Who ever said that cavemen didn’t like to partake in the relaxing match-three game every now and then? You know, in between hunting dinosaurs and admiring rocks and all that. Cavemania is the second game by BonusXP, after the colorfully spooky endless runner, Monster Crew. This time around, the developer has set their sights on the Stone Age, with an incredibly rich and engrossing strategy game that’s inspired by such gaming greats as Age of Empires. In partnership with Yodo1, Cavemania is already shaping up to be a riveting global experience, which every caveman (and cavewoman) all over the world will be able to enjoy.
Who ever said that cavemen didn’t like to partake in the relaxing match-three game every now and then? You know, in between hunting dinosaurs and admiring rocks and all that. Cavemania is the second game by BonusXP, after the colorfully spooky endless runner, Monster Crew. This time around, the developer has set their sights on the Stone Age, with an incredibly rich and engrossing strategy game that’s inspired by such gaming greats as Age of Empires. In partnership with Yodo1, Cavemania is already shaping up to be a riveting global experience, which every caveman (and cavewoman) all over the world will be able to enjoy.
In Cavemania, you’ll play as a Chieftan from the Cave Age, whose tribe has been scattered across the Mammoth and Pterodactyl-ridden land. Since loyal cave people are known to stick together, it’s up to you to find them all and make sure you’re all one big happy family again. And as it turns out, cavemen had a lot more resources and weaponry in their day besides the wheel and fire. The primary action of the game (including the battles themselves) takes place on a colorful match-three game board akin to games like Candy Crush Saga or Puzzle Quest. Different items like apples and trees must be matched in clusters of three or more to gather resources and complete level-specific objectives, while your Stone Age hero also occupies a space on the game board as well.
After spending some early hands-on time with the game, I got a chance to see that battling prehistoric baddies is much more involved than simply swiging a stick around and hoping for the best. Here’s how the battle system works in Cavemania: in most levels, you’ll come face to face with a number of dangerous enemies like Sabertooths and even the dreaded T-Rex. In order to attack them, you’ll need to make matches to drop down objects and position your hero within the enemy’s vicinity. Once you’ve got them in your sights, your hero will take a swing at them on every move thereafter. However, don’t expect something as fearsome as a T-Rex to go down without a fight! Luckily, every time you match four or more resources, you’ll gain the ability to launch a special attack, which really takes a big chunk out of your adversary’s health bar. And hey, in the Stone Age, it’s either going to be you or them!
As you complete levels and finish them with the least amount of moves to nab those coveted three stars, you’ll earn bundles of currency that you can use to make your Cavemania hero ten times as, er, cavy. Some of these upgrades will be crucial to your progression in the game, like devastating new weapons and more powerful attacks, while others are simply more for fun, like chopping off some of that dirty tangled hair for a much more stylish new doo.
All in all, Cavemania is set to feature 90 different challenging and strategic match-three levels, 12 different units and buildings to use with over 100 different upgrades between them, and 7 different enemies to introduce to the sharp side of your club. The free-to-play game is currently set for a hopeful September release on iOS and Android platforms.
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