Rollic Games is probably one of the better-known companies out there when it comes to developing super-simple, casual games for iOS devices — Picker 3D, Water Shooty and Wood Shop are just three of them, and we have covered all three in the past. Touchdrawn is one of the newer mobile titles in the company’s collection, and it just might be the game for you if you fancy the idea of scoring touchdown after touchdown without having to learn all the intricate mechanics of Madden NFL Mobile or other similar titles that demand a lot of free time and attention to detail.
As is the case with games in the endless casual genre, there really isn’t much to learning this game. Much like Touchdown Glory, which we recently covered, this title doesn’t have much of a learning curve. But there will be some levels in this game that could prove to be pretty challenging, and you’ll need to draw your routes perfectly — not just for the main player holding the ball, but the other players as well, which may include the equivalents of a real-life quarterback and/or offensive linemen/fullbacks. So with that said, here’s our Touchdrawn beginner’s guide, which includes a few helpful tips, cheats and tricks that you can use if you want to go through all the levels with as little difficulty as possible.
1. Know The Basics Of Touchdrawn
As you’ll see in the tutorial part of the game, Touchdrawn is pretty straightforward — all you need to do is to draw the right path from your side of the field to the end zone, then tap on the Run ready when you’re ready to execute the run. The first few levels are simple enough and don’t come with any unexpected twists or new features, save for the defenders that may appear on your screen — it is your job to evade these defenders and avoid running into them while you’ve got the ball in your hand.
However, you won’t be all alone all the time, as some levels may also feature one, two, or three teammates whom you can control as well, drawing the best path that would allow them to get the defenders out of the way, thereby serving as your offensive linemen (and/or fullback) equivalent as you rush to the end zone. The same basic steps would apply when drawing their paths — just swipe on your screen to create the path, but this time, draw it in such a way that would allow them to come in contact with the defenders.
Additionally, keep your eye out for the barriers that may prevent you from drawing a straight line toward the end zone, as crashing into them, much like crashing into a defender, will also cause you to fail the level!
After you make it to the end zone and score the touchdown, a brief scene will play, showing your character do a little touchdown dance and bust a few moves to celebrate. You will also win some coins for completing the level, with the option to watch a video and triple your earnings available. We’ll be filling you in shortly on what you can buy with those coins and what that means for your gameplay, but this is the game’s only currency, with no gems or diamonds or any other form of premium currency. You could also win a prize bag, which would require watching a video, and these would normally come with a substantially large number of coins, even compared to the coins you can earn by collecting your prize and watching a video afterward.
Last, but not least, this appears to be an endless game with an unlimited number of levels. Things may seem to get tougher as you go on, but believe us when we say that many levels will be repeated, with the exact same placement of offensive and defensive players.
2. Avoid Drawing Within The Red Circles Around the Defenders
Although we can argue that this should also be included among the basics of Touchdrawn, we decided to discuss this as a separate tip, because of how it’s so fundamental across any level that features defenders in them.
As you’ll notice when you look at the defenders, which are the players wearing red jerseys with the number 99 on the back, each of these players has a red circle around them. This means that whenever your path crosses those circles, the defender will notice you and immediately start chasing after you! The closer you are to the defender, the greater the chances they’re going to tackle you, which means it is imperative that you avoid going inside the circle — it is fine, though, to cross the red outlines, as you still won’t be seen.
Once you’ve played through a few “seasons,” i.e. series of 20 levels, the game will start throwing a bit of a curveball, as the defenders and the circles will start moving — sometimes, you’ll see multiple defenders moving left and right, almost like you were trying to complete a challenge on Madden NFL Mobile, only more casual. This will require you to make sure your timing is perfect when you hit the Run button — stick with the route, but don’t carry it out if you’re expecting to be crushed by the defender(s) when you approach them.
As a bonus tip, the Hint button on the right side of the screen triggers an advertisement video — after this 30-second clip, the game will show you the most ideal path each player on offense should take — that doesn’t just include the player who will be carrying or picking up (then carrying) the ball, but also the blockers that may be available to take out the defenders.
