FZ9: Time Shift - Legacy of Cold War - Android Game Review

Hello fellow steemian, hope you are having a wonderful time on steemit, my last game review was GTarcades developed by GTarcades Today game review will be on FZ9:Time Shift - Legacy of Cold War developed by Hiker Games .

FZ9:Time Shift - Legacy of Cold War is all about headshots with a perfectly-tuned bullet time gameplay mechanic and console-grade graphics. Play as Mak an American soldier missing in action who finds himself able to freeze time. Wield fan favorites such as the Glock 17, AK-47, and M4A1 and shoot your way through more than 30 single-player missions ... unlocking special skills and abilities as you leave a trail of bodies in your wake. Need more firepower? The in-depth upgrade system makes it easy to either boost the capabilities of existing weapons or create your own from parts stashed in the Armory.

Game Play

FZ9: Timeshift is a free-to-play game using a limited energy in-app purchase model. Without the option to purchase weapons outright and with upgrades unlocked through experience points, in-app purchases are largely restricted to revives (gems) and energy. This game is not terrible but incredible. In fact, it's is intriguing, enjoyable and fun to play with like-minded individuals. The worst things about the game is not about the gameplay itself, but the same old tiring restrictions you typically see in a free to play game: two different types of currencies, one being a premium currency, and a time-based Energy recharge that allows you to continue playing until you have no more to spend. There's also grinding endlessly for Battle Points and Experience Points to get further in the game, and while you get something of a progression effect for your efforts in doing so, it feels obnoxiously rated. The gameplay hook of having everything in bullet time alleviates the typical frantic pace you would expect from first person shooters and gives you time to adjust and compensate due to the awful control method.

The missions require 1 Energy (out of your maximum 10) to play but would be pretty boring to grind, so you may as well just do the Cycle Mission, which costs 2 Energy. The Cycle Mission is an assortment of challenges that you will randomly get assigned to and complete in pursuit of grinding Battle Points to unlock more talents. Those missions are actually designed in a lot more fun way than the on-rails shooting the story mode forces you through. The talents you unlock are linked to unlocking content, which become more challenging. Once you complete Chapter 2, you'll unlock a PVP(Player versus Player) mode in which you'll try to beat another player by completing one of the solo missions faster than they can. While it is more exciting to play through the solo missions in this way, it costs more Energy, too.
The music is quiet intense, which switch during some levels, it weaves in and out between level music and battle music which can be kind of annoying since you are constantly reengaging with enemies. It doesn't seem to happen all of the time, though, so it just seems to rely on how the level is designed. I always put my phone to silent mode, because the music and sound does not really matter to me until the end. You will also kill a lot of dogs, so if you are the type that likes animals more than humans, maybe you should skip this title. I suppose the dogs ARE trying to kill you, so maybe it won't be that big of a deal to kill them 😁🤣.

There does seem to be quite a few chapters of single player mode, but again, the story is awful, and nothing is really making me want to come back for more of it or anything else. But hey, it's free.
Armed with a variety of weapons and skills, you face enemy soldiers, aliens, and undead, leaping and firing at a frantic pace to survive. Your main advantage is the ability to slow time, granting you a tactical edge in battle and giving the shootouts a stylish flair, this happen to be one of the amazing features of the game. FZ9 looks to offer a quite varied selection of campaign missions and challenges, ranging from fights through claustrophobic office halls to shooting from a snowmobile racing through wintry paths.
Outside of the campaign, you'll also be to test your skills against other players in online multiplayer and other modes.

The folks at Hiker Games must have played Superhot before making FZ9: Timeshift. It's a game where everything moves in slow motion until you decide to move your character. While it's clearly not the most original idea and there are some icky free-to-play mechanics at play, FZ9 makes you feel so cool when you're playing it that those things hardly matters.

Bullet time

FZ9 is a first-person shooter that moves in super slow-motion until you choose to move your character using a virtual joystick on the left side of the screen. Everything else you do including shooting, jumping, switching weapons, and throwing grenade can happen at a snail's pace, provided you aren't moving at the same time.

Since virtual controls for mobile first-person shooters aren't always the easiest thing to deal with, the idea of slowing down the action makes a lot of sense. It also has the added benefit of allowing for crazy level designs that involve jumping between vehicles, dodging around fast-moving laser grids, and taking down multiple enemies in creative ways in seconds.

Slow motion story

There are multiple modes in FZ9, but all of them involve quite a bit of slo-mo shooting. There's the Story Mode, which is very much what you'd expect, except for the fact that it's one of the least interesting parts of the game. In my time with FZ9, I was more drawn to the Weekly Challenge and PVP Modes, mainly because of how strange it is.
The Weekly Challenge is a mode where you are presented with a unique variant on a mission and can compete for the top leaderboard position on it. These variants include things like miniaturizing enemies, giving you only grenades as weapons, or making you kill enemies with nothing but beer bottles. The PVP Mode is also quite peculiar, as it has you compete against another player to see who can complete a random level the fastest. Both of these modes put twists on FZ9's core action that keep the core action from feeling stale.

