Frequent readers know that I have a penchant for multiplayer games. In particular, I’ve spent a lot of time playing .io games during the past two years. They’re free, easy to learn, and hard to beat. Superhex.io is my newest addiction. It’s becoming popular at an alarmingly high rate, which makes the competition even tougher. That means I need to get back to practicing. And you should join me. Before we play, let’s take a closer look at this soon-to-be worldwide hit.
Command, Divide, and Conquer
There are no teams, clans, or guilds in Superhex.io. Every player fights for themselves. And the objective is to conquer as much territory as possible. You could agree to a truce with another player, but there would hardly be any benefit—because the arena in Superhex.io is limited. With 100 players involved, there aren’t many free spaces. If you agree to leave a certain area alone, that would prevent you from topping the leaderboard.
The gameplay in Superhex.io is inspired by Splix.io. Each player begins with a small base—7 hexagons, to be exact. Everyone must branch out and expand from their base. When leaving the base, you are in an open space or another player’s territory. That is where you are at risk. If another player hits your head or any part of your tail, you will lose. Any player can defeat another, regardless of size, score, or overall rank.
Strategies
Conquering isn’t easy. There are several strategies that players employ, from bold and aggressive to sneaky and defensive. Offensive moves are the most obvious, since overtaking territory is the primary method of scoring. To be aggressive, all you must do is point your cursor at new parts of the map. Every character moves constantly; there is no way to stop gliding.
Persistently heading into new territory is a surefire way to conquer new zones. But, it’s risky. Remember that bit about getting hit? Any time you are outside of your base, you are vulnerable to attacks. Aggressive gameplay is a good way to jumpstart a round, as you won’t have much to lose. After that, defensive methods tend to be wiser.
Safer play is ideal when you already own a fair amount of the map. You are protected anywhere inside your base. If you have enough territory, you can simply patrol the borders and block other players from entering. Any player who enters your zone can be stricken and defeated immediately. This defensive strategy will help maintain your position on the scoreboard, but it won’t help you quickly rise to the top.
Suggestions
The Superhex.io devs have made many improvements over the past month. Most of the upgrades have been based on suggestions from players. That makes for a promising future. I’d like to see upcoming editions include power-ups. The standard ones would be great, such as speed boosts, invincibility, and shields. Sharable room links would also be nice, so friends could easily connect for a private gaming session. Even without those upgrades, Superhex.io is excellent. Let’s play!
