Topic: Anyone try Monsteca Corral: Monsters vs. Robots?

Well, after all I've read, I'm going to try it. Seems like it will definitely be worth the 500 points. wooohooo!
The cheap 500 point price threw me off at first though. What about replay value?

@SKTTR: The iPhone game we did was a bit of an experiment and needs some more work, saying that some people really like it and it has had quite alot of 5 star reviews on iTunes. Wilde-eep, the lead on Corral lost a day of his life to playing it. It is a square physics game! (http://bit.ly/9PoguS). We wouldn't port it to Wiiware but might do something more polished for Dsiware down the line. It is set in the Robot side of the world!
We have created (in our minds) the whole universe of Monsteca. Originally the world was conceived as an animated TV series, the characters helping you in the tutorials are taken from this storyline.
We will release one Wiiware game every 4-6 months, the Artwork is mostly done for the next game but I am not yet able to reveal details ... except to say it is another strategy game.

500pts is a bargain. The lowest price you can get a Wii(Ware) game.
And I know your fear as I too have downloaded many bad 500pts games, but content- and gameplay-wise this is among the best!

There are a few good 500pts games on WiiWare and this is my quick rundown (with my personal scores):
Texas Hold'em Tournament (8/10) and UNO (7/10), two pretty good card games with online mutliplayer.
Tomena Sanner (7/10) and Happy Hammerin' (7/10) Pretty polished, fun casual games with online leaderboards that make 'em addicting.
Chess Challenge! (7/10) : It has online multiplayer, mail chess, and a good amount of options for a 500pts game..
equilibrio (6/10) not very polished, but 64 stages, smooth 4 player splitscreen, achievements and and Balance Board support.
Pop Them, Drop Them Samegame (5/10) A personal disappointment because other versions (Super Collapse) had far more features.
My Aquarium (4/10) Not a game but a nice time waster.
Sandy Beach (3/10) A great concept killed by unforgiving awkward controls.
Defend Your Castle (3/10) A repetitive fling game with not enough variety and feels like a free Flash game.
Pop-Up Pirate! (2/10) A random luck multiplayer game. The minesweeper mode at least has some sort of gameplay. And it's polished.
My Zoo (2/10) The concept of My Aquarium turned onto a few zoo animals that look blocky and act padded. Plus rip-off download content.
That's all 500pts games I have. And Monsteca Corral (8/10 or 9/10) I need to beat it first to give a more concrete score. I'm just halfway through the game and it depends on the ending. Is there a cool ending sequence? More story? More artwork? Or just the credits? Or nothing? (The questions are rhetorical, don't spoil the answer for me) This can push the score up or down, since I'm only rating the whole package and not just the first half of the game.

About the replay value: The game has 4 slots for "the whole family" to save their own game. It also has a 4-player co-op mode where everyone with a Wiimote can hop straight in and select their own little army of monsters (but only player 1 moves the camera).
Each stage has 6 missions. You only have to do the first mission (beat the stage) to progress, but replay value lies in the other 5 missions. The other 5 missions are always the same though, a basic concept: Beat the stage in a certain time, Break down all buildings, Find all monsters etc. So you can play each of the 20 stages several times, or you can try and beat the 6 missions all in one go!
The reason why this is so rewarding is the "level select tree". It has branches and latent buds. Each bud is a stage. And the more missions you complete, the bigger the flower is that will blossom from the bud. I'm the kind of gamer who wants a fully blooming level select tree. Little details like these make playing this game so worthwhile.

My way of playing this game is only picking the next stage when I fully completed a stage. Even though the missions are always the same in each level it still is a challenge everytime, because the stages are different from each other.

So it's a puzzle game... with touch controls?! - Well, that makes sense to port it to DS/DSi if anything. Unfortunately I'm of the minority who doesn't have a DSi (I have a few normal DS's) but that might change when the 3DS is coming out assuming it still has a DSiWare-Shop.

Yeah, I've seen lots of artwork, characters, maps and stuff on your Onteca blog and Monsteca website that isn't in the game, ...or I haven't found them yet.

One WiiWare game every 4-6 months?! That's good news - I look forward to it! Especially if it's more strategy.

Ok I'm finally deciding to get this.Thanks for all your input SKTTR. It really helps even after the reviews are done.

I have now completed 8 stages and the game is getting much more challenging and deep now. Can't really tell how it turns out, but at least it surprises with new stuff every so often. For example I can now draw paths on the ground, and this seems to be needed (and is a big help to beat the time limit missions faster) to send multiple groups of monsters to different places. The new control elements take a bit of practice though.

A semi-pause button like in other strategy games would be great to give different groups multitask commands without the time limit running mercylessly, but in the end, if you do it right, what you get is still faster than running around with just one group.

