I’m pretty sure that everyone knows what Pokemon is. Of course, not everyone is fond of the franchise like me, but that’s okay. I grew up with the Pokemon games and trading cards. I’m always on the lookout for something like the original games, but I’ve never quite found it. That is until I found Codemon Barcode Monsters. It is a game that allows you to scan random barcodes, in order to obtain creatures called codemon that you can fight against one another.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

Codemon is just like Pokemon in that you have to raise creatures and then battle them against those from other trainers. Instead of collecting the creatures with red and white colored balls, you use the camera on your device to scan various barcodes. After scanning a code, you either unlock a Codemon or different auras and spells that you can use with your creatures. You can then take your captured Codemon into the Codiseum to battle for experience and money.

Pros

• Scanning for Codemon is lots of fun
• You can battle against other trainers and Codemon online
• There are a bunch of tutorial quests to complete, they walk you through playing
• Can customize your profile and establish a profile picture
• In game achievements and realtime tracking
• There is a marketplace to buy and sell Codemon, potions, spells, items and auras
• Option to link your Facebook account
• No intrusive advertisements

Cons

• Fights are automatically played out (you have no hand in them)
• Strategy ruined by the realtime battles
• You can only scan the same barcode once every 24 hours
• Tutorial quests aren’t always clear on what you have to do (it’s easy to get stuck)

Discussion

First, let me start off by saying that we don’t generally cover games, but I came across this one and I just had to share it. It’s a mashup between an app and a game, just because you have to use the camera to scan barcodes.

As you already read, Codemon plays remarkably like Pokemon, or at least the trainer battles in the game are similar. You have to raise creatures called Codemon, which can then be battled in an arena for experience and resources.

In order to obtain the Codemon, you scan barcodes with the camera on your device. There’s a chance each scan will turn up an aura or spell also, but we’ll get to those in a bit. You can only scan the same barcode once every twenty four hours, but that’s okay there are plenty of them out there.

Currently, there are 64 different Codemon races. The Google Play page teases “can you scan them all?” It happens to be eerily similar to the infamous “gotta catch em all” slogan from Pokemon.

To play the game it’s pretty easy, you take your Codemon to the Codeiseum (arena) and battle against other trainers. Unfortunately, the battles are played out automatically and occur in realtime- which means you have to wait until they’re over. You have no hand in the battles, but you can watch them play out as soon as they’ve completed.

If you win a battle your Codemon earns experience, and you also get gold. The gold can be spent in the market to buy auras, spells, potions and even Codemon. Can’t find that exceedingly rare Codemon you’ve had your eyes on for a while? It’s not a problem because you can just head to the market and get one.

During barcode scans,  there’s also a chance you’ll find auras or spells. Auras are essentially permanent enchantments that enhance the stats of your Codemon, but each creature can only have one aura equipped. Spells, on the other hand, are temporary enchantments that improve your Codemon during a battle. Spells can only be used once per battle.

For each Codemon you come across, an entry is added into the Codebook, which is essentially a comprehensive database for all the creatures- just like the Pokedex.

When you first start the game, it does a pretty good job at holding your hand and walking you through everything. To get you acquainted, there are several tutorial quests that teach you the ins and outs of Codemon. Some of the tutorial quests aren’t very clear in describing what you have to do though, and it’s easy to get stuck.

I have nothing bad to say about the game, except for the battles themselves. I wish I could decide how the battles play out more by choosing attacks and skills for my Codemon to use. Instead I’m forced to watch, which often results in failure. I’m hoping a more advanced battle system is planned for the future, but there’s no mention of such on the Google Play page. As of right now, battles consist of clicking a button to activate them, and then clicking a button to see the results after some time has passed. There isn’t much strategy involved.

Conclusion and download link

Codemon reminds me of Pokemon, simply because of the creature training and battling aspect. That’s about where the similarities stop. It’s a lot of fun scanning random barcodes to discover new creatures, auras and spells. It’s a good thing too because you’ll be doing lots of scanning. If you’re looking for a casual game, devoid of any serious strategy, then Codemon is just for you. If you’re looking for more strategic gameplay -like the Pokemon games offer- you won’t find it here. The realtime battles that play out automatically pretty much kill off any strategy involved. That being said, I found Codemon to be quite enjoyable, and it’s totally free. There are no intrusive advertisements anywhere within the app and that’s pretty impressive on its own.

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 2.8.1

Requires: 2.2 and up

Download size: 11MB

Codemon (Barcode Monsters) on Play Store