Games Review
If you’re having problems passing the rounds or 5 starring levels then check out the tips below:
- The spawning source of the enemy and the types of aliens in each wave are the same. So you can learn their pattern and move soldiers into proximity of the spawning locations before they appear.
- It’s best to keep your soldiers moving all the time so that they don’t get eaten by the aliens. But moving in away from the aliens in straight lines would usually be too fast for most soldiers. So to keep your units moving at the correct pace whilst also staying in shooting range then move them backwards in a snaking path.
- You must get used to the Tactical Mode/Pause button. It will let you micro manage each of your units so that you can maximise on their potential. This button is particularly useful against large enemies which you need to circle around to avoid their melee and ranged attacks.
- After you get used to the Tactical Mode then you’ll probably find yourself using it every couple of seconds to keep your units alive whilst also running them to protect the bunker.
- If you’re finding that you’re still losing even with your best micro management then you should select your team members carefully. Read the small print for each weapon category with the unit to understand the strengths and weaknesses. From this you should be able to put together a team which suits you the best. If you’re only able to micro control two units then only have two runners, and leave the last unit to be a high ranged high damage unit (don’t forget that they’ll be really slow too so the terrain better have somewhere safe for them!).
- Eventually you’ll get to the point where it may feel like the bunker is impossible to protect to get the 5 stars. This is when you’ll need to incorporate some high level techniques to protect the bunker: you can use soldiers to lure zombies away from the bunker and buy yourself more time to kill them. As long as your soldiers don’t die then you’ll be able to beat the wave of zombies.
- Don’t forget the bunker can take a little bit of damage, so its not all lost if some aliens hit it. Your soldiers can also take some damage too.
Weapons in the free portion of the game:
- Gunner: Standard Issue Minigun, Ares Vulcan XT, Ammo Haul 2k, Uranium Rounds
- Artillery: Standard Issue Bazooka, Longshot Rockets, Multi Rockets, Rocket Stream,
- Shotgunner: Standard issue shotgun, Sawed-off shotgun
Developers: 10tons
Boom Brigade 2 QR Code
(Click on the image or scan the barcode with your Android phone to goto Google Play)
