Awesomenauts assemble! Awesomenauts is the latest game to take on the MOBA genre, popularized by the original DoTA. Awesomenauts is one of the first MOBA games on console, and it’s a fine one at that. Awesomenauts pulled me in from the moment I saw the incredible intro. Everyone loves nods to 90′s action cartoons.
The story is simple, the year is 3587, and opposing factions are in a intergalactic war in order to acquire “Solar”. Solar is a very valuable resource, and the factions have hired the Awesomenauts to acquire it by any means necessary.
The objective of Awesomenauts, is to destroy the apposing team’s base. Along the way you must destroy the turrets, face 
other players, and occasionally take out the minions that spawn. Each class is designed to have a different role. Clunk is a tank type character, while Voltar is a healing character. The other classes are built to kill or push.
Each class has 2 special abilities, a basic attack, and a jump. You can improve each ability, or stat by buying it from the market using Solar. In order to get Solar you must discover it on the map or kill enemies. There is a loadout feature that I enjoyed, which let’s you control what exactly is made available in the market for your character.
The gameplay works great, and each class seems balanced. The only issue I’ve faced is being constantly kicked out of several games. It get’s pretty frustrating, especially when you’re doing great in a match. However, I do enjoy that if someone leaves, they are replaced by a bot in order to keep the game going. My problem with Awesomenauts, besides the connectivity issues, is the fact that it is only appealing to a limited audience. By no means is that the developers fault, but I wish something could be done to appeal to everyone. It’s hard enough staying in a match, let alone trying to play different people. In one day I encountered the same person in every match. Then again, that is what bots are for.
One of my favorite aspects is the music. Each character has a different theme, and they’re all great, and nothing is as satisfying as hearing “NAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUTS!!!” upon a victory. I have nothing but faith in Ronimo games, and so far they’ve developed great games (the other being Swords and Soldiers). I just hope they will constantly support Awesomenauts with updates, and the new characters are something to look forward to.
Awesomenauts is one of my favorite arcade releases of 2012, so far. It’s got great gameplay, great characters, and it feels nice to have a solid MOBA game on consoles. The music is great, and the intro is one of the best I’ve seen in a long time. Unfortunately, connectivity issues plague this title, and it only appeals to a very small audience. Hopefully Ronimo is working on a fix for the network issues, and if so, this game will be even more enjoyable.
- Great characters
- Great Gameplay
- Awesome soundtrack
- Limited audience
- Connectivity issues
Score: 4/5
