Mo.Co reinvents online RPGs with classic Supercell spirit
Supercell’s latest title, Mo.Co breaks form from their usual competitive affair (yes, we’re ignoring Hay Day for this quote) with a delve into collaborative multiplayer action.
Before we start, I should clarify that Mo.Co is, when distilled, a cooperative action RPG. Most of your playtime will consist of you heading into instanced versions of its worlds with other players, and then moving around the world, battling an endless stream of enemies and mid-bosses until you decide to exit. Simple? Yes, that’s its core loop, and it’s as simple as can be…but that’s a part of the appeal.
Mo.Co is a vibrant and ‘snackable’ take on the normally grungy aRPG genre, complete with a goofy, teen-punk roster of characters. You won’t be sinking three hours into a grey-beige level to try and replace your rare ‘Maul of Xerox’ – instead it’ll be more like a three to five-minute jaunt to fight something with a name like ‘Chungus Terry’, which gives you enough shards to upgrade some sort of sock launcher situation. It keeps things light, bright and digestible.
It’s still incredibly possible to sink those same hundreds, if not thousands, of hours into it, due to the extra modes, daily tasks, as well as jobs and missions that already live in the beta. Aside from the main mission lines that you’ll get from the other members of Mo.Co, there are daily tasks, invasion events and also an almost endless level of achievement-like projects for both maps and equipment.
So, there’s already plenty of style and content, and the gameplay feels pretty satisfying. However, there’s an elephant in the room here, and it definitely can’t be ignored. It’s motivation.
Supercell’s games that stick have always been really good at getting players to work together. You’re often ranking up in some sort of competitive league system, or depending on one another to advance or achieve something faster. Here though, there are always random other players with you, and they’re often working on the same objectives. For instance, in the regular levels, everybody will often bunch up and simply go around clearing the map, while in Rifts (which are rushes to a boss, then a big boss fight) most players are aiming to complete them as quickly and efficiently as possible. At lower to mid-tier play, there’s no reason to coordinate with others in order to play – you can simply be strong and be near other strong players.
The exception is the competitive Versus mode, which feels like it has the most room to grow into something that lasts. It’s essentially PVP jungling (from MOBA), similar to Squad Busters, but with the fun-funkyness of Mo.Co and your own loadout rather than the shifting characters of SB.
It is, of course, still early days for Mo.Co. At the time of writing, it’s still in invite-only beta, although is closing on three million downloads. The core loop is solid, and it oozes style, but – despite its multiplayer heart – it feels a little lonely at times.
