History is filled with great rivalries. Schumacher vs Häkkinen, Godzilla vs Kong, Apple vs Android, England vs… well, practically everyone, we could be here forever. It’s an extraordinary moment when titans collide, you can’t help but be drawn to it, no matter how silly. However, few could ever hope to match this clash of the apps on Nintendo Switch.
Following May’s launch of Sabec’s Calculator, Blacksmith DoubleCircle’s now brought us Battle Calculator. You might be wondering, is this the Fortnite killer we’ve been waiting for? No. Will I feel smarter for experiencing it? Perhaps. Though it won’t light up eSports circles anytime soon (stranger things have happened, though) or your living room, it’s certainly functional.
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Read More: Calculator Nintendo Switch Review: A Math Made In Heaven
Cool Math Games
So, what sets apart these absolute behemoths? Battle Calculator has a higher price is a competitive local multiplayer experience, forgoing that single-player journey to let four players compete in a “Battle Mode”. Reminiscent of the British game show Countdown, a randomly generated number is provided on-screen, requiring players to use number combinations between 0-9 to reach it. Deciding how many digits the target number is (minimum of 2, maximum of 9), whoever reaches that first wins the round.
Admittedly, if Blacksmith DoubleCircle leaned more into the Countdown premise, this could’ve been entertaining. However, once you start playing, the format’s restrictive nature becomes painfully real. No matter your settings, Battle Mode only lets you use 1 digit at a time for calculations, making it a slog to get through on higher numbers. You might get a quick laugh from this ridiculous premise, sure, but that’s the only credit I can give battle mode.
Equaliser
However, if you’re more a solo adventurer, then fear not. Those Scientific calculators you know and love are back, letting us partake in additions, subtractions, multiplications, divisions to your heart’s content. Like before, the Switch’s tablet-esque design remains an unnatural fit for such an app, even if the functionality itself is perfect. Docked play is present once more, letting you broadcast equations to your living room for high-end play.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. For any premium Calculator app, you’d surely expect some level of visual customisation, right? Well, I’ve got good news. Beneath this mediocre presentation, there’s four different button colours: Simple, Office, Ice and Lemon. Of course, no experience is complete without music and Battle Calculator treats us to two royalty-free songs. Battle Mode has an unusually strong electronic beat, while standard play gives a generic piano melody. Which…. well, if you’re serious about maths, that extra atmosphere never hurt, I guess.
Verdict (Or Summing Up - Ed.)
As a multiplayer game, Battle Calculator can get in the bin. As a scientific calculator? Functionally flawless but visually unappealing. Much like before, buying this app is an incredibly questionable decision at £10.49, considering most phones contain a free calculator app. As such, Blacksmith DoubleCircle’s app is an even tougher sell than Sabec’s offering, so I can only recommend this to die-hard fans.
3/5
Reviewed on Nintendo Switch
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