*Unlike most game reviewers, I treat a 5/10 as average, NOT a 7/10.*
Crusade of Destiny for the Android platform, by DVide Arts, is a game that claims a lot of things. It claims to be "the first ever true scale 3D RPG for Android". It claims to have "stunning 3D special effects", "countless hours of gameplay", "original music soundtracks", "360 degree swimming", "detailed sidequests", and more. But, do the claims hold up?
Crusade of Destiny, released on May 24 this year, is a 3D Role Playing Game(RPG) that costs $5.99. The game is set in a medieval world of fantasy, filled with bears, goblins, fairies, and other creatures. You play as a young man, destined to become a hero, and attempt to stop the antagonist, Mordrid, at all costs.
Story:
Many gamers play RPGs not only for fun gameplay, but for the equally important story. If you are this kind of gamer, then Crusade of Destiny is not for you. The game starts out with a slick introductory slideshow: Hyra, the queen, is peacefully ruling her kingdom. However, her evil sister, Mordrid, becomes jealous of her power, and summons a dragon to aid her in taking over Hyra's kingdom. It is up to you, (whatever name you choose), to stop Mordrid, and once again bring peace to the kingdom.
Other than the intro, the main story is basically non-existent. All the queen does is order you to collect the items necessary to ultimately defeat Mordrid. That's it. Surprisingly, the sidequest's individual stories have more depth than the main story. Some are boring, like collecting plants for an old woman's broom. But, others are a bit more interesting, like rescuing a worried brother's little sister from a goblin invested cave.
The main story and sidequest stories simply give you a reason do to some killin'. The story doesn't try to be fantastic, and believe me, it is nowhere near. Let me remind you though, this IS a cell phone game, where any story at all is hard to come by. The story could have definitely been better, but I do not expect Oscar quality from a cell phone game.
5/10
Graphics:
The graphics are one of this game's strong points. The game is in full 3D. All characters, creatures, and objects are well made with excellent textures. There are five good sized areas with elevation changes and plant life (plus numerous caves and other locations). The animations are wonderful as well: from blazing magic fire balls to angry sprinting wolves. Each area has a small town in it with chickens walking around and civilians doing some sort of activity. There are interiors to buildings too--no loading required. Also, the framerate is solid, with an occasional drop here or there. Everything looks great on my HTC Droid Incredible, and if it looked any better, it might not even run on some Android phones.
9/10
Sound:
The sound is a serious mixed bag. The game is advertised to have an original soundtrack, however, there is NO music in this game. I don't know if this is by choice, limitations, glitches, or what--there is no music. Maybe it will be updated in the future, the iPhone version has music.
The sound effects, on the other hand, are phenomenal. Each attack has its own crisp noise. Each enemy has a unique attacking and death cry. Each sound sounds really great and top notch. There is an occasional bug hear and there, like a sound continuing during a loading screen. But, the superb quality of the sound effects more than make up for this small glitch.
While the addition of music would improve the experience, I feel like this game does not need music. The sounds each creature and the attacks make are awesome, and there are still some background sounds like your character walking, the birds chirping, and the wind blowing. I have high hopes that music will be added in with an update though.
7.5/10
Controls:
If there is one thing this game nails, it is the controls--they are nearly flawless. There is a joystick on the bottom left corner (can be switched to the right) that controls your character very precisely. On the bottom right corner (can be switched to the left), there are three attack buttons. These attack buttons can be customized with whichever three attacks you please. You can have up to nine sets of these attack button layouts, and you can easily cycle through them in-game with up and down arrows. To attack, you can either keep pressing the buttons, or you can hold them down. To pan the camera around the character, you can press and drag anywhere on the the screen above the joystick. To target an enemy, all you have to do is tap them once. There is a start menu button(where you manage your character's stats, items, and more) and a sometimes hard to hit map button in the top left of the screen. Keypad controls are not needed (or available) because the multitouch controls are so wonderful. Overall, controls are what this game does best. Bosses are a tad bit tricky to target sometimes, and the map button (which I rarely used) is a little tiny, but everything else is perfect.
9.5/10
Gameplay
The gameplay is very solid. There are three types of attack: melee (sword and shield), range (bow and arrows), and magic (fire, ice, energy, and more). As you level up, you unlock new skills: sword spins to shield slams, critical damage arrows to poison arrows, and fireballs to teleportation spells. There are six melee skills, five range skills, and nine magic skills. Every skill is unique and has a purpose. One skill does not outweigh the other because enemies have specific weaknesses and immunities--this really adds some nice variety and strategy to the game. My personal favorite skill is a bow skill. You have to target an enemy and wait for them to stop moving. If you time it right, you can get a critical hit every time--a perfect start to any battle.
Each of the five areas has a shop in it. Shops sell a decent amount of items: healing and mana potions, bows and arrows, armor and shields, and some special items, like a book that lets you talk to chickens (One chicken in the beginning town tells you the strengths and weaknesses of EVERY enemy!). The tougher the enemy you defeat, the better drop (and experience) you get. The only source of income, besides one sidequest, is selling drops at shops, where you can continuously buy better gear. If you do sidequests, you can get special armor and weapons. There is one special sidequest where you are taken to a separate area where you can fish and swim! The fishing is simple, but entertaining. Swimming is quite enjoyable as well--the controls work great. This sidequest really mixes things up, and it is easily avoidable, so be thorough!
Each area has similar progression. You fight one set of enemies for 2-3 levels, and then move on to other types of enemies as you get stronger. Each area has four different enemies with various levels. Once you gain ten levels, you get to fight a boss. The bosses are very large and Zelda-esque. You will need a different strategy for each boss, even though they all make the same sound for some reason. The gameplay sounds like it is continuous grinding, but you really get a sense of progress. You start off with weak enemies, then move to stronger ones that drop better loot. As your money increases, you can buy more gear, and start killing the bad guys faster. Also, there is a sort of fast-travel horse you can ride to travel quickly between areas in towns, and later on in the game you unlock the ability to teleport with magic.
The game autosaves frequently; loss of any data was never a problem for me. Unfortunately, when you close the game for a text or something, it has to load again briefly. This must be due to the high caliber graphics.
Overall, the gameplay is excellent. The enemies are varied, the attacks are unique, and there is a definite sense of progression throughout. Some may think there is a bit too much grinding, but I think it is just the right amount; not so little that you feel as if you are flying through the game, but not so much that you get bored. You need strategy and skill to succeed. What else can I say, Crusade of Destiny is a BLAST!
8.5/10
Longevity:
My first playthrough (100% done: all gear unlocked, all sidequests completed, and max level) took me about 15 hours. If you really wanted to speed through the game, you could probably finish in about 10 hours. However, when you max out each attack type (melee, range, and magic), you unlock an awesome final skill. Every attack type cannot be maxed out in one playthrough, so in order to see all of the amazing final skills, you will need to complete the game two to three times. This adds some serious replayability. 15 hours+ is an excellent deal for $5.99, especially for a cell phone game.
9/10
The Verdict:
As a whole, Crusade of Destiny is a wonderful game. It is extremely well polished, has marvelous graphics and gameplay, and is quite lengthy. The story might be lame, and music might be lacking (will most likely be updated soon, the game has only been out for a few weeks), but these two problems only slightly hamper the experience. I highly recommend this game to any gamer, hardcore and casual alike. Whether you blast through this amazing game, slowly beat a few areas, or just show it off to your friends, you will not regret buying Crusade of Destiny!
9/10
*Note: I played this game with an HTC Droid Incredible. Results may vary with other phones.*
)! I recommend that everyone at least try the game out, if you don't like it, you can always return it! 
