So like many people I am guilty of installing a game or two on my phone and often I will hear of/see a similar game with a twist or a skin on it that makes the copy+paste game "unique" in the creator's mind. More often times than not this is more likely a cash grab situation as they churn them out as fast as possible, allowing for in-app purchases, and really don't support the game. There are entire studios devoted to this business model >> 1) What's popular? 2) Can we recreate it? 3) Can we change it just enough to avoid claims and suit? This is not the entirety of the games out there but for every game you like there's bound to be 20+ games eerily similar to it in one respect or another. Well I venture down the rabbit hole occasionally and I've found many that fall on both sides of the fence. Sometimes they provide a decent distraction for a brief interlude, sometimes they frustrate me, other times they're just sad, humorous attempts at mimicry. Here's two examples that I would call successful clones, but may or may not stay on my phone for long. (Possibly a review of them as well).
1) Star Wars Commander (similar to Clash of Clans)
Pros: Star Wars skins!
a unique functionality at the early onset of the game you can decide to support the rebels or the Empire which will determine which units you have access to for the remainder of the game.
gameplay and upgrades make 10x more sense than CoC and you can easily judge when something is under-powered. (i.e. Your base has lvl 5 HQ? Everything you have can upgrade to lvl 5)
Cons: the unique functionality does make it harder to play with friends if you chose Empire for the cooler looking units and they chose Rebels for the heroes. The "Squadrons" are limited to one side or the other and cannot cross-over. The lack of cross over ability kind of twists the knife anytime one side or the other gets something cool (I reinstalled and when light side only to find that it was not identical abilities).
As much as I did in fact enjoy the game the community was very small and not truly active. 6/10
2) Doctor Who: Legacy (similar to Puzzles & Dragons)
Pros: Doctor Who skins, companions, enemies, storyline, etc.
a (somewhat) story that progresses through the dungeons
enough minor changes from PAD that you fell like it successfully makes its own niche (including no stamina)
amazing community and dev-support
Cons: The story is [sadly] weak and usually skipped
The lack of limiting factors like stamina means you unconsciously play yourself out of it most times
Leveling up allies alters their powers at level 5 such that some of them with powers you liked 1-49 now trigger something entirely different at 50.
7/10
