Palworld Clone for Mobile - Amikin Survival Review


Amikin Survival

Amikin Survival is a survival-style, monster-taming RPG available for both iOS and Android. It draws heavy inspiration from Palworld. Yes, the game that drew a ton of inspiration from Pokemon has itself been cloned. However, the game is unique for several reasons, which we'll discuss below.


It is essentially Palworld for mobile


Since you can play Amikin on your tablet or phone, it carries a distinct advantage over the console and Steam-locked Palworld. Of course, you can lug around a Steam Deck, but it doesn't beat the convenience of your iPhone or iPad.


I check the App Store almost daily for new monster taming titles for mobile, and this one certainly scratches the itch. It's a semi-open world that allows you to battle alongside your partners to capture more Amikins.


Amikin designs are refreshingly original


In Palworld and similar games, you can clearly see the Pokemon inspiration in many of the monster designs. Amikin Survival's creatures are adorable and surprisingly original.


My favorite so far is the Water-type starter Swimander. Other creatures like Meowinkle, an Earth-type cat Amikin, also possess a unique design not seen elsewhere in the genre.


Amikins do not evolve


If you're wondering if Amikins evolve in Amikin Survival, you may be disappointed to learn that there is no evolution mechanic in the game to date. It's certainly an oddity in the monster-taming genre, but I've come to enjoy training the same monster.


In games with evolution, the previous forms essentially become useless. The pre-evolved creatures are, in most cases, undesirable due to their lower stats and somewhat incomplete designs. This is not the case with Amikins; each monster is viable in its own way.


Some are great for combat, while others are better suited for base work. So, if you like a monster's design, then chances are, there is a purpose for them during your adventure.


To me, these are Amikin Survival's greatest selling points. But there are some aspects of the game that make it hard to recommend. We'll touch on those below.


Amikin Survival's storyline is confusing


I've been playing the game for around 20 hours, and I still cannot tell you what my character's goal is. The game's main purpose, at least at the time of writing, seems to be to stay alive and catch as many Amikins as possible.


The overarching theme seems to be centered around being stuck in a foreign land, similar to Palworld, but there is no indication of what you need to do to get back home or what your previous home was. I'm genuinely confused, and hopefully, a patch will shed some light on the protagonist's purpose.


The game heavily relies on base building and crafting


Amikin Crafting

This gripe is more about personal preference, but I can't stand having to constantly craft and repair weapons after only a few uses. I prefer a more casual gaming experience that is more focused on strategy than world building. This is especially true in monster-taming games, and I'm solely there for the monsters, battling, and the storyline.


I have no desire to relive the limitations and grind I experience in real life when I dive into a video game. If you're like me and prefer an experience akin to Temtem, Coromon, or Nexomon, then you'll find this and other survival-type games less enjoyable.


The game uses dice to capture monsters


Call me old-fashioned, but you shouldn't be capturing magical little animals in dice. It just seems like an odd choice for a capturing device.


My disdain for dice in general probably stems from my loathing of Dungeon Dice Monsters in the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise. Kudos to the devs for trying to be different, but this move, to me, just feels odd and out of place.


Overall, Amikin Survival is a worthwhile download


For a free game, it's absolutely worth downloading if you've got the available storage on your device to do so. If this game wasn't free, I'd tell you to avoid it at all costs. Now, there are some micro-transactions, like in all mobile games, but those are relatively inexpensive.


If you're looking for something to scratch your Palworld itch in between updates, this game is perfect. It's very well developed, runs smoothly with no crashes during my playthroughs, and it's available on that little computer you obsessively carry around everywhere.


Amikin Survival is available now for download on iOS, iPadOS, and Android. It could be possible in the near future to play this on your PC if you're running Windows. To do so, head over to my article on playing Android games on your Windows machine.


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Matt Irving is the CEO of Super Easy Tech, LLC.
 
Matt is the founder of Make It Super Easy and and Super Easy CRM. He is a passionate software engineer, tech blogger, and gamer. Feel free to connect on any of the platforms listed below.

Posted by: Matt Irving on 07/28/2024