Artificial Defense
- May 31, 2016
- Thiemo Bolder, ONEMANGAMES
- 13h median play time
Get on Steam"Artificial Defense" is a unique game that combines elements of RTS, Tower Defense, and Orbital Shooter genres. Your mission is to defend your Operation System from intruding creeps using an arsenal of 21 offense weapons and 21 defense towers. As you progress, you can earn RAM to upgrade your arsenal and hardware levels, starting from an analog punch-tape system and evolving to a quantum AI. The game features 49 challenges across 7 servers and an original soundtrack to complement your gameplay.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game combines multiple genres (Tower Defense, Orbital Shooter, and RTS) in a unique and engaging way, providing a fresh gameplay experience.
- Visually appealing with great graphics and a solid soundtrack, enhancing the overall gaming experience.
- The developer is highly responsive to community feedback and actively works on improving the game, showcasing dedication and passion.
- The game is not a traditional Tower Defense game, which may disappoint players expecting a more conventional experience.
- Controls can be unintuitive and frustrating, making it difficult for players to fully enjoy the gameplay.
- The upgrade system can feel grindy and unbalanced, leading to a frustrating experience as players struggle to progress.
- gameplay13 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 31 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally praised for its smoothness, engaging mechanics, and fluidity, particularly in the top-down shooter aspect. However, some players find the introduction of mechanics abrupt and the initial learning curve steep, which can detract from the overall experience. While the game features enjoyable elements like sound design and a well-priced offering, certain gameplay aspects, such as tower placement and enemy interactions, can lead to frustration.
“The game has a great visual design, guns all have different sounds, the gameplay is a smooth, perfectly bug-free experience throughout my entire playtime, and I'll definitely keep playing it!”
“The top-down shooter is the most engaging part of the gameplay.”
“Gameplay feels fluid and relatively easy to learn.”
“It took what felt like 30-45 minutes to really adapt to the game and its interface and understanding all of the mechanics, which in reality are really simple, but they're explained so abruptly it's hard to take it all in.”
“Something like slowly introducing mechanics bit by bit in the first moments of a level would fit this much better, not literal YouTube videos comprised of (assumedly) the developer playing and commentating the intros.”
“The tower defense and RTS mechanics play more supporting roles, at least in the early stages of the game - maybe this changes later on.”
- story11 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The game's story is minimalistic, revolving around the simple premise of defending a computer from corruption, yet it provides a framework that enhances gameplay through varied missions and objectives. Players appreciate the challenge and replayability offered by different difficulty levels and mission types, despite some frustration with repetitive maps and the learning curve associated with upgrades. Overall, while the narrative is straightforward, it effectively supports the game's mechanics and keeps players engaged.
“The attempt at a story is worthy of huge props considering the game could have easily gone without any explanation at all - you're just there to kill stuff and that's it.”
“Still, finding those things out is a part of the fun of the game, and with the variety of missions, I eventually was forced to learn these new features, always keeping me on my toes.”
“The plot is simplicity in itself, simply defend a computer against corruption.”
“The attempt at a story is room for huge props considering the game could have easily gone without any explanation at all - you're just there to kill stuff and that's it.”
“There is the same map for several campaign missions.”
- graphics7 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
Overall, the graphics of the game receive mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the beautiful and stylish visuals, others criticize them as poor and minimalistic. The aesthetic and music are often highlighted as standout features that enhance the gaming experience, even for those who find the graphics lacking.
“A fun game with stylish graphics and great music!”
“The game, the graphics, and so on are top notch - love it.”
“If you are looking for an action game with very poor graphics and poor controls with only a few tower defense elements, then this may be the game for you.”
“The music and the aesthetic are about the only charismatic things in this game, which I guess in my case were enough to keep me invested until I figured the rest of the project out.”
“This game has really beautiful and decent (minimalist kind of...) graphics.”
- music7 mentions
- 57 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its quality and contribution to the overall experience, with many players highlighting it as a standout feature alongside the graphics. Reviewers appreciate the soundtrack's ability to enhance gameplay and maintain engagement, suggesting that it could even benefit from a dedicated music game mode. Overall, the music is considered a significant strength of the game, adding to its charm and appeal.
“This game has a great soundtrack, fun gameplay, and is well-priced. It's impressive that one person made this!”
“The music and the aesthetic are about the only charismatic things in this game, which were enough to keep me invested until I figured the rest of the project out.”
“A fun game with stylish graphics and great music!”
“The music and the aesthetic are about the only charismatic things in this game, which I guess in my case were enough to keep me invested until I figured the rest of the project out.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unenjoyable, particularly due to the need for precise kills with limited weaponry. While some are open to grinding when it's well-implemented, the current experience feels more like a chore than a rewarding challenge.
“Overall, the orbital shooting that made it unique is also the least fun and very tedious with how much you need to kill with the weapons given. I didn't care for it. It's odd to think having a lot of enemies would make it more fun, but not when you have to pinpoint kill every little creature.”
“Maybe when you upgrade everything, this game would be amazing. I just don't want to go through the grind and not enjoy it along the way. I'm okay with grinding when it's done right, like in Killing Floor or Payday.”
“Main reason for dislike: too tedious with killing enemies given the weapons at hand.”
- replayability1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game offers high replayability through its seven unique board levels, each with seven distinct missions and varying completion criteria, alongside three difficulty levels that enhance the challenge by increasing enemy numbers and speed.
“The game features 7 different board levels, each with 7 distinct missions that have various completion criteria, along with 3 difficulty levels that increase the number and speed of enemies, adding both challenge and replayability to the game.”
