Mostafa Salem
Head of Gaming Research
Introduction
Planet Mojo offers an auto-battler gaming experience set inside a rich new world where players can operate with their customized teams. The games take place on a stunning, exotic alien planet where fierce creatures battle to preserve their homes and their natural world from an invasive technological force known as the Scourge. Players compete in a variety of PvP games and tournaments as a larger story and secrets are unveiled.
Gameplay
Clans are an integral part of Planet Mojo’s lore and give each character you see in the game relevancy and purpose. The Great Wars of the past are a distant memory, and most are now focused on rebuilding and surviving. The six clans represent the different regions Planet Mojo characters come from, varying from tanky frontline warriors to backline archers and mages.
The first 6 Champion classes are Paladin, Assassin, Warrior, Berserker, Shaman, and Cleric, with many more to be added as the game expands and develops. Prior to queueing up, players need to form their team. You are prompted to choose one Mojo, 4 Champions, and 2 spells to take with you into battle.
Once you make your selection, you have two modes to choose from. A traditional 1-versus-1 or an 8-player group stage and knockout tournament style competition. The latter is much more enjoyable and showcases the game’s different elements. Once the game starts, you have your Mojo on the board, Gold, and 3 randomized options to choose from in the shop that are from your pre-selected team.
The Mojos are plant-based magical creatures sprouted from “Moj-Seeds”. The latter is available for purchase through Opensea considering its mint has finished as of the time of writing. Each Mojo in-game is basically your main unit, and have distinct abilities depending on their form.
There are four forms; Leafy, Flower, Vines and Moss, with the potential to see more in the future. From our hands-on time with the development team, the Moss Mojo has an ability that damages enemies and heals allies within its parameters for example.
They will be more integral to Planet Mojo’s entire ecosystem later on with plans to release Mojo Melee and Planet Mojo’s land-based game called Mojo Land, plus more potential games in the future.
It is worth to keep in mind the auto battler genre in web3 gaming has serious contenders, with the most prominent being Illuvium so Planet Mojo already has work to do to keep up with its competition.
Review
Our time in the multiple Planet Mojo private playtests gave us tons of confidence in the development of a web3 all-star in the auto-battler genre. The team carefully crafted each Mojo and Champion to have unique abilities that force players to strategically select who they want to take with them into battle while creating their team.
The group stage and knockout tournament style is a new take on the genre that is used to the 100 HP round-robin formula to determine the winner. Planet Mojo’s approach makes for much faster games that keep you on your toes at all times or else you are out.
Although the game is still in its Alpha phase, some of the missing elements are actual synergy between units since at the moment there is nothing stopping from just chucking random units on the board. Another element is the little to no punishment when selling a unit already on the board, which is a huge element that always keeps players thinking twice before making a decision in Teamfight Tactics for example.
Mojo Melee Review
6.5/10
Planet Mojo is by far one of the easiest auto-battlers to pick up and play. This comes with its own pros and cons as it makes the genre a lot more inviting for new players to explore and experiment with but at the same time leaves more experienced players wanting much more out of the game. Planet Mojo's unique take on the genre with their group stage and knockout bracket makes for a lot more exciting and fast paced games than what everyone is used to in the auto-battler genre. The future is bright for Planet Mojo as long as it receives a much needed layer of complexity to its gameplay.
6.5
Pros
Casual auto-battler
Very easy to pick up and play
Unique take on the genre with group stages and knockout format
Cons
Needs much more complexity to differentiate pro and casual players
No synergies between champions and/or Mojos
Balancing issues with certain spells