I also encountered new enemy robots in some stages. There's a robot that jumps right into a horde of your monsters and explodes. Don't worry - they won't die, but they'll spread around and you have to touch them again to make them follow you. This robot is a pain.
Then there's another robot seems to be stunning multiple of my monsters at once if I'm in close range. Avoid.
Finally there are tentacles of a kraken in most of the stages with swamps or lakes. I wasn't crossing his path yet.

One thing I have to correct:. Just beating the first of the six missions won't make you progress really far. The level select tree seems to grow higher only when it has enough blooming flowers on the lower branches. So you have to beat more than just one mission in each stage.

Hey, does anyone know if the issues here are a big deal, like the camera? If not, I want this game, seems good, especially for 500 points.

Well, I downloaded this game yesterday and spent some time playing it. I am currently at 30% completion and for the most part I am enjoying it. However, this game does have it's issues. This first thing that I had a problem with is the camera. It seems easy enough to control at first but it has a tendency to zoom out at the most inconvenient times rendering the action onscreen too tiny to see what is going on. This usually can be remedied by shaking the Wii Remote to release excess gas the Stompies have accumulated. Unfortunately, the camera usually stays zoomed out for a while and it takes some time for it to return to normal.

The second thing that bothers me is the jumping controls. They are really inconsistent and inaccurate. Trying to get your Stompies to jump in a certain direction is a real chore. It takes a lot of practice to perfect and it still seems like pure luck when you can actually pull it off. For the majority of the nine stages that I have played I simply just avoided using the jump controls. There were a few times that I needed to use the jump controls to reach the Astromaggot to complete the stage but it was too unreliable and inaccurate and I just ended up failing the stage which left me very frustrated. The Astromaggot appears at a random spot when the stage is about to be complete but if you can't reach it in time then you have to try to get your Stompies onboard by jumping onto the strings it has dangling from it. Your best bet is to perch yourself up on one of the highest hills and hope that the Astromaggot appears somewhere nearby so you can just hop onboard.

Despite these issues, I actually found myself strangely addicted to the gameplay and had a hard time putting the game down. The graphics are simplistic yet charming. The music is mellow and relaxing. The challenges(achievements) kept me wanting to play previously completed stages over until I unlocked every one. I find myself mostly agreeing with the Nintendo Life review on this game. It is a fun game but it is hampered by a few annoying issues. It may not be the best game available on WiiWare but for only 500 points it is definitely worth checking out.

EDIT: I just wanted to add that I really hate that Impostorbot. It is sooo freaking annoying!

This is no issue.

Once a Stompie collects too many bubbles the bubble will grow too big. The Stompie begins to float. It's feet aren't touching the ground anymore and it can't execute your commands. Still the game recognizes these particular gas-filled Stompies as being part of your active Stompie group. You leave these active Stompies behind and the camera zooms out to show them..

When you release the gas from the floating Stompies (by shaking the Wiimote) they fall back to the ground and just need some time to run and swim back to the group. It's not a bug or error. The camera isn't slow either. It's just for you to show where all your active Stompies are.

The easy way around this: Abandon the floating Stompie(s), dividing them from your group (place the cursor over them and hold the PLUS button), and then release their gas. Then tap the PLUS button twice to automatically merge groups.
Or better yet: Just don't collect bubbles with Stompies that already have enough gas. Don't touch bubbles with a Stompie that already has a big bubble around him.

1. I agree that the many different jumps are hard to learn, but you just need to learn the easiest one: Hold the Wiimote upwards and fling it forward.
2. Jumping is only really needed when you can't reach the Astromaggot in time.
3. I advise you to bring the camera in a good perspective, place yourself under the Astromaggot and then just do the straight jump.
4. For me this works everytime.

On another note: The Astromaggot doesn't appear in random places.

My advice: Practice the straight jump for 2 minutes.

I'm addicted to the gameplay too, but I disagree with some of the points in the review,
yet it's apparent that such an original game with very unique mechanics can be misunderstood.

Thanks for the advice SKTTR. I tried using those tips you provided but I am still having difficulty with the camera and the jumping controls. Right now I am at 56% completion but I am not able to progress any further. I beat all the stages that are currently available to me but it seems that I need to unlock some more challenges(achievements) in order to advance. This is quite frustrating due to the difficulty going up significantly while I am still struggling to get the hang of the camera and the controls. Hopefully, I will be able to master it soon. I wish that there was an alternate control scheme for this game. Classic control support would have been really helpful. I also don't like that the game will not let me advance to the next set of stages just because I cannot unlock certain achievements.

