Tencent ARPG "Raziel" on mobile -- not recommended but worth discussing

I have played a lot of arpgs on Android. Most are trash I delete before long. A few stick, usually indie efforts. But to date, none have seemed as significant to me as this one.

So it's a polished as hell 5gb~ monster: full cg opening, wildly varying voice acting, feature rich and laced with MOST of the usual f2p mtx options. It's by a small Guangzhou-based studio and received a healthy financial kick from, you guessed it, Tencent. It's not new but is new to the global market.

None of these really stand out quite as much as something Raziel doesnt have: autoplay. Anyone who has even dipped their big toe into big budget mobile gaming will know that the autoplay button is ubiquitous. Even in games that really shouldn't have them. Raziel is paced at both the micro and macro level like a normal ARPG rather than a quick, shiny automated gear check.

So that, combined with a very slick control/targeting system (i have no trouble aiming aoes, cones, beams, etc), a skilldrasil of sorts, and an actual free explore mode tells me that this game might be Tencent trying to get the international jump on NetEase's Diablo Immortal as a more authentic mobile arpg experience than most on there. And Tencent's other entry to this market, PoE Mobile, is likely far behind DI's imminent release (we know the game is done for the most part).

The primary mtx angle of Raziel appears to be stat-free cosmetics, which is also VERY rare for an Asian-made d2p mobile game. It still begs me to buy packs every damn time I load up but from your standard f2p perspective there is no outright power item buying. You can of course leverage cash into currency and possibly some power-boosting pets. Grotesque by PoE standards, par for the course for most f2p.

As I said, I don't recommend it unless you have 5gb to spare and the willpower to freeload a fairly well-made 'p2w' arpg spitefully, which I surprisingly do. I just think it might be good to be aware that mobile arpgs are much closer to a stripped back D3 or even PoE than you might think. And that for so many genres, the mobile scene has proven the beginning of the end of quality b2p production. And of course it comes down to money. And Tencent, owners of GGG, are in the vanguard on this assault on single purchase gaming.

edit: articles such as this indicate to me that there is quite a difference between the original chinese release and the international:

https://www.scmp.com/abacus/tech/article/3029455/tencents-answer-diablo-immortal-bombed-china

This is, in fact, precisely why our idea of a p2w PoE is doing well in China. You don't have to work hard to look like saints compared to shit like that.

But I have seen little evidence that it carried over to the international release -- if Tencent understand how the differences work one way, I see no reason for them to get how they work the other. Gouge their ignorant domestic base gently, ease off for the more f2p-shy international.

...This is one of the less off-topic posts in OT, and a rare OP for me. Yer welcome.

PS PLAY RAID: SHADOW LEGENDS NOW FOR FREE!111! SUCH GRAPHICS! CHAMPIONS! WOW!

I think I've seen this movie...

Can't think of any analogy that would have the house-brand cake mix outperforming the name-brand TV chef recipe without autoplay. But here we are, a big budget mobile competing with incumbent big-budget mobiles both inside and outside the same stable.

"

crunkatog wrote:

I think I've seen this movie...

Can't think of any analogy that would have the house-brand cake mix outperforming the name-brand TV chef recipe without autoplay. But here we are, a big budget mobile competing with incumbent big-budget mobiles both inside and outside the same stable.

RIP Paragon, is all I have to say there.

So from what I can tell, Raziel's costume system has been changed for the Western release. There is a 'stats' section in the costume's pop up window, and it's empty. Like, literally, 'stats' and under it, nothing. This could be because later costumes aren't merely cosmetic, but I suspect it's the most obvious example of a change in mtx status from one version to another.

As I played, the things I was most surprised by was the stuff that wasn't somehow monetised which are common in other mobile games, even the relatively p2w-lite ones like Eternium:

Opening chests in the wild -- just tap and wait. I was like, OH here's the 'pay to open chest' part...nope. Huh. Okay.

Removing gems and other upgrades -- when you switch gear, the game actually asks you if you want to 'inherit' the socketed gems. Again, surprising.

Stamina -- since there's a free explore mode, that's not really a factor. They could have limited exploration by charging stamina cost to enter a world area, but didn't.

Granted, this is all early game and there's every chance it'll get evil as fuck once you hit end-game, but that's the part where you decide you've finished the game and play something else. Simple. Not like it cost you anything to get that far.

Which is also part of why I think Raziel is much more aligned with PoE than other mobile games: the cost might not reveal itself until you are 'hooked' into endgame, while most mobile games go to zero effort to hide their desire for your cash very early on. It's an interesting gamble, one that paid off for PoE but apparently didn't for Raziel. Perhaps because mobile gamers are somehow more wary of that hidden catch than they are the obvious one.

In case it's not obvious, I do enjoy playing Raziel despite its dire writing/voice-acting, lurking p2w on the horizon, Tencent connections and blatant Diablo mimicry. Gameplay-wise it's very well made. But I also suspect I'll enjoy Diablo Immortal and PoE Mobile for the same reason: PoE made me sick of sitting at the PC to play an ARPG. I don't chat so what's the point of the keyboard? I'll play Wolcen on here because I have to but were it on console that'd be that. I actively choose to play Titan Quest in an inferior form on console over PC; I'm more apt to play a Chinese knock-off Diablo clone on my tablet on the couch or in bed over sitting here playing the real thing. IF the future of ARPGs is away from the PC, I think it'd be due to me not being alone in that sentiment.

That's probably Tencent's gamble right now, given I think the attempt to bring mobile mtx sensibilities to PC won't have legs.

And as I type this, another hugely anticipated Chinese f2p mobile game just landed AND not just on mobile: the Zelda-esque Genshin Impact, by the makers of Honkai Impact. I tried it last night and yeah, you'd be hard pressed not to feel like it was made by Nintendo or Bandai Namco. I assumed it was mobile-only given Honkai Impact is, but it's on pretty much every platform. So...the high quality f2p game invasion continues...