Time Consuming

As cool and weird as FZ9 is, its free-to-play mechanics can really bog things down. The game boosts an energy system, which refills over time, but never quickly enough to let you power through levels at your own pace. To make matters worse, there's also a premium currency element that you must grind out (or pay for) to progress through the story and unlock all of the game's mode.
These aren't necessarily unexpected or uniquely terrible mechanics, mind you. All of FZ9's monetization strategies are actually pretty par for the course. They still aren't ideal though.

The bottom line

FZ9 makes surprisingly good use of its slow motion mechanics to make you feel awesome in a variety of situations. Though it does have some annoying (though typical) free-to-play mechanics, you likely won't be thinking too much about that while you're playing. Instead you'll be focused on how to best run across a glass floor as enemies are shooting it out beneath you, all while you're grinning from ear to ear.
Here, Hiker Games takes what would ordinarily be a difficult genre to implement to mobile and makes it actually work. Because you can slow down the action at any time, you don't need to frantically move with quick speed like you would in other shooting games. That doesn't mean you can't get a hit with a bullet in slow motion mode, however. If you stand still long enough when an enemy shoots at you, you will die.
You begin with one gun with a very limited amount of shots, and when the gun runs out, you need to pick up a new one, usually either dropped by an enemy or found in a given level's environment, and just the way most shooting games are designed.
Thankfully, the game has a button on it that automatically locks on to a nearby foe, one in your immediate view. It doesn't always mean you'll make the shot on them, especially moving targets, but it usually offers a good level of precision. Of course, you'll want to slightly adjust your aim if you wish to go for a headshot, something that offers more points.

The campaign of FZ9: Timeshift possesses about eight chapters with approximately 5-6 missions for each chapter. These are usually bite-sized in length, though some are quite lengthy in comparison. With the one-hit deaths, it mean redoing a sizable portion of level in later chapters, but you can revive yourself by using gems.
Apart from the campaign, other modes unlock as the player completes chapters in the campaign. There is a cycle mode that randomly chooses a mission type for the player to try to overcome. Some of these include defending an area from enemies, jumping over a parade of oncoming reckless-driving cars, maneuvering and jumping through a laser grid, and picking up enemies with a sniper rifle on an opposite building rooftop. There is also a PvP(Player versus Player) mode where you compete against a player to get through a campaign level before they do. This mode incorporates a ranking system to keep players engaged.

FZ9: TIMESHIFT User Interface

The control are easy to use, there's a virtual analog stick on the bottom left of the screen, and above that is a section of screen to press to automatically lock-on to a nearby enemy within your view. On the right side of the screen is where you will locate the jump and weapon fire buttons. When you're near a gun you can pick them up, you need to just need to tap at the screen center. Finally, looking around is performed by sliding your finger along and around the screen. As stated, this scheme works well considering the pace of the game, which is quite a typical aspect of any other FPS(First Person Shooter) game on mobile devices.

KEY FEATURES

• Eliminate enemies in bullet time.

• Delve into a deep storyline that branches out over 30 missions.

• Shoot with a huge variety of weapons first-person shooter fans know and love.

• Explore an in-depth upgrade system with RPG elements.

• Challenge yourself with multiple game modes.

What's New in Version 2.1.0

• Added New Chapter: New missions, new Enemies and Special Ally.

• Added New Characters in B.S.N mode.

• B.S.N mode changed: You base will be protected for 8 hours after being attacked and lost gold.

• Renew Currency System.

• Support Russian, Portuguese.

Merit

• Good control

• Easy weapon switch

• Good graphics

Demerit

• In app purchase

• Time consuming

• Recquire little internet connection

General Review

Genre	FZ9 Timeshift
Version	2.2.0
Downloads	1million
Rated	16+
Developer	Hiker games

MINIMUM RECQUIREMENT

OS	4.0
RAM	1GB
STORAGE	800 FREE SPACE

Google Play Store Review

GOOGLE PLAYSTORE DOWNLOAD LINK

Click To Download From Play Store

GAME RATING

Game play	8/10
Graphics	7/10
Controls	9/10
Game Sound	7/10
Effects	8/10
Overall Review	7.8/10

Publisher

Image Source

RELEASE DATE

October - 08 - 2016.

Conclusion

FZ9: Timeshift game design is good with mind blowing and amazing features, but allowing the game to boosts the energy system, which refills over time is time consuming of which will require you to remain idle for a very long time happen to be one of its annoying features that need to be look into by Hiker Gamers. All my claim about the game are usually backed up with screen shot from other players some of which I share inform of screen shot above.

Previously Reviewed Games Are As Follows

Mission Impossible Rogue Nation

Man From Uncle : Mission Berlin

Commando Adventure Assassin

Independence Day

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