Volta-X

Genre: RPG / Real-Time Strategy / Roguelike

Players: 1-2 Competitive (Online)

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Review:

Volta-X, released on PC and Nintendo Switch in 2020, is a fairly unique game that combines RPG and Real-Time Strategy elements, with a Roguelike mode and some base building thrown in for good measure. Players take part in one-on-one mech battles, but rather than controlling their mech directly, they direct their crew to perform tasks to repair the mech or enhance its abilities, managing their mech while also making strategic decisions in battle, all in real-time.

If that sounds chaotic… well, that’s because it kinda’ is. At any moment, there’s a lot going on, and a lot to account for. Your mech is split into various parts, each equipped with its own weapon or piece of equipment with its own unique abilities and cooldown, and which you can trade out in-between battles much like RPG equipment. This equipment can be fired remotely, but it packs a greater punch if you have crew in place to power it up.

As such, part of what you’ll be doing during battle is having your crew scramble to various areas to make more effective use of your weaponry. When you let loose with an attack, you can direct where to target that attack – destroying the opponent’s head will automatically bring victory, but it is often to your advantage to take out limbs to disable enemy weapons, and if your attacks and crew movements become too predictable, it opens you up to being targeted by your opponent in ways that can cripple your strategy. What’s more, battles have a time limit much like in your average Fighting game, meaning that if your battle doesn’t result in a KO before the timer ticks down, the win will be awarded based on points (body parts destroyed).

Your crew will also be working to fix damaged parts and put out fires as you take damage, meaning your use of them needs to be both offensive and defensive. What’s more, any crew sitting in a part as it’s being attacked will take damage themselves, and any crew receiving enough damage could be put out of commission for the rest of the battle.

So, yeah, a lot to manage in real-time, but the fast-paced, chaotic strategy is a part of the fun.

In between fights, players will be building up their base, which will enable them to heal up their crew and assign them to working on upgrading their mech’s arsenal, constructing new parts and improving old parts. This base management stuff seems a bit rudimentary, and isn’t very well-explained in the game, but it is nonetheless a nice addition to the game that helps to break up the time between battles and add to the sense of progression.

This is good, because other elements you look for in an RPG aren’t really present here. There’s no exploration, the story is a weak… this really is just a repeating chain of battle-base building-battle-base building, with uninteresting text-only story bits as the only other major element here. If you’re looking for depth, this game may or may not please you, and it will all come down to whether or not you think the combat is a fast-paced speed chess match… or just insanity

The game’s campaign oddly requires players to be online to play the single-player content, although there is an alternate Roguelike mode for those without an internet connection. However, it seems like much of this is to get players used to the gameplay and give them opportunities to upgrade so they can engage with others in online battles. Here, I found that the game still has opponents to fight even now a year after launch, and the matchmaking seems to be pretty good.

When it comes to the presentation, this game makes use of stylized cartoony 2D visuals and simple 3D backgrounds and mechs. It’s nothing impressive but it’s colorful and easy enough to parse in the midst of the chaotic battles, so I’d say it ultimately works. This is backed by a bombastic instrumental soundtrack that reminded me a lot of the Incredibles films. All in all, this game looks and sounds good, even if it is in no way impressive.

Finally, it bears mention that while this game’s gamepad controls work fine, this game works best with the Nintendo Switch’s touchscreen, as it makes it far easier to quickly multitask and target areas you’re trying to aim for without using a slow-moving cursor.

In the end, Volta-X is a fun, original game that absolutely will not be for everyone, but if you can get used to the game’s unique combat and don’t mind the fast-paced intensity of managing multiple elements at once, you may find this to be a game well worth trying.

tl;dr – Volta-X is a game that has you managing a team controlling a mech in a one-on-one battle, with gameplay that combines elements of RPGs and Real-Time Strategy games, with base building and Roguelike elements as well. The gameplay is fast-paced and chaotic, and will not appeal to everyone. However, if you are good at multitasking and enjoy a challenge, you may find this game to be refreshingly original and well worth a look.

Grade: B-

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