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CastleStorm

While this castle may still have some foundation issues, it holds a lot of treasure if you’re willing to devote some time and effort. The campaign and multiplayer alone make CastleStorm: Definitive Edition a worthwhile experience, with enough customisation to add depth without being too complicated. It’s a unique title, with enough small improvements that players who passed on the original version may want to consider taking another look – but without cross buy, it may be a difficult game to sell to anyone other than the most devoted of tower defense fans.
CastleStorm Game Cover
83%Game Brain Score
story, gameplay
grinding, optimization
87% User Score Based on 1,360 reviews
Critic Score 74%Based on 8 reviews

Platforms

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CastleStorm Game Cover

About

CastleStorm is a single player and multiplayer tactical shooter game. It was developed by Zen Studios and was released on July 29, 2013. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

CastleStorm is a physics-based tower destruction game that combines real-time strategy and brawler elements. Control the battle in real-time, managing medieval artillery, ground attacks, and casting powerful spells. Enjoy the story-driven solo campaign, custom castle editor, online multiplayer, co-op modes, and more. With stunning graphics, good music, and an interesting plot, this game offers sensational gameplay, high replayability, and is hilariously fun.

Genres & Tags
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CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
CastleStorm screenshot
+27
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87%
Audience ScoreBased on 1,360 reviews
story102 positive mentions
grinding28 negative mentions
  • Fun and addictive gameplay that combines elements of tower defense, artillery, and RPG mechanics.
  • Charming graphics and humorous storytelling that keeps players engaged.
  • Variety of game modes, including single-player campaigns, survival, and multiplayer options.
  • Repetitive gameplay that can become monotonous after extended play sessions.
  • Multiplayer mode is underpopulated, making it difficult to find matches.
  • Some mechanics, like friendly fire and clunky controls, can lead to frustrating experiences.
  • story
    437 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is generally described as lighthearted and simplistic, featuring a mix of humor and standard hero tropes, with a campaign that spans multiple missions and factions. While some players found the narrative engaging and entertaining, others noted its predictability and lack of depth, often prioritizing gameplay over storytelling. Overall, the story serves as a fun backdrop to the gameplay, with charming characters and humorous cutscenes, but it may not be the main draw for all players.

    • “The story is fun, the gameplay is entertaining and creative, and last but not least you can build your own castle to defend.”
    • “With obvious plot twists and simple but amusing dialogue, Castlestorm really offers a beautifully playful story.”
    • “The campaign tells an enjoyable tale where each mission allows you to play a level a couple of different ways.”
    • “The story is a total afterthought; you are not playing this for any story.”
    • “The storyline is forgettable, and nothing is really that fun.”
    • “This game is pretty fun for the first half of the story mode, but then very boring in the second half.”
  • gameplay
    245 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of Castlestorm is generally praised for its fun and engaging mechanics, blending elements of tower defense, strategy, and action in a colorful and humorous setting. While many players appreciate the variety of gameplay options and the depth of customization available, some criticize the balance of combat and the repetitiveness of certain mechanics. Overall, the game offers a solid experience with a good learning curve, though it may not appeal to everyone due to its casual design and some unoriginal aspects.

    • “The presentation is great, with well-considered art direction and sound design, the campaign is meaty and varied enough to keep things fairly fresh throughout, and the gameplay itself stays fun even after a dozen hours of play.”
    • “Castlestorm has a nice learning curve, very diverse gameplay, and a funny campaign.”
    • “The gameplay is unique and there is so much room for experimenting with your castles and loadouts.”
    • “The combat is unbalanced, because some troops are so powerful by nature that they make the gameplay easy by simply being available to use.”
    • “Horrible fight mechanics, bad combo timing abilities, horrible visibility with stacked troops becoming a pixel mess that you can't begin to counter attack.”
    • “The gameplay itself is very simple; sadly, I must admit it just feels like an upgrade to 'Castle Defender' (the old flash game) since the core of the game has the same setup.”
  • graphics
    204 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game are generally well-received, characterized by a colorful, cartoonish art style reminiscent of classic titles like Warcraft III. While some players appreciate the charming and polished visuals, others note that the graphics may feel outdated or simplistic compared to modern standards. Overall, the visuals effectively complement the gameplay, enhancing the fun and humorous atmosphere of the game.

