As a newly added Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA) added to the free to play PS4 catalog, Genesis shines as one of the few fun and mechanically competent versions of the genre that has come to consoles. Keeping the isometric perspective works well for Genesis instead of the 3rd person view that was in games like SMITE.
The menu interfaces are easy to access and understand. The targeting system functions well and defaults to targeting enemy champions over other targets in the area of attack. Overall, Genesis behaves well and is easy to get used to despite how little time it has had on the Playstation store.
10 Reason To Play: The Campaign
A campaign in a MOBA sounds funky at first, but having a PvE experience in Genesis is just as rewarding as playing the normal online PVP game. The levels are fun and challenging enough to keep the player engaged while also learning how to play the game itself. Getting to choose the character for a level allows the player to familiarize themselves without having to spend 5 matches getting their teeth kicked in by another player who already knows their hero. In addition to PvE practice, armor and crafting rewards are available to foster an in-depth campaign experience. The Genesis campaign is a welcome addition to the MOBA formula that can be useful and exciting for the player.\
9 Reason To Play: The Variety
While Genesis conforms where it needs to in the MOBA space, it also breaks the mold in some very creative ways, especially in this console version. Genesis has the standby mages, ranged attackers, and tanks that are common in the genre, but the addition of characters like Poppollock and Joules make the game more interesting with fresh mechanics and play styles.
Many of the characters seem to be a mesh of traditional MOBA tropes that work well with one another. The fact that this game is so new and already has so many unique and fun heroes bodes well for the future of Genesis.
8 Reason To Play: The Look
Being so new to consoles, it is surprising that Genesis looks as polished as it does, especially in-game. The main menu could use a little bit of pizazz, but overall the appearance of the game is very satisfying. The fights don’t become muddled animations, and there are not minions stacking up into one another. The heroes have unique designs that evoke their personalities and the giant monsters in the river look scary. The health bars could use some work, but otherwise, Genesis is visually fine in most ways. This is sometimes overlooked in console MOBAs, which is why it stands out so well in Genesis.
7 Reason to Play: Easy to Learn
Some MOBAs seem to have a large number of characters that are inaccessible to newer players (and even some experienced ones) because of how hard they are to use in a meaningful way. This is not the case with Genesis. The champions have large enough learning curve to feel challenging but are not so niche that they can only be used in a single team comp or situation.
The payoff of a challenging champion should be that it feels rewarding when mastered. The heroes in Genesis offer this to the player and the balance of the champion pool allows the player to pick a champion they like and always be relevant in a match.
6 Reason To Play: The Map
While Genesis innovates on many of the standard MOBA characteristics, the map is fairly standard, and that is for the best. When attempting to learn and excel at a new MOBA on a platform that doesn’t usually do well with the genre, having a familiar three-lane set up is welcome. Being able to teleport and have a quick start from the base without buying extra items is great and it happens in any game on the Aspiro Enclosure map. Overall, this formula of three lanes and jungle is nothing new, but it doesn’t need to be to succeed as a MOBA on the console.
5 Leave It Alone: Paid Characters
Yes, every game needs income to keep it chugging along. But why on earth would a free to play MOBA trying to keep itself relevant on a console have characters that you can ONLY get by paying money? Incentivizing a route that lets the player have access to more champions faster by paying is a proven method in the MOBA space for making money. It doesn’t make sense to have heroes that are simply inaccessible to players who aren’t willing to buy into a game that probably shouldn’t work where it is.
On top of frustrating the player, it also isolates the player base by creating a divide between those who pay and those who won’t. This seems to be a slippery slope that Genesis could hide OP champs behind, which is even worse for the player base. This needs to stop immediately for the game, if not sooner.
4 Leave It Alone: No Players In Campaign
One of the things that set Genesis apart is the fact that there is a campaign. It is highly irregular for a MOBA to have such a feature even though it is a useful and fun one to include in the game. So it is frustrating to sign in to knock out a few campaign levels and find nobody online at all willing to play PVE with. This may be because the game is relatively new and little to nothing has been advertised about it, but Genesis sincerely needs to get players involved in the community so that the campaign isn’t relegated to a solo experience only.
3 Leave It Alone: Wait Times For A Match
Similar to the queue woes of the campaign, just not enough people are playing this game right now to avoid immense wait times for any kind of online match. During peak times when one would assume more people are on, times can easily exceed 3 minutes, while finding a game in the off hours is all but impossible.
There is plenty of fun in the game to bring repeat customers, but the community will only tolerate such long waits for a short while until they start falling off. This is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed by Rampage Games.
2 Leave It Alone: How The Jungle Works
There are camps, buffs, and large monsters that offer some sort of team perks. But what the specifics or details are beyond the understanding that a jungle exists in some form is a mystery. There doesn't seem to be a buff indicator or even reasons to farm the jungle unless it is for minimal amounts of gold while walking out of lane. It would be more helpful to have more coherent camps and laid out stats on each camp to be able to figure out how to best utilize the jungle to its fullest potential when not in lane.
1 Leave It Alone: Currencies
There are three currencies in Genesis to purchase heroes with: One that is accrued by playing the game, one that is accrued in the boxes whose keys are dropped periodically for the player, and one that is straight up a purchase from the store. These currencies can all be used to unlock various champions, but only certain currencies work on certain heroes. If it sounds confusing, then that is because it is not an easy system to understand. Rather than have two currencies that can be earned through gameplay, it would be more helpful to simply combine them into one and allow the same amount of purchasing power for that combination. Ultimately, the currencies are a huge frustration considering some champs can only be purchased with premium paid Genesis coins.