INTRODUCTION
Vainglory is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game developed and published by Super Evil Megacorp for iOS and Android devices. The game is a simplified version of the PC-based genre wherein two opposing teams of three players fight to destroy the enemy base by controlling the path between the bases, which is lined by turrets and guarded by AI controlled enemy creatures. Off the path, players battle for control points that supply extra resources. The game was released for iOS in November 2014, after being soft-launched for over half a year, with the Android version being released in July 2015.The game's development started in 2012 upon the forming of Super Evil Megacorp. The game was unveiled at Apple's September 2014 iPhone 6 announcement event to demonstrate the platform's Metal graphics API. Super Evil Megacorp attempted to make a game that would entertain players for hours and encourage in-person multiplayer experiences similar to that of a LAN party.
Vainglory received generally favorable reviews. Critics praised the game's graphics, characters, and level design, but criticized its lack of team communication features. Reviewers disagreed on the game's degree of accessibility to newcomers, part of the reason why it received mixed reviews.
GAMEPLAY
Vainglory is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game in the style of popular MOBAs League of Legends and Dota 2 but designed for smartphones and tablets.[1] As standard for the genre, two opposing teams fight to reach and destroy the enemy's base while defending their own in a tug of war for control of a path, the "lane", which connects the bases.[2] In addition, there is a "jungle" beneath the lane, which contains creatures and objectives that can be killed or captured.In Vainglory, teams have three players who each control an avatar, known as a "hero",[3] from their own device.[4] Weaker computer-controlled characters, called "minions", spawn at team bases and follow the lane to the opposite team's base, fighting enemies and turrets en route.[2] Lining the lane are turret towers that repel the flow of minions and enemy heroes. The player's objective is to destroy the enemy turrets and the "Vain Crystal" in the enemy team's base.
There are three PvP modes in Vainglory: Standard, in which the whole map is available, Battle Royale, in which progression is faster and the battle is limited only to the lane, and Blitz, in which players must gain the most amount of points or reach the 15 point score cap in 5 minutes by taking down turrets and killing off jungle miners which gives three points, or by killing other players which gives one point. If a Blitz match were to ever be tied by the 5 minute mark, then the first team to score the first point in overtime wins. Players can play ranked Standard games to increase their in-game ranking, or casual Standard games, in which their rank is not affected. In the game client, ranked play duration is listed as 25 minutes, whereas casual play is 20 minutes.
As of 1st May 2017 (Update 2.4), there are 32 hero options.The developers of the game continually add new heroes, each with different skills but balanced for fair play. For example, a hero may have high damage but poor mobility, or strong melee abilities but no ranged option.Players choose between three abilities that upgrade via a common technology tree.There is a set number of heroes that are free to play, with the free to play roster being renewed every week.
The game uses two main in-game currencies for in-app purchases: one that can be earned through normal play and completing missions, known as Glory, and one that can be purchased with money, known as Immensely Concentrated Evil (ICE). Players can also choose to permanently unlock any character for a certain amount of Glory.Skins, which change the appearance of heroes, can be unlocked either using ICE or cards, a secondary currency. Another currency, Essence, can be used to purchase cards, while destroying cards yields a lower amount of Essence. Update 1.18.0 introduced "chests" which provide another way of obtaining any of these currencies; chests become available after completing a certain action (e.g. win 5 games).