    • “The map designs are marvellous, the graphic style is consistent and enjoyable.”
    • “Great graphics, great humor, sound and voice, and most importantly great gameplay, a tad repetitive but nevertheless enjoyable to play.”
    • “Beautiful graphics, smooth performance, and awesome soundtrack.”
    • “The graphics may not appeal to some people due to their outdated nature.”
    • “The graphics are poor and cartoonish.”
    • “The visuals are okay and there are lots of things to do, but you just battle another castle and other enemies through the use of a turret and your seemingly small army.”
  • humor
    179 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is widely praised, with many reviewers highlighting its charming, silly, and often slapstick comedic elements that enhance the gameplay experience. Players appreciate the witty dialogue, funny animations, and engaging character interactions, which contribute to a light-hearted atmosphere reminiscent of classic titles like Angry Birds. Overall, the game successfully combines humor with strategic gameplay, making it enjoyable for both casual and veteran players alike.

    • “Sometimes it's funny to take an arrow to the back of the neck while you try desperately to take down a scarecrow with a sword.”
    • “A simple but fun and charming game featuring a great sense of humor and childlike innocence.”
    • “You'll also be laughing throughout at the zany writing and character design.”
  • music
    113 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game, primarily composed by Waterflame, has received high praise for its nostalgic and engaging quality, reminiscent of classic flash games like "Age of War" and "Castle Crashers." Reviewers noted that the soundtrack complements the game's medieval aesthetic and gameplay, although some mentioned a lack of variety and potential repetitiveness. Overall, the music is described as excellent, whimsical, and fitting, enhancing the overall experience despite a few criticisms.

    • “Also, the soundtrack is from what I consider to be the golden age of Waterflame - absolutely excellent.”
    • “The music was indeed a remastered version of the Age of War theme music.”
    • “The soundtrack of it is also a big bonus; relaxing, goofy, and cheerful.”
    • “Other than that, it's only 1 music.”
    • “5/10 awful dialogues, awful music, ok gameplay.”
    • “The music can become pretty annoying.”
  • replayability
    42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, the game exhibits a strong replayability factor, with many players highlighting its engaging storyline, unlockable content, and varied missions that encourage multiple playthroughs. While some reviews note that the experience can become stale over time or that it may lack depth in certain areas, the majority agree that it offers enough challenges and features to keep players returning. The inclusion of cooperative modes and potential DLC further enhances its replay value.

    • “Tons of replay value with all the stuff you can unlock and buy.”
    • “Great storyline, engaging characters, and high replayability.”
    • “Missions have secondary objectives, keeping the missions fun and varied, while also giving them replayability.”
    • “Plus a lot of replay value, but it does get stale after a while.”
    • “So no real replayability.”
    • “No replay value and can be completed in one sitting.”
  • grinding
    28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and repetitive, often requiring significant time investment to upgrade castles and weapons for mission progression. While some enjoy the challenge and the ability to grind for resources, many express frustration with the necessity of grinding to achieve perfect ratings or to advance, particularly noting that the castle editing system can be cumbersome. Overall, the grinding can detract from the enjoyment of the game, making it feel less polished and more like a chore.

    • “About a third of that playtime was pretty tedious.”
    • “To make it clear, only the mobile version is based on micro-transactions, but the PC version inherits the scarce balancing and the need to keep farming levels you have already beaten.”
    • “The whole game feels a bit tedious.”
  • atmosphere
    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its charming medieval setting, colorful graphics, and light-hearted humor, offering a refreshing contrast to darker fantasy themes. Players appreciate the engaging story and narration, as well as the replay value, making it a recommended choice for those who enjoy a defined and whimsical gaming experience. Overall, the atmosphere contributes significantly to the game's appeal, even on lower-end systems.

    • “I would definitely recommend it to people who enjoy a clearly defined game and a medieval atmosphere.”
    • “A cool game with a great atmosphere, filled with humor.”
    • “The graphics aren't next gen, but do provide for a colorful atmosphere.”
    • “+cartoon style, both in dialogue and in graphics, the game's fantasy setting creates an opportunity for great light-hearted dialogue, from