Developer: Future Games of London
Publisher: Ubisoft
Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, Android and iOS
Tested on: Xbox One
Hungry Shark World – Review
Hungry Shark world is the 6th installment in the Hungry Shark game series. It originally released in May 2016. After becoming a success on iOS and Android, a console version was announced and it released on July 17th this year. The iOS and Android version contain microtransactions to purchase premium currency that allows you to purchase customization items and obtain sharks before you can buy them with in-game money. In the console version, microtransactions are completely removed from the game. All sharks that are present in this game exist in real life, except for the Big Momma and the Killer Whale.
Story
Hungry Shark world is an aquatic adventure where you control a shark and need to help it survive each run. The game does not have a story. You progress by gaining experience and completing missions. By completing these mission, you’ll unlock more new sharks to play with and new wearable items. Every shark has its own missions. Each has ten mission to complete. These differ from surviving for a time with a shark to wearing specific clothes and completing tasks while wearing these.
Graphics
This game has a cartoonish style of graphics This gives the game a fun and enjoyable appearance. The graphics look good both in the smartphone version and the console version. The sharks have a good resemblance with the real version. The water and the environments are very detailed. All sharks are customizable with a lot of wearable items for your sharks. These give the sharks an extra boost in appearance and makes them look funny.
Sound
The sound really fits the setting of the game. The music used is a bit like the music used in movies like Jaws. Exciting but enjoyable to listen to. It gets a bit repetitive if you keep browsing the menus, but that’s an issue most games have. Voices of your victims are laughable and suit he moment of getting eaten by a shark. When you have eaten a lot of prey, you’ll get a mode called Gold Rush. When this occurs, a playful song will play, encouraging you to eat as much as you can within the time limit.
Gameplay
Hungry Shark World is an arcade runner. In the game, you play as a shark and you need to survive in the water for as long as possible. Many meals, but also many dangers await you in the vast deep sea.
This game is a direct port from the popular mobile game with the same name. In the console version, some things have been altered. First, the microtransactions are removed, quite clever because you need to pay for the console version. You unlock new sharks by earning specific rewards, rather than spending in-game cash that requires you to pay for it to acquire them.
When you start the game, you will see your shark trying to eat the screen, and then it will land in the water and it’s ready to be controlled by you. You need to swim, dash and eat your way through the reasonably big levels. You control your shark by moving with the left stick, you can dash by holding A and perform a Shark Attack with X. Compared to the gameplay of the mobile game, the console version is a bit more difficult as biting bigger enemies will happen automatically on the mobile version. Another thing is that on the mobile version, you’ll eat your prey faster when boosting. This has no effect on the console version.
On the screen, 2 bars are showing your health and boost energy. Your health will slowly degrade over time. Your boost energy bar will drain when you use boost and will replenish automatically when you stop boosting. Your health will slowly drain harder the longer you’re surviving, meaning you need to keep eating a lot of prey to keep your health up. At the same time, more and stronger enemies will start to appear.
Small fish are eaten automatically when they’re in range of your shark’s mouth. Bigger targets like humans, other sharks and bigger creatures like turtles, whales and such need to be bitten by using the Shark Attack. Jellyfish are enemies that you can’t eat and will hurt you a lot on hit, damaging your health for a large amount of damage, so watch out for these creatures and try to avoid hitting them. The same goes for floating mines as they will explode on hit.
Over 20 sharks are available to play and unlock. Every shark that you unlock will have 10 mission to complete. Upon completion, you unlock new sharks, accessories, money and experience. By gaining experience, you’ll also unlock new accessories that can be worn by your sharks. As written earlier these missions require you to do specific tasks like finding a treasure chest in a specific area or kill 10 of a species while wearing a specific accessory. The shark that you use in each run will gain experience the same way, with a max level of 10.
Accessories that you’ve unlocked by completing missions or gaining enough experience can then be bought and equipped before starting a new run. These accessories not only look nice, they also grant you buffs that will apply on the sharks wearing them. Each accessory belongs to a specific set and has unique buffs When an accessory is bought once, it can be equipped to all sharks you have available. Accessories can increase your health, make your bite stronger and unlock abilities to see things you normally won’t see.
When you’ve gained enough experience, you’ll unlock a new level to explore, unlocking new map objectives to, in turn, unlock more new sharks and accessories.
Conclusion
Hungry Shark World is a really fun game to play, on Android and iOS as well as the on the PS4 and Xbox One. The gameplay is just as easy as the mobile version. The controls are easy and eating victims is really satisfying. Trying to beat your last score is a goal to best. Getting the Gold Rush will entice you to keep going and at as much as you can. This game is a fun way of spending your time and can be replayed as much as you want. It’s available for purchase on Xbox and PlayStation 4 for €9.99/$9.99.
Hungry Shark World - Review,
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