I think it's about time I finally review this game.

I've had a history with this game. I've played this game since Isis was released, which was over 2 years ago. I remember that I was a HUGE fan of the old Sun Wukong (Hun Batz nowadays) and enjoyed the game, although I never got hooked into it. I eventually just stopped playing and went to get addicted to other games, namely Team Fortress 2. Fast foward to 2015, where SMITE is finally released on Steam. I was very curious to give this another try, so I did. Now, before I continue, I have something to say. All of my good friends know this fact well, and I HEAVILY emphasize this:

I hate MOBA games.

Long story with that, but I just never liked them, besides Awesomenauts. I downloaded SMITE and gave it a second chance, figuring it might be pretty cool now. Okay, this is the part where you look at the number of hours I have in the game. Just take a nice, solid look at it. To the review!

Graphics

MOBAs aren't known to have god-tier graphics (heh) and SMITE is no exception. The game is just... eh. It's sort of bland, but at the same time it actually looks really nice in some places, like Siege and Conquest. Not much to say here, but this is not a game for the photographers out there like myself.

Gameplay

The big question to this is, "Is SMITE a good enough MOBA to compare with LoL and DOTA?" The answer to that question is, well, yes! I find it much better to BE the character your playing as, rather than telling them what to do. It's what makes SMITE stand out from the rest of the crowd, and it shines brightly in this way. I don't want to start a flame war, but although it is very simple to understand, the game is much more difficult to master because of the fact you have to actually LAND your shots. No more "clicky-clicky here's the part where 3 champions die" or whatever. Your abilities matter, and missing one could change the course of a game. Plus, of course, teamwork is important in Conquest, and I haven't actually encountered many "OP" gods, if any at all. Some items are clearly better than others *cough* bluestone pendant *cough* *cough* but most aren't too severe. Overall, SMITE delivers with the gameplay by miles.

Story

Just like whether or not Set will be added to the game, there is no known story. This will not be counted towards the final score.

Audio

The audio isn't all that special, but the some of the voice packs you can purchase for gods are actually really funny. Some of the writing is extremely clever and gives the game a LOT of personality.

Replayability

Compared to DOTA and LoL, this game is much easier to pick up and play, although still being a very competitive game. The community, although not sunshine and rainbows, is much easier to deal with and far friendlier than those other toxic wastes of "communities." The gameplay, as said earlier, is simple and it doesn't require too much experience to understand, however I would recommend staying away from Conquest in that case. There are also daily rewards, but I don't like the fact that the prizes don't get increasingly better after 7 days, because it doesn't feel right getting 75 Favor for playing 8 days of SMITE. Invest the time, however, and it'll greatly pay off. Trust me on that.

Verdict

In the end, SMITE gives me a much better point of view on MOBAs, my least favorite genre of gaming. I can easily recommend this game if you don't want to go through a brutal experience like DOTA and LoL, and the fact that it brings out its differences with pride makes it one of the most enjoyable and addictive games I've played since Team Fortress 2.

Graphics - 6.5/10
Gameplay - 9.5/10
Story - NONE
Audio - 8.5/10
Replayability - 9.0/10

**PERSONAL PICK**

.:8.5/10:.

+Unique third person view
+Friendly community (mostly)
+Skins & voice packs give the gods charm
+Simple to learn, truly hard to master
+References galore!

-Bland graphics
-Daily rewards needs small improvement
-Audio (aside from voice packs) isn't very memorable