Disclaimer: For our review, we were provided a premium version of the game.
Save The Emoji is another foray into the augmented reality genre so popularized by Pokémon Go in the last few years.
Augmented Reality allows players to play their games on the move using their phone’s camera and/or maps. With Pokémon Go, it was all about finding local Pokémon stops and capturing them. With Save The Emoji, it is quite similar.
Instead of Japanese pocket monsters; you’re on the hunt for various types of Emojis that you might encounter in a text conversation. The designs of the emojis themselves are very similar to the titular emojis in The Emoji Movie. Indeed, the first emoji you’ll find is the main character, looking especially forlorn as you add him to your collection.
As you hover your camera over your surroundings, you’ll discover small clumps of reeds on random flat surfaces. Clicking on them will eventually release one of the emojis, which you can then add to your collection and gather points. Upon capture, the poor emoji is dangled above your collection cubes, and then placed delicately within it as a trophy, possibly as a symbol of your mastery over all emojis.[sc name=”quote” text=”Upon capture, the poor emoji is dangled above your collection cubes, and then placed delicately within it as a trophy, possibly as a symbol of your mastery over all emojis.”]
As a collection game, Save The Emoji has a great deal of variety in its emojis – not only are the major characters from the film included, but all manner of background emojis only seen for a few seconds in the film included, as well as a whole host of other emojis you might find on your phone.
The developers have clearly done a lot of research into ensuring the collectable characters match their film equivalents completely.
To accompany any good augmented reality game, you need exceptionally good music, otherwise the player is going to have to listen to their own dull thoughts as they roam the world collecting emojis. Luckily, the music is voracious and entertaining, providing just the right quality of background ambience to make the act of hunting for new emojis peaceful. Without the music, the experience might feel bleak and remind you too frequently of the horror in imprisoning these poor emojis in a permanent cubic chrysalis. Luckily, you forget all that when zoning out to the music and the adventure of capturing your new emojis.[sc name=”quote” text=”Luckily, you forget all that when zoning out to the music and the adventure of capturing your new emojis.”]
Save The Emoji manages to create an all encompassing experience in augmented reality, allowing the player to forget their mundane existence and immerse themselves totally in their only needed pursuit – the hunt for emojis.
The UI is simple, the features minimalist and easy to understand and the overall design of Save the Emoji is one of simplicity, through and through.
It’s a simple game, but it’s one that dabbles in new technology and manages to make it easy enough to understand and enjoy, without too many complications.
[appbox appstore id1349104545]
