Epic Clicker Journey Review: Doctor’s Assessment

Subjective:

From Cleversan Software comes Epic Clicker Journey, which reports for review as a purported 2D action-adventure, RPG, and simulation game where you fight “horrifying monsters” in mysterious lands to upgrade your equipment and obtain “epic loot.”

Objective:

Let’s start with the game’s mechanics. Despite the rather audacious claims of the game’s advertising materials, Epic Clicker Journey is a single-player “idle RPG.” As such, the gameplay loop is simplistic, consisting of tapping the screen or clicking the triggers wildly to damage enemies, obtain loot, and purchase upgrades. Simulation, action, and adventure are all missing here.

As for combat, it couldn’t be more simple. Critical damage can be scored by tapping a specific part of a monster or randomly when using a controller, while passive damage occurs without user input. RPG mechanics are sparse; you can level up a few attributes and pieces of gear to increase your active or passive damage, luck, and defense. Upgrading your three pieces of equipment costs currency and increases your base stats, but there isn’t any variation or choice to it. Customization is limited to a few pieces of gear that you can either sell or collect at the end of each mission, most of which are single-use.

After combat, you’ll need to heal. Unfortunately, you do not fully replenish health between tasks and must wait for it to regenerate in real-time, waiting up to several minutes or grinding previous levels for the cash to purchase health potions. Either way, it will take time. Speaking of time, The game has a total of 20 missions and one RNG dungeon. Once all levels are complete, the entire world resets with stronger enemies that hit harder and have higher defenses, however the monster types and levels remain unchanged.

Assessment:

Let’s get something out of the way, Epic Clicker Journey is an absolute waste of time for just about anyone. Really, it’s hard to discern who this game is designed to appeal to. So, let’s talk about the negatives. There is no writing or conceivable story. The 2D graphics are bland, inconsistent and blatant copies of other media. It forces you to wait in real-time to recover, much like a mobile game. And, damningly, the gameplay loop is boring, lacking the exciting loot or customization options that make other RPGs so addictive.

To make matters worse, Epic Clicker Journey‘s artistic choices also hamper enjoyment. The music is irritating after a short time as there are only a few themed tracks for the levels, all of which repeat ad-nauseam. Insultingly, the overworld title track is literally an iteration of the Elder Scrolls’ main theme. Continuing its assault on your senses, monster and world design are odd, to say the least. The overworld map is a confusing amalgamation of biomes, and many of the monster’s designs vary from Slender Man knockoffs to BDSM gear-equipped zombie ponies.

The only redeeming aspect of the game is its handheld functionality on the Nintendo Switch version. While it works just fine with a controller, the menus were designed with a touch screen in mind. Navigating the overworld is smoother and the combat is easier as it’s impossible to score consistent critical hits on enemies using the controller. The gameplay fits better with short, fragmented sessions, so, fortunately, the undocked iteration works best. 

It’s hard to consider Epic Clicker Journey a game. Sure, you interact with it, there are graphics and controls. However, it’s missing any semblance of fun. All you do is tap on the screen or mash the triggers over and over until your fingers are numb. There is no strategy or skill required, only an insufferable grind to experience.

This could have been alleviated by a good story, exceptional graphics or art design, interesting loot, build diversity, or a pleasant soundtrack even. However, all these features are missing. While there may be someone out there who enjoys this genre of games, I’m sure he or she would be far more satisfied with a more engaging alternative.