Blast Your Way to a Bargain
If there’s one thing I love more than video games, it’s a good deal. So when Sideshow Collectibles’ mobile action game Phoney Phantoms promised both of my passions, I was cautiously excited to play. My skepticism came from the fact that all too often promotional games lack personality or engaging gameplay. Luckily, Phoney Phantoms manages to deliver on both fronts.
For those unfamiliar with Sideshow Collectibles, they are a leading manufacturer and distributer of original and licensed statues, prop replicas, busts and more. Their work features characters and props from most pop culture properties including comic books, movies, anime and television. Phoney Phantoms features Sideshow’s original character, Ser Sideshow, as they fight the ghastly minions of the evil Scarlett Sentry.
Choose Your Crusade
Phoney Phantoms is a platformer consisting of two modes—Play to Win and Arcade. The Play to Win mode offers players a chance to earn store credit by defeating 18 levels and six bosses. Arcade mode challenges players to defeat as many enemies as possible, with difficulty increasing the longer the player stays alive. There are no prizes awarded during Arcade mode. However, players who manage to achieve a high score can add their initials to a classic 80s-style arcade leaderboard.
Over the course of Play to Win, Ser Sideshow remains in the same location, save for hopping between different platforms. Gameplay requires players to tap the up or down arrows to move between the three levels of the stage’s platforms. Tapping the plasma blast icon in the lower right corner of the screen fires plasma that destroys enemies. You can also release a charged blast by holding the plasma blast button until it glows green. Players are given three lives and must survive each wave of enemies by dodging and destroying enemy ghouls. Additionally, every third level features a boss battle. Upon defeating this baddie, players receive store credit and advance to the next level. The amount of store credit awarded increases progressively, reflecting the increasing difficulty of the levels.
Mash Some Monsters
At first, I was afraid that Phoney Phantoms would suffer for its simplicity. The early levels failed to present much of a challenge. However, by the time I’d reached the second set of levels at level four, the waves of enemies were more difficult. Most of the game’s difficulty comes from the variety of enemies. To start, you’ll face the purple, bat-like enemies in slow succession. Then the game adds in the glowing pumpkin heads, which the player must blast twice to defeat. After the player beats the first boss, the skull-headed ghosts begin to appear. These enemies present the biggest obstacle, as they are invulnerable and deflect all blasts. Their inclusion makes boss battles especially difficult because if they’re in front of the boss, no blasts make it past them.
The other two types of enemies are devilish flaming eyeballs and flaming elemental motes. These enemies are a part of the Winter 2022 update, and add a further wrinkle of difficulty. The eyes require three hits to defeat them, and the motes require a charged blast. Both of these species switch quickly between different platforms, making it much harder to hit them. Killing a flaming mote also awards an extra life, which can come in handy in later levels. I was a bit perturbed when the motes were introduced in Level 13. The first of the enemies consisted of a wall of skull ghosts in a straight line. This meant I had to sacrifice a life at the start, as they’re invulnerable, and in this case, unavoidable. Thankfully, after blasting one of the motes, I replenished my life and continued my crusade unencumbered.
Bewitched and Bewildered
Despite all of its hand-drawn, Saturday Morning Cartoon charm, Phoney Phantoms mostly suffers from a lack of lore. Clearly, Sideshow has plenty of interesting ideas for their mascot, however, the game rarely employs them beyond aesthetics. It’s a real shame, too because I grew to love these characters. I’d pay good money for a Ser Sideshow plushie, not to mention any of the adorably spooky hench-ghouls. After playing all available levels, I still have no idea who the characters are, as all of the monsters and bosses remain unnamed. Something as simple as naming the enemies and bosses would do plenty of narrative heavy-lifting. That said, the Hanna-Barbera meets Tim Burton art style is enough to keep me invested, as I’m a sucker for anything spooky and cute.
Still, I’d like to see more lore explored in further updates. The development team should make a couple of quick cutscenes or animations to fully flesh out the game. Yet as far as promotional games go, Phoney Phantoms manages to set itself apart with its unique character style and real-world rewards. Blasting the hoards of spooky enemies never felt like a chore. I found myself in a rhythm, destroying enemies and bouncing between platforms. In fact, the game moved briskly, taking roughly an hour and a half to complete.
With a $25 store credit on the line, and more updates possibly on the way, players have plenty of incentive. It’s rare that free-to-play promotional games are so generous with their prizes. Rarer still is it to see an industry leader try something so bold and creative, even if the story, and by extension the game, feels a bit incomplete.
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