Call of Duty: Heroes is Clash of Clans with Guns
If the blockbuster action and Kevin Spacey-ness of Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare isn't enough to scratch your militaristic itch, there's now yet another way to take your Call of Duty addiction on the go. Taking some major design cues from hit mobile strategy game Clash of Clans, Call of Duty: Heroes has you attack and defend military bases using characters and weapons from Activision's popular first-person shooter franchise. The free-to-play game is available now in iOS and Windows devices, with an Android version on the way.
As with Clash of Clans, Call of Duty: Heroes' core gameplay cycle consists of using resources to fortify your base, training fighters for battle and attacking enemy strongholds. Whether you're invading a base or defending your own, combat is as simple as tapping the screen to deploy your soldiers and watching the action unfold. The game lets you take on other players in PVP mode as well as defending against increasingly-difficult waves of enemies in survival mode.
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Heroes sets itself apart with some action-oriented mechanics lifted from the Call of Duty console games, such as the ability to rain down fire from above with a helicopter turret. The game's Heroes -- leader characters with special abilities -- are also lifted from the core series, with the option to take control of characters like Captain Price from Modern Warfare and Mike Harper from Black Ops 2.
Heroes is far from the first Call of Duty mobile game; previous installments like Call of Duty: Strike Team and Call of Duty: Black Ops Zombies emulate the first-person shooting gameplay of their console counterparts, whereas Activision's new Heroes game aims to capitalize on the ever-growing mobile strategy genre.
I had a good time deploying troops and ordering chopper strikes during my brief time with Heroes, and the game seems like a perfect fit for those who don't mind a Call of Duty skin over Clash of Clans' signature gameplay. As with most free-to-play games, you'll likely have to either spend real money or lots of time in order to build the ultimate base, but the title is enjoyable enough in small bursts.
Mike Andronico is an Associate Editor at Tom's Guide. Follow Mike @MikeAndronico and on Google+. Follow us @TomsGuide, on Facebook and on Google+
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