# Akindo — Merchant's Road

> Pixel-art RPG: explore, battle, develop island economy, build roads, boost companions. (iPhone/iPad app by zoo.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/akindo/id1598265568 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [zoo](https://appshunter.io/developer/332177812)
- Category: Games, Entertainment, Role Playing, Simulation
- Price: Free with in-app purchases
- Rating: 4.60/5 from 197 App Store ratings · 44 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 12+
- Requires: iOS 13.0 · 135 MB
- Languages: American English, Japanese
- Released: 2021-12-15
- Data updated: 2026-09-10
- Monetization: free with in-app purchases
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/akindo/id1598265568/reviews.md

## What is Akindo?

This is a real-time battle RPG focused around themes of "reconstruction and development" in a comical and fun pixel-art world. Explore a deteriorating island, gather materials, invest in industrial facilities, and build roads to revitalize the economy.

◆ Real-time battle that you can enjoy with easy controls!
Just trace the map with your finger and specify the route you want to explore, and the game will move and fight automatically.
If you are at a disadvantage in battle, activate the skills of your escort characters.
You can also damage enemies with the coin gun, which can only be used by the main character, the merchant.

◆Gather materials through exploration to develop the island!
You can get materials and gold by exploring each area and defeating enemies. Invest the gold you get in industrial facilities to develop the island's economy or craft materials to create equipment for your companions.

◆Invest in industrial facilities and build roads to encourage distribution! 
By building industrial facilities and roads with the materials and gold you acquire, the island's economy will be revitalized and the island's population will increase. By liberating the island within the amount of days set by the merchant guild, you will be able to explore new islands.

◆ Boost your escorts!
During battle, the player themselves has no means of attack. Your companions will automatically fight for you. There are various types of guards, so you can organize your party according to the route you choose to explore. You can even enhance the rarity of your guards by leveling them up or synthesizing them.

## Key features

- Real-time auto-battles with finger tracing controls
- Explore and gather materials/gold
- Invest in industrial facilities
- Craft equipment for companions
- Build roads to revitalize economy
- Boost and enhance escort characters

## Pricing and in-app purchases

Base price: Free.

**One-time purchases**

| Purchase | Price | Type |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ad Hiding Pack | $7.99 | one-time |


## What do users think of Akindo?

Overall sentiment: mixed

**Pros**

- 👍 Interesting gameplay loop
- 💡 High potential for the format
- 👍 Base building and RPG aspects
- 👍 Mini battle game enjoyment
- 👍 Replayability
- 👍 Fun pick-up-and-play style
- 👍 Not too harsh grinding
- 👍 Awesome game
- 👍 Cool game
- 👍 Great game overall
- 👍 Fun with little to no ads
- 👍 No massive paywalls
- 👍 Interesting gameplay
- 👍 Fun map exploration
- 👍 Good chill music
- 👍 Easy to play
- 👍 Fun strategy
- 👍 Old school nostalgia

**Cons**

- 💥 Too many ads
- 💥 Forced ads are stressful
- 💥 Unskippable ads
- 💥 Game won't start offline
- 🐛 Freezing issues
- 🐛 Game freezes after watching ads
- 🐛 Ads skip exploration progress
- 🐛 Ads appear without pressing button
- 🐛 Slow tempo
- 🐛 Poor controls
- 🐛 Difficult to read on iPhone
- 🐛 Frequent 5-second ads
- 🐛 Ads repeat every 4-5 minutes
- 🐛 Constant ads kill the game
- 🐛 Ads prevent immersion
- 🐛 High battery consumption
- 🐛 Expensive ad removal
- 🐛 Lack of offline play
- 🐛 Game doesn't work (white screen)
- 🐛 Laggy on biggest island
- 🐛 Low benefit from paid ad removal
- 🐛 Expensive ad removal price

**Commonly reported bugs**

- Game freezes after 1-2 hours of play
- Game freezes after watching reward ads
- Exploration progress lost after freezing
- Ads appear without user interaction
- Game won't start offline
- Freezing during gameplay
- Game won't start (white screen with version)
- Display bug when gacha ticket is used immediately
- Game freezes when entering combat at date change
- Character becomes immobile during boss battles
- App crashes during gameplay
- Laggy on the biggest island

