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Last week got a bit crazy with moving into a new apartment, plus getting ready to spend two days (Friday and Sunday) at Florida Supercon. I ended up taking the week off from posting, but now we’re back to our regularly scheduled programming. Also, be on the lookout for some Florida Supercon related posts coming to both myVGBC.com and ferdislearnings.com.

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This month, PlayStation owners with a PS Plus subscription received Arcadegeddon (Illfonic) — which was also released on Xbox and the Epic Games Store, last week. I had the chance to play the game a few days early, but had trouble connecting online so I decided to hold out on posting about it until now.

Now that I’ve had the chance to play both Adventure and Online Battle modes I am ready to talk about Arcadegeddon.

Game Design

I really enjoy the look of this colorful, neon world. Even exploring the “menu world” is exciting, with different characters to meet and some customization areas. The controls are pretty smooth, and the PlayStation 5 version even utilizes the DualSense haptic feedback and adaptive triggers.

There are some online multiplayer games that become a bit convoluted with their controls, trying to squeeze in too much from the very beginning. The controls in Arcadegeddon feel pretty smooth and slick. The character of Uncle Gilly starts off as a representation of the game developers trying to help you figure it out.

Not Quite Another Fortnite

After playing through the tutorial I thought this was just going to be some new brighter, cyber-neon Fortnite game, or something like a cyber-Splatoon but with its own DeadMau5/Robot tunes. Even though I’m not really into the robot music tracks, I find the music in Arcadegeddon to be fun and enticing. The soundtrack is spot on for this specific world.

I don’t see Arcadegeddon being the “Fortnite Killer” people are always looking for. Fortnite is already too big to be killed. I do see the same audience playing Arcadegeddon as a new alternative though, while also going back to Fortnite and other multiplayer online games.

Going on an Adventure (Mode)

As I said before, I started off mainly playing in Adventure mode, alone. You can create a party of friends to help in adventure mode, but I didn’t get to.

This mode isn’t really a story mode, it’s more of a horde mode with other objectives and tasks to complete along the way. In Arcadegeddon’s Adventure mode players make their way through different maps and areas killing robot enemies while completing tasks. Tasks may include clearing enemies from a specific or moving zone, blowing up a couple of points, and difficult boss fights.

I had some trouble with the boss fights I attempted. I’m sure playing with friends helps, especially since they can bring you back to life once a boss knocks you out. On your own, you just bleed out and die.

Playing Online

Adventure mode can also be played online with friends, as mentioned before. I expected the other online mode (Battle Mode) to be more of the PvP (Player vs Player) modes we’d expect to see in games like Fortnite, Call of Duty and Apex Legends. I was wrong.

Online Battle Mode is more like playing Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout, except you get weapons. This mode is closer to something like Mario Party than your average online multiplayer shooter. The online battle mode consists of eight rounds of mini games with up to eight players. Some games are team games, while others are free-for-all.

What I’d love to see from Illfonic is something like what Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout does, which is to add more content every couple of months. Even with a revolving roster of mini games for this mode, players are going to get bored if you don’t start adding new content. The seasons and new arenas and games are what keeps players coming back to games like Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout.

Weapons & Customization

Both Adventure and Online Battle Mode feature a large collection of weapons. I love the melee weapon of a baseball bat, and that you start off each Adventure with a bat and your unlimited ammo pistol.

The weapons you find along the way are also exciting. You get to find anything from sniper weapons to fully and semi-automatic guns. Some weapons freeze enemies, while others make them explode. The coolest weapon I found so far was the ricocheting spinning saw launcher, which cuts enemies in half.

Weapons can be found in creates along with power ups, boosters and other helpful items. Enemy soldiers may also drop loot when killed. And there are plenty of boxes to explode to collect more points and loot. 

Arcadegeddon is full of customization options not only for weapons, but also for looks, clothing, power ups and items. The more you play, the more points you earn to unlock new items.

Illfonic Original

In recent years, I’ve played a couple of licensed games from Illfonic that have been nothing to write home about. They were great ideas, but there was always something off about the execution. Two recent licensed Illfonic games I played were Friday the 13th: The Game and Predator: Hunting Grounds. Both were games I was excited for pre-release, but after release I quickly moved on to something else.

There is something special about Arcadegeddon. While many of us would love to work on and create a project within some of our favorite properties: Star Wars, DC, Marvel and so many others come to mind. I bet it’s much more special to create your own unique story within a brand new world sometimes.

Illfonic is currently working on a new Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed game, which I’m excited to see as well. However, I think Illfonic may be a team that best works on creating brand new properties. And that’s not a bad thing. It’s a skill to be able to create something from nothing that people care about.

What I do love about Illfonic’s licensed games is that they are just recreating the old stories we know. They are bringing something new and different to these worlds. Still, I feel like Arcadegeddon has given Illfonic more goodwill as a company than those other recent games.

The Verdict

I currently see Arcadegeddon as a fun game to keep in my library (as long as I have the space for it). For PlayStation owners, you can try the game out at no extra cost, so definitely get on that.

This isn’t a game I will play every night, but I do see myself jumping in and out occasionally. Of course, if I found out some of my friends were playing I would love to jump in with them.

I definitely plan to continue to explore this world, at least for a bit longer. Also, new updates, maps, game modes and updates will definitely bring me back to this one.

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Arcadegeddon is out now on PlayStation (FREE with a PS Plus subscription). It’s also on sale on Xbox and Epic Games Store.

*myVGBC.com was given an early review code for Arcadegeddon on PlayStation 5.
**Most of the images on this post were provided by Illfonic.