MOBA Fates Forever fights for space on your iPad

Fates Forever is a fantastic iPad-only MOBA with gorgeous graphics and intriguing gameplay. It is free to play and available on iPads using iOS 7.0 and up. It is a game of balance: you must defend your base while attacking the opponent's base.

The game features three different modes: bot, co-op, and online, all of which are fun. You can practice battle strategies and get a feel for how the game works in bot mode. co-op mode is a step up from bot mode where you play with other people against bots. The online mode is a lot of fun because it features three vs. three battles which means amazing twists of fate. For instance, your team could be making a lot of progress attacking the opponent's base but if you do not keep a watch on your own base, the opponents could easily take control.

Each match lasts around 15 minutes, sometimes upwards of 40 minutes. It depends on how you play and how well your competitors do. You gain levels in Fates Forever when you win matches. These levels help unlock relics, which are skills that offer passive and active abilities. You have to choose a relic at the start of each match and tailor your strategy around it.

For example, the "restoration relic" provides a small amount of health when you kill an opponent's minor enemy, known as a tribute. When you tap on the relic's icon during the game, you will make it active and for the restoration relic, it will instantly heal yourself and nearby allies. I found this relic helpful in a lot of cases where I was surrounded while attacking an opponent's base.

The character you choose also affects how you play. If you choose May, the lynx, you will focus more on archery. If you pick Renwil, the warthog, your attacks will be heavy melee-based. This allows different types of players to focus on their own style of gameplay. I really like using melee characters but it was nice to try out different characters to see what fits best.

I also enjoyed the use of grass, which hides your character from the other players. This made it easy to surprise opponents and seek some refuge when things started to get dodgy. Another nice feature lets you recall back to the starting area. This is helpful because it lets you visit the store to stock up on health and other items.

Fates Forever starts off with a six-step tutorial which does a great job of explaining the gameplay and easing the player into the game world. As you play through a match, you unlock more skills for your character. This is reset at the beginning of a new match which is helpful for people who want to experiment with different tactics.

Fates Forever has fun daily quests. The daily quest I played was to win with a certain character five times. Completing it rewarded me with some ore, a type of currency in the game. Ore is used to unlock characters, which range greatly in price, so it is easy to see someone spend a lot of time collecting currency.

Interface bugs got in the way of the fun. For example, the match making would sometimes put people in a match with someone of a much higher level. The controls were not the most responsive, but these problems are not great enough to deter someone from enjoying the game.

With the many different characters to choose from, daily quests, three play modes, and combinations of armor/weapons, Fates Forever is a great free game for people who like MOBAs.