3. Know How To Use The Power-Ups
Slowly but surely, Touchdrawn will introduce you to the different power-ups that can be found in the game. Owing to its casual nature, these power-ups aren’t that plentiful in terms of variety, but these include a trampoline that allows you to jump over barriers, a green circle with the letter P in white that allows you to pass the ball, and a gold-colored power-up with a lightning bolt that allows you to knock out one obstacle (players and barriers alike) before you yourself get knocked out. Now that you know what they are, it’s also important that you know how each of these are used in the game.
The trampoline, as we explained above, allows the player with the ball to leap over a barrier, and you can simply draw over this power-up and the barrier, then keep drawing until the end zone to make a successful run. Bear in mind, though, that you would only be able to jump so far, which could put an end to your run prematurely if you’re trying to cross a barrier that’s several spaces away! Always draw across the barrier/obstacle that’s closest to the trampoline and plan your route around that.
When using the passing circle, do not draw past that circle, or you’re going to get a failed run! This is a common rookie mistake when playing Touchdrawn, so be sure you’re keeping this in mind in order for the pass to make it to the next offensive player — just stop at the circle and don’t go any further. You can even stay in the circle and not draw at all if the first offensive player starts out while standing on the circle itself!
We can’t stress enough that the lightning bolt power-up can only be used once per level — it provides invincibility that allows you to barrel through and knock out a defender instantly, but once that defender’s out, you’re right back to normal. This could be taken advantage of by blockers as well, but regardless which player runs through the lightning bolt, you should choose to run over defenders that are specifically blocking the path of the player with the ball. If the player with the ball can evade that defender simply by running across the outline of the circle, then you can leave the defender alone. (Take note that we are mostly talking about situations/levels where there are five defenders, which are pretty common once you’re close to the 20th and final level of the season.)
4. How To Play The Bonus Stages
Although there is only one type of level specifically designated as a “bonus stage” in Touchdrawn, there are actually multiple types of bonus stages, where there are some nice prizes to be had and little effort involved in earning them. Let us first take a look at the actual bonus stage, which is essentially a field goal-kicking minigame.
Each time you complete a season, you will be asked to kick a field goal through the posts by tapping on the Kick button when the needle on the meter is right in the middle, on the dark green section. There doesn’t appear to be a time limit for attempting your kick, so you can wait till the timing is perfect before hitting on the button and sending the ball into the air and through the post.
But either way, you’ve got a 90 percent chance (just as long as the needle doesn’t stop on one of the red sections on the extreme left or right) of winning some sort of prize through this Bonus Round — most of the time, you’ll be getting coins, which you can triple by watching a video, and if the needle stops on dark green, or even light green, you will win the prize bag, which includes even more coins and could even give you a chance to unlock new players, pitches, footballs, and fields that you would normally purchase at the store with your coins.
As for the pseudo-bonus rounds, if we can call it that, these are usually found among the first few levels of a season, and these would simply require you to collect all the coins on the field by running through them before you run to the end zone. These levels do not have any defenders nor do they have any barriers, so it’s essentially an easy opportunity to load up on those coins without any stakes or without any challenges whatsoever!
5. Collect Three Keys To Enter The Chest Room
In addition to the power-ups and coins we mentioned, keys are also among the items you need to collect in certain levels of the game. You will notice on the upper left corner of the screen, there is a counter that will light up each time you collect a key. For each three keys you collect, you will be taken to the Chest Room, which is where you will be presented with nine chests and asked to open three of them, with a 1/9 chance of getting the top prize — this would either be a new player icon, a new pitch, a new football, or a new stadium setup, as mentioned earlier.
You can watch an ad video in order to open the next six, so with a little patience, visiting the Chest Room whenever possible should be a good way for you to unlock everything that can be unlocked without having to pay a single coin.
Of course, we should also remind you that none of the new players or other collectibles in the game have any bearing on gameplay. None come with special stats, powers, or buffs that will make your job of scoring touchdowns substantially easier — they just change things up aesthetically and prevent things from getting too monotonous, even if their pricing in the in-game store may vary.
What happens next if you’ve collected everything and you get the three keys needed to head back to the Chest Room? It’s simple — the top prize will be a larger number of coins than what is available in the other eight chests, though we’re also figuring that the people behind Touchdrawn may add more unlock able content over time as they keep updating the game.
And with that we end our beginner’s guide for Touchdrawn. If you happen to know additional tips or tricks for the game, feel free to drop us a line in the comment area below!