Ludo Zenith is a Classic Ludo Game taken to a Whole New Level

Japanese digital entertainment legend Square Enix, best known for titles like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, recently launched a new mobile game in India called Ludo Zenith. Ludo Zenith is a fresh and unique take on the popular board game Ludo, and it comes as a collaborative effort between Square Enix India and a Pune-based technology company, JetSynthesys.

If you are familiar with Ludo and its popular mobile gaming versions like Ludo King, you get half the idea of what Ludo Zenith is all about. You see, much like traditional Ludo, this fresh take on the game also has the same objective but with an unusual twist. One that makes the whole experience more exciting by replacing certain elements of the game with special characters and abilities that allow you to play the game in a unique and exciting way.

Ludo Zenith is available on Android and iOS, and here’s what this new board game has in store for casual gamers.

Getting Started

Ludo Zenith comes as a free-to-play title for Android and iOS devices. It stands at 70 MB and is available to download on the Play Store and the App Store. The link to download is given at the end of the article.

Upon installation, which is pretty straightforward, the welcome screen prompts you to select your favorite city. After this, you can either register with your Facebook ID or continue as a guest. Now, like most other games, Ludo Zenith will give you a quick walk-through of its different functionalities to get you accustomed to its menu and gameplay.

Graphics

Ludo Zenith offers colorful and lively graphics. Its 3D arenas, in particular, give the game a special touch and allow you to view the game from different angles, making it a one-of-a-kind Ludo experience.

In fact, not just the arena but the pegs (or tokens) in the game also get a special touch: they are replaced with special characters. When you begin your career, you receive three pegs: rabbit, turtle, and rhino, each demonstrating a unique ability once their energy is full — rabbit moves double the outcome of the dice; turtle shields itself from enemy attacks; rhino captures all enemies in its path. The amount of energy each character gets depends on the dice rolls you make at each move.

Speaking of which, you get to choose a special dice at the start of every game. Currently, Ludo Zenith offers four special dice options to choose from, which can be claimed by watching ads or as in-app purchases. The defining feature that distinguishes these dice from their regular counterparts is the inclusion of numbers (yes, it can roll higher than 6) on them and that you get to roll them thrice during a match.

Gameplay

Moving to the gameplay, you get two options: Play Online and Play with Friend — both in a 1v1 (player vs player) format, unlike the traditional Ludo that lets four players compete at the same time.

While Play Online allows you to compete online with other (unknown) Ludo Zenith players, Play with Friend is a convenient feature when you want to play with a friend. In the case of the latter, you must host a match using the code-sharing system. As you do that, you get a code, which you need to share with your friends to have them join your match — much like Mini Militia.

Ludo Zenith is fueled by coins in the form of in-app currency which can be used to purchase special dice and play in high-rank arenas. The game lets you earn these coins for free in a few different ways, such as by logging into the game daily, watching ads, and of course, winning matches. Besides coins, the game offers you lives. You receive three lives per day and can gain more by watching ads. Lives are deducted when you lose in Play Online matches.

Ludo Zenith features a six-ranking system: T, D, C, B, A, and S. In this leaderboard system, T is the training step and represents the lowest rank you begin with, whereas S represents the highest rank. In each rank, except T, there are three states, and you advance from one to the next as you complete challenges.

To Zenith and Beyond

With the addition of unique characters, special dice, player tags (rewards), and 3D arenas, Square Enix has done a good job of turning Ludo into an entirely unique and fun experience. One that lets you explore different ways of competing with your opponent to progress towards reaching the top of the leaderboard — Zenith — and become Ludo champion.

Ludo Zenith uses the freemium business model. The free version displays ads at the start of every game and in a few other places. If you don’t want to deal with the ads, you can make an in-app purchase to avoid them completely. By far, this is one of the best online multiplayer games to come out of India.

Download Ludo Zenith: Android | iOS