For those of you out there who are still on the fence about getting this game here is another review:
http://gamerlimit.com/2010/08/gamer-limit-review-a-monsteca-c...

it took me a little longer

in my typically luddite way i have mostly progressed with my finger permanently on the trigger and rounding up the whole posse to just get under the belly of the maggot and jump straight up

better is to just be in the right place at the right time and just walk on to the maggot as its emerging

I can't seem to reach the next level.. Must you unlock all the achievements to continue?

on subject of stompies gathering too much gas...

if bubble-carrying stompies bump into one not carrying they will split the gas evenly between eachother

(so if you pause slightly while on a collecting run and huddle a group together the group will spread the gas about)

also

when a stompy gathers a bubble it will slow down slightly

so if you allow others to overtake they will collect the next bubble instead

@pogocoop Are you stuck on the level select tree? If you go up and down or left and right on the controller you can select a new level.

This forum is brilliant to find out extra little tips for working my way up Monsteca Corral's level select tree and helping those achievement buds to blossom. Cheers to @SKTTR for providing advice and it's great to see that the actual devs from Onteca are also chatting here.

I have reached a similar point to @WolfRamHeart, where my progression in Monsteca Corral has slowed down. For example, I have just played the game for an hour and a half, without earning a single achievement! I consistently missed the par times for both 'Swift' and 'Rampant' by between 10 and 20 seconds on three separate levels. So close but, so very far! I was also really careful to take my time and save all the stompies for a Perfect achievement, without any Imposter Bots blowing them up, or Heavy Bots whacking them down to half a petal, but when I was trying to board the Astromaggot, two got left behind. D'oh, I need to practise @SKTTR's jumping tip, I think! Ha, ha.

In general I am better at the achievements which do not involve a par time, I seem to succeed with the Furtive stealth tasks most often. Monsteca Corral is definitely a challenging, but addictive WiiWare title.

I have a couple of tips to speed you up by about 10-20 seconds per level. While the Manderray (for that is its name) flies in at the beginning of the level you can drop a waypoint for the first Stompy and he will start running straight away to that point. Thereby getting quicker into the action.
When you have fed the Astro Maggot there is a delay of about 20 seconds while he prepares for take off. I use this time to run around picking up any missing Stompies and knocking down buildings etc.
Also Imposter Bots aren't keen on hills.
And lastly the Astro Maggot always comes up in a set order of places per level and always departs the level from the same place, so once you have played a level once you can plan your way around it.

Great tips @Stompy, I will give them a try, especially the one about setting a waypoint at the very start of a level. @SKTTR hinted that the Astro Maggot does not appear in random spots, so I will have to pay more attention to its departure position.

Ha, ha, I had in my head that the Manderray was a pterodactyl, I wonder if its blue riders are still Stompies!

Also, I have not had chance to play multiplayer yet, so I am guessing that having more than one player managing the Stompie herd into organised groups, would be a good way of tackling the 'par time' achievements, too.

this one just in from the wii chair..

shaking an imposter..

more luck than anything (and involves close proximity to water) but...

let him run along with you then immediately go for a swim

imposter will follow you like the idiot robot he really is

@WolfRamHeart please don't give up you are only a couple of achievements away from unlocking some of the most beautiful levels in the game. It may be that you are trying to take the Imposter Bot head-on. It is much better to skirt around him, just run over the nearest hill when you see him coming he really doesn't like climbing.
Also get together gangs of about 10 stompies and take out the heli-pads it makes the robots life much more difficult.

@JaimeO Don't forget the A button for drawing lines it can be really useful and the Stompies move with a bit more purpose along them. Also the robots communicate so if you are knocking into the Levelers they will tell the Imposter Bot you are picking on them.

I'm still at 56%, and very slowly progressing. Only got 2 new achievements in 1h:15m today. The Imposter Bot is really a sneaky rat. I haven't seen him approaching but my Stompy horde scatters around every so often, particularly bad if you're about to get onto the Astromaggot and lose 2 Stompies that were scattered behind some hill and didn't have time to catch up. Well, I have to try again and hope to have more luck.

Now the fourth branch of stages are very challenging already. You absolutely have to control two active groups at once. I really wish there was a semi-pause button, so I could draw them their ways without having to worry about the time limit. Drawing paths in stages with many mountains can be a pain. Sometimes I just think not parting up my Stompies might be a quicker way to solve the stages but the time limit is way too... limited. Am I missing something? Better go through the (selectable) tutorial stages again.

I still really like this game and at least I try to beat it, but getting all achievements is a bit too much for me. It was very fun as long as it was an wasy game the first 3 branches, but now gameplay changed into a test for the best. I have lots of other good games around that I also want to beat, but I will occasionally play Monsteca Corral and try to get my girlfriend into playing co-op with me. That way multitasking multiple hordes is a blessing and I should get to its end eventually.
After all, what it accomplished by now was worth 500pts already.