Illusia offers the perfect fusion of anime visuals and RPG action

Platform: Android

RATING
4 out of 5

PRICE
$4.99

TASTY
Zenonia fans will feel right at home in this story-rich side scrolling RPG game.

BUMMER
No free demo available. Can’t move 18MB install to SD card. Controls are touchy.

COOL
Add rush mode and mission mode to the standard story, and you’ve got yourself weeks of entertainment for less cash than a movie.

SIMILAR APPS IN THE MARKETPLACE:
Zenonia
Path of a Warrior – Imperial Blood
Dungeon Hunter
Parallel Kingdom

Read all of my Apple iPad and Google Android application reviews at Appolicious and Yahoo! Tech.

Paging all mobile RPG lovers: Illusia has arrived, and the gang at GAMEVIL has raised the bar to new heights. The perfect fusion of anime visuals and side-scrolling RPG action, Zenonia fans will feel right at home in this story-rich side scrolling title.

It’s time to strap on some virtual armor and take on the role of Hero. Aztaran and its seven stages of story mode await you. The game’s anime art style is a treat for the eye, and each battle takes on a decidedly “animated” feel (think cartoons) as you take turns attacking each other.

You’ll start with just two character choices – magic user (ranged attacked) or melee (physical fighter) – but 14 unique sub-categories mean you’ll want to carefully choose your active, buff, and passive skills. While you can’t name your character, and the avatar images are set at the start, you can apply unique armor sets and weaponry along the way.

As you ding and level up, you’ll want to immediately put your XP points into strength, intelligence, and dexterity. Be sure to keep an eye on your xp meter, as you’re likely to level up without noticing it. The quicker you allocate new points to your abilities, the less likely it is that you’ll perish.

While the game itself is a wonder to behold, the installation and initial game play experience can be off-putting. With an initial download of 18MB of content (which can’t be moved to your SD card), and more than 10 minutes of tutorial to play through, that leaves you five short minutes to play the actual game before the Android Marketplace’s refund window shuts on your tender fingers.

Do your research before you plunk down your $5, because there’s no demo to give you a taste before committing to this beast. The touch screen controls are also touchy in intense moments, and here’s hoping GAMEVIL releases a patch soon to clean up this annoyance.

Add in a rush and mission mode, and the game expands well beyond the usual RPG offerings. Zenonia lovers, grab Illusia today. You won’t regret it.