World, but that much time feels cruel

Honor of Kings is a mobile powerhouse, cementing itself as the highest-grossing mobile game across the world last year. Beneath the billion-dollar successes, Honor of Kings: World is gaining momentum. Timi Studio Group gave me an hour of hands-on time with the new MOBA title at Gamescom. It sounds like an ample amount of time to begin my journey at the Jixia Academy, but I’m honestly sad that I’m now waiting to play it again.

I’ve dabbled with Honor of Kings in the past, but never quite stuck with it. I admire the developer’s mission to put triple-A level games on mobile, with my Delta Force review highlighting just how excellent the FPS game port is. In the case of Honor of Kings: World, something is clicking from the get-go with me, and I think I know what that is. It’s filling the void that Crystal Dynamics’ Marvel Avengers left in my life. I can feel the hostile glares from my desk, but hear me out.

Despite a confused post-launch roadmap, the core of Marvel’s Avengers is uniting our heroes with satisfying combat. Rip apart the game all you want, but there’s no denying that each hero felt superb to control. I put over 150 hours into it, grinding my Spider-Man and Iron Man builds beyond power level 160, revelling in how easy it became to reduce cyborgs into scrap metal. In the Honor of Kings: World’s opening sequence, it feels like I’m sitting in the front row for the next Avengers movie.

There’s a sense of Infinity War’s persistent dread, with our band of heroes feeling doomed from the start. Glossy cinematics drop me into an ongoing conflict after this band of misfits has suffered far too many cuts and bruises. Hope is dangling in the balance, but there’s always the will to fight. I don’t know these people yet, but the feeling of blockbuster scale odds is already infectious. I’m rooting for them to defeat their mighty villain, but I fear that task is too tall to overcome.

As the stakes are strongly set, an introduction to combat is where those old Marvel Avengers feelings begin to stir. For the uninitiated, Honor of Kings: World is set in a universe where a force known as the Flow inhabits all life. Not everyone can wield it properly, but those who can shape their Flow do so by turning it into powerful magical skills. Some can cast turrets and bombastic explosive attacks, while others rely on manipulating fauna to generate health and siphon damage steadily.

Timi Studio Group is doing a great job already at offering unique playstyles to fit your needs. Before I get to that level of customisation, I learn the ropes, figuring out how each ability works together. It’s easy to think that spamming them is an effective way to victory, but the game doesn’t reward that. I need to consider their synergy and the right combinations to maximize damage. Cutting into my enemies with a sword is enhanced by stronger attacks to unleash rip-roaring combos that make my eyes water with pride.

Hitting a 150+ combo in front of the mobile game’s combat designer is something I won’t forget anytime soon. Even though the opening ends with a soul-crushing defeat, my arrival at the Jixia Academy reminds me that all hope isn’t lost. I’ve got the basics down, but now it’s time to see whether I’m worthy of wielding these powers. To paint that picture, the developer leans on centuries of Chinese folklore and traditions, infusing the team’s personality into the game’s aesthetic.

Not all of it lands in this sixty-minute showcase, but I’m eager to see how the full game taps into this further. Running on a high-specification PC build, there are no major technical hitches to pull up, but I’d much rather see it on an iPhone or Android device. Where the game does need work is with its dubbing, as almost all of the lip-syncing for English dialogue is seconds behind or blatantly doesn’t match what is said.

For some players, this might not matter. However, some improved localization would go a long way toward keeping the immersion unbroken. I can put that aside for now, as the highlight of the demo is what Honor of Kings: World wants to give you in boss fights. To become accustomed to my chosen Flow moves, I’m able to run a gauntlet of increasingly difficult fights.

Each of them is drenched with impeccable atmospheres; the true contender is a fiery battle at the pits of a volcano. Fighting plant-infused beasts that look ripped out of the ground is genuinely stunning, and learning to demolish them is nothing short of thrilling. You see, I can fight alongside four AI friends, and their Flow types have meaningful consequences.

It means that each fight is a feast for the eyes. I love how each set complements the other, finding ways of combining to produce bursts of damage that push my headset to its limits. This is exactly what Marvel’s Avengers did for me, and I relish the times of teaming up with my friends to complete raids and multi-level gauntlets. All of that is reignited in me here in spades.

The social experience could be a blast with friends, and I’m curious to see if I can convince my friends to take a chance on the game. But one hour simply isn’t enough. Rumbles of the Gamesir controller are still lingering in my muscle memory. I need to play this game again, but I fear the Honor of Kings: World release date is going to make it a painful wait.

We’ve got more Gamescom coverage coming across the week, but you can already check my Arknights: Endfield previews, Xbox Ally impressions, and interview with the team behind No Straight Roads 2. Once you’ve given them a look, come chat about these games on the Pocket Tactics Discord server.