Rody Fight
Free-to-play with advertising support
Supported platforms: Android (reviewed) and iOS

In a sea of Rody Duterte apps, it takes an exceptionally well-made bit of code to rise to the top of the heap.

The free title Rody Fight just happens to be the most enticing Rodrigo Duterte-related game out there at present.

Made by Keybol Games, Rody Fight is what you’d call a crime-fighting simulator, if you think fighting crime involves punching drug smugglers in the face as they try to walk past you. This is exactly the case with this game.

Your avatar is that of Rodrigo Duterte, and across 6 levels, your objective is to stamp out crime by tapping on enemies and obstacles on the screen as they move toward you.

There are two or three lanes of adversaries that you need to tap on depending on the level. By adjusting how you tap, you’re able to clear the level and progress through the game further. Are you tapping lanes to shoot drug peddlers or timing your taps to avoid getting hit by sacks of rice being thrown at you by a rice-smuggling final boss? Your tapping strategy will need to change with each new challenge.

Presentation

Rody Fight’s sprite art is well-made, with your Rodrigo Duterte avatar sporting sunglasses and an urge to clean up the streets. The grainy video feel of the game also makes it seem as if everything is being captured by security cameras, which adds a stylistic touch.

Instead of Duterte’s trademark plaid shirts, the avatar is wearing a shirt and suit jacket, as if to emphasize his focus on the business at hand. The animation is also spot on, though timing your taps can sometimes be a bit troublesome.

As a gamer, what appeals to me most is the game’s presentation and style. On both the iOS and Android versions of the game page, the presentation of information is on point.

As a seasoned mobile developer, Keybol Games fashioned a game page that was devoid of bad grammar. The developer even commented on reviews, offering tips to people who are having trouble playing the game.

For those looking for easter eggs and secrets, Rody Fight’s patch notes on the app pages even feature a cheat code to unlock all the game levels, allowing players to pick a level and play (or practice) to their heart’s content.

The contextual narrative

Of course, there’s also one caveat, and that is the narrative it presents. Originally released during the campaign season, Rody Fight was made by a Duterte supporter.

The game appeals to the contextual narrative of Duterte’s nicknames – “The Punisher” and “Duterte Harry” – in that it glorifies the aspects of his incoming presidency very succinctly as a form of hero worship.

That a man can single-handedly stamp out crime is a narrative we’ve all grown accustomed to, because it’s the lore often played in games of this sort – the narrative of the savior or hero who will face obstacles to defeat his enemies and accomplish his goals. In reality, the truth of politics isn’t as simple.

The game, however, sidesteps this. It mixes the hero worship of Duterte with reality with every attempt to start the game, as lines from Duterte’s speeches – referencing how criminality must be stopped – preface every level.

As a game without context, it makes for a powerful opening. As a means to further bring about the idolization of Rodrigo Duterte, the game becomes a chilling tool to that end.

Conclusion

Rody Fight is, for those unused to tap-happy mobile action games, going to be a bit difficult to get used to at first. The game rewards persistence or, perhaps, doggedly persistent political will.

Mechanically, it isn’t a bad game, but it also isn’t the most sophisticated game out there. If you’re a fan of Duterte’s approach, this may be the game that best panders to your need for an action hero.

For those who study and play games that double as artistic statements, whether they be made as acts of propaganda or political satire, this game does what it intends to very well. Whether that’s a good thing or not will likely depend on your personal political leanings, however. – Rappler.com