With Clash Royale on your Home Screen, you’re always just a few taps away from a thrilling three-minute battle that’ll have you punching the air in victory. If you play your cards right, that is.
Since it launched in 2016, Clash Royale’s cartoony, chaotic throwdowns have been reliably moreish – with so many ways to outdo your opponent, we can’t stop playing these tense, tactical arena battles.
Skirmishes take place in real time and see you and your online opponent select cards from your deck to play, “spending” your ever-increasing elixir supply with each move. The goal? To find your way through your rival’s defences and take out their towers, while also making sure you’re defending your own.
Even this many years after launch, battles feel fresh and exciting – each clash plays out differently depending on who your opponent is and which cards they’re holding.
They might build an attack slowly by dropping a huge tank-like character into play, saving up elixir to surround it with protective troops as it lumbers towards your towers. Or perhaps they prefer to drop several fast units into play at once to rush your towers for a quick-fire counter.
Even with all of that tactical nuance built in from day one, developer Supercell has been constantly adding more troops and tournaments to keep evolving the game.
If you’ve not played for a while, you might be new to Seasons, month-long stretches of themed content that introduce new characters and challenges, while also rebalancing existing systems.
The introduction of Magic Items helps you to upgrade certain card types more quickly; Star Levels allow you to add cosmetic flourishes to your favourite cards.
The game continues to expand every month, with new things to see and do with each Season update. Pro players can speed up progress further by buying a monthly Pass Royale, which unlocks extra perks and goodies.
Phew! All that is exactly why Clash Royale remains a permanent fixture on our Home Screens – it’s a constantly surprising game that just keeps getting better and better.