Dragons of Atlantis: Heirs of the Dragon Review

Platforms: iOS
Publisher: Kabam
Developer: Kabam
Release Date: August 1, 2013

I don’t pretend to be an expert on the legends of Atlantis, so I was unaware that dragons played a part in its history. At least Kabam says they did, and since the company has already had success with “Dragons of Atlantis” on Facebook, we’ll have to give it the benefit of the doubt. Mobile players are next up to experience how winged reptiles and sunken continents go together, as “Dragons of Atlantis: Heirs of the Dragon” has Kabam staying in its comfort zone but still bringing some refinement to its strategic warfare and kingdom building game. 

It turns out it was the Ancients of Atlantis who were in good with the dragons, and when they fled, it was assumed the beasts were gone as well. Centuries later, explorers learn the Age of Dragons isn’t quite finished, what with dragon eggs around and all. When the game begins, you get one of those dragon eggs to help you with your tasks of rebuilding a ruined city and restoring Atlantis to its former glory.

The nuts and bolts of getting your city back on its feet will feel like coming home for anyone who has dabbled in Kabam games like “Kingdoms of Camelot,” “The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle Earth,” or the online version of “Dragons.” By managing your stores of food, metals, stone and wood, you’ll erect a variety of structures that all either produce more resources or help bolster your city in other ways. At the same time, there are new technologies to research and troops to train.

What sets this apart from those other titles is the Great Dragon egg at the center of your city. He (or she, I suppose) can become a powerful part of your army, but you’ve got to raise the guy first. Once the dragon’s keep is upgraded to level 8 and he reaches adulthood, he can join in the fun of occupying tiles  on the world map and attacking other players – but that takes a while.

In the meantime, the focus of the gameplay for the first week (when you are protected by a shield from PvP attacks) is making sure you have a building, training and research job going at all times. The bad news is that this is drearily similar to just about every similar game, past or present. The good news is that where other games tend toward an early flurry of activity followed by long waits between tasks, “Dragons of Atlantis” is paced just right. It’s made for checking in on several times a day, and perfect for players with busy lives. There’s also a solo campaign, which isn’t too meaty but at least gives you something else to do.

Once the peace shield is lifted, it’s every man and woman for themselves. Or it will be if you don’t join an alliance, which is highly recommended. The game makes it easy to find a group of like-minded people, and the tools to add, boot, promote and communicate with alliance members are simple to use.

In fact everything about “Dragons of Atlantis: Heirs of the Dragon” looks like it has had some thought put into it, from the cool dragon animations to the clean, uncluttered look of the UI. It’s inviting instead of intimidating, which is something not all games of this type can say.

It’s worth mentioning that this is a free-to-play affair, and while “Dragons” appears to incorporate premium currency in a way that doesn’t make life impossible for non-payers, it also doesn’t let you go too long without letting you know that you could buy some Rubies with real money. You know, just if you really need them. Unless you’re gung ho about keeping up with the top players on your server though, paying is definitely optional.

And while it might have been nice to see Kabam expand its horizons a bit, this is a worthwhile and welcome transition to mobile. It turns out the trip to Atlantis inspires some feelings of deja vu, but the dragons and some of the features make it a trip worth taking, at least to check out the sights.

Verdict

+ Dragons and excellent UI help freshen up a genre growing stale

+ Solo campaign and well-paced building mean there’s almost always something to do

– Very similar core gameplay to previous Kabam games

– Hits you over the head a bit promoting premium currency

Score: 8.5/10