To be honest, when I saw the name of the game "Honkai Journey to the West", my first reaction was to be stunned. As an old player who came from the Symbian era, it is really emotional to witness the transformation of mobile games from Java games with a size of several kilobytes to the current 3D masterpieces. At that time, playing "Cangshenlu" would be exciting for a long time. Now, just pull it and you will see full-screen special effects, and the picture is incredibly exquisite.
Let's talk about "Honkai Westward Journey". I tried it and I don't want to brag about it. I think it is quite representative. The theme of Journey to the West and the two-dimensional painting style are actually quite common in recent years, but this game has Red Boy as the protagonist. It is a bit interesting. Instead of the traditional master and apprentice four people fighting monsters and upgrading, it uses the monster perspective to solve the crisis in the three realms, which can be regarded as injecting new blood into the old IP. Moreover, its 3D modeling and fresh Japanese style are obviously aimed at young users. After all, the mobile game market is now dominated by Generation Z.
From the perspective of industry trends, I think this type of games represents a direction: refined IP operation. In the past, it was possible to get a big IP and add any gameplay to make it popular, but that is no longer the case. Players are very discerning and must make differences in plot, character design, and style of painting. The two-dimensional shapes of the gods and monsters in "Honkai Westward Journey" are typical of "old characters in new packaging". This style of play can not only attract sentimental parties, but also capture new users. In addition, its strategic development and management gameplay show that mobile games are now not only about combat, but also allow players to have the fun of "growing". With the collection system and fragmented time, it can be said to find a balance between RPG and placement games.
But to be honest, there are also hidden dangers in this type of game. Nowadays, the mobile game market is too homogeneous, and the theme of Journey to the West is almost worn out. Whether it can retain players for a long time depends on the rhythm of operations and content updates. Moreover, the charging mode is written as 0, which is probably a free download and in-app purchase. This mode requires a high value balance, otherwise it will easily become a cheating game. As an old player, I still hope that it can have a solid plot depth, and don't just rely on vertical graphics and special effects to support it.
Finally, I would like to say that from the "Journey to the West" that could only adjust text commands to the 3D version that can freely control the characters to fight, the technological progress is really scary. But no matter how the graphics change, good stories and good gameplay that can immerse players are the foundation for mobile games to go far. 😌