The Ready Games is a bit on the nose, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s effectively a hybrid one-touch rhythmic WarioWare clone crossed with a game show competition. Every 48 hours, a new game is unveiled, and with it, another chance to reach the top 20% who earn a small cash reward sent to your PayPal account.
Each new challenge is a different sort of reflex test, some with distinctive themes, while others seemingly drawn out of a hat. Given the mini-game focus, it’s a bit disappointing you can’t revisit your favorites (without putting down $5 USD a month), but you do have plenty of time to familiarize yourself with the current game through a practice mode. There is the option to turn a majorly successful run into your official one, yet every time I pressed the button, it’d only offer me the option to spend money on additional retries. By default, they give you one free retry.
[sc name=”quote” text=”If you want a constant stream of simple to learn games, it’s not a bad option “]
Visually, it leans into a modern animation aesthetic, with high contrast colors, simple shapes, and clear design. Nothing groundbreaking, but it works well. The area where The Ready Games actually falls flat is its generic, poppy music. There’s no real identity to the tunes played, and they’re all so basic that you’d be forgiven for thinking they were used in a department store’s spring sale commercial. The countdown timer at the beginning of your officially run is also a tad distracting, though you can thankfully mute the music and skip the intro, streamlining the experience while listening to your own tunes.
Monetary prizes vary, typically hanging around the $500-1000 USD range. Except, divide that by however many people are in the top 20%, with the highest scores receiving the most at around $7-15 USD. It’s not impossible, but seeing as this is a competition above all else, each game leans a bit into the masochistic side of things, some more so than others. Fans of the likes of Super Meatboy and its kin will be pleased. More casual players may want to rely on the practice mode.
It should also be noted that the primary monetization in The Ready Games is via life packs that offer more retries. There’s even a subscription model for recurring lives every month. Parents considering this game for their kids, or those with impulse control, may want to steer clear of these menus and prompts.
[sc name=”quote” text=”Fans of the likes of Super Meatboy and its kin will be pleased.”]
Purely as a game, The Ready Games isn’t going to set the design world on fire, but if you want a constant stream of simple to learn games, and like the chance of earning a few bucks by playing them, it’s not a bad option.
[review pros=”Regular new challenges ensure there’s always something for everyone. Solid visual design.” cons=”Sound work is grating. Life system monetization and high difficulty curve may be a turnoff for some.” score=7]
[appbox appstore id1355814049]
[appbox googleplay id=io.getready.readyplayer&hl=en_US]