**Most requested features**

- Update content (new maps, weapons, characters, dungeons)
- Increase boss material drop rate
- Add automation for bigger maps
- Add buy full game option
- Add extra armor slots (Head, Torso, Neck, Legs, Boots, Artifact)
- Increase armor and weapon drop rates
- Add special boss/mob dropped weapons and armor
- Implement player classes with unique skills
- Add artifacts that can be upgraded
- Implement weapon and armor rarities
- Implement weapon and armor enhancing and enchanting
- Add abandoned structures that can be taken over
- Add iCloud save functionality
- Make 100 gems always get a 3-star item
- Add more updates and content
- Add more unique actions to partake in
- Make paid ad removal offer more benefits (e.g., constant battle speed-up, double drops)
- Implement character unlock system with stone purchases instead of ads
- Add a creator support option for a small fee
- Add machine change transfer function
- Allow collecting resources from offline hours and other islands
- Improve UI for resource collection summary
- Add more islands
- Add more variety to islands

## Recent user reviews (10 of 44)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/akindo/id1598265568/reviews.md

### 3/5 — レビュー後

*2026-06-26*

唐突に多くなる広告、強制広告が一番ストレス。せっかくゲームはおもろいのに

### 4/5 — アプデもうこないの

*2025-08-02*

全島やっちゃったからもうやることがない

### 1/5 — Too many ads

*2025-03-29, version 1.0.11*

Good game but so many ads that it’s not worth playing

### 5/5 — High potential

*2025-03-01, version 1.0.11*

Very good game with a very interesting gameplay loop. I enjoy the base building and rpg aspects of this game. It’s just simply perfect. So many things can be done with this format it’s insane. Congratulations you made a cool game.

### 5/5 — I ACTUALLY LOVE THIS!!

*2025-01-27, version 1.0.11*

I’m going to be completely honest, since I always hit the “RATE LATER” option. However this time, I am actually loving this mini battle game. I honestly wish they’d create a buy full game option because I would want to purchase it.

### 3/5 — Good game, bad ads

*2024-12-27, version 1.0.11*

Very good gameplay and gacha with lots of replayability, the islands become very similar at the end and could use a greater variety of content but still enjoyed my time with it. 

About 8 hours after install I started receiving unskipable ads after every exploration. This was only annoying as it’s faster to simply close and reopen the app rather than sit through the 30 second ads. 

Worse is that the game simply won’t start offline. I tried with data turned off as well as with airplane mode off, neither would have the game start.

### 4/5 — オリハルコン

*2024-12-03*

オリハルコンはどこで手に入るです？

### 5/5 — Simplicity

*2024-07-14, version 1.0.11*

Fun pick up game style(something you can play for 30min/1hr)and the grinding is there but  it’s not too harsh. I play f2p and really enjoy this game. Kudos developers

### 5/5 — Awesome game

*2024-06-25, version 1.0.11*

Pretty good game.. no complaints! The same class merge system makes it so much better than the usual same Hero merges you get in other games. The game could benefit from some automations, specially in bigger maps.. I shouldn’t need to manually clear a lvl 4 spot while my guards are all lvl 40.. there should just be a button that skips it. Loading times are really the culprit here, since loading in and out constantly is annoying. The game has so much potential and can have so much more.. like akindo abilities that affect facilities for example, makes facility produce more for a certain time.. so much more can be made here.

### 5/5 — Awesome game

*2024-05-12, version 1.0.11*

Cool game :) , hope you do more upgrades , towns settings - weapons and what not … decent time killer … nice work :)

## Frequently asked questions about Akindo

### What kind of game is Akindo?

Akindo is a real-time battle RPG with a focus on "reconstruction and development." Players explore a deteriorating island, gather materials, invest in industrial facilities, and build roads to revitalize the economy and population in a comical pixel-art world.

### How do battles work in Akindo?

Battles are real-time and can be enjoyed with easy controls. Players trace the map to specify exploration routes, and the game handles movement and fighting automatically. Players can activate escort character skills or use the merchant's coin gun during combat.

### How can I develop the island?

You can develop the island by gathering materials and gold through exploration and defeating enemies. Invest this gold in industrial facilities to boost the economy or craft materials to create equipment for your companions. Building roads also helps revitalize the island's economy and increase its population.

### Is Akindo free to play?

Yes, the game is free to play. It includes in-app purchases and advertisements, which are common monetization models for free mobile games.

### What is the main goal of the game?

The main goal is to revitalize the island's economy and population by developing industrial facilities and building roads. Successfully liberating the island within a set number of days allows players to explore new islands.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.0.15 — 2025-10-22

* Updating libraries in use

### 1.0.11 — 2024-01-16

* Fixed a bug that prevented progress after viewing advertisements for earned bonus.

### 1.0.10 — 2024-01-10

* Update libraries in use

### 1.0.8 — 2023-01-31

* Bug fix: Incorrect display of gunner icons in equipment crafting has been corrected.
* Update libraries in use

### 1.0.7 — 2022-10-28

* Updated the version of the library used in the game.

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All apps by zoo: https://appshunter.io/developer/332177812

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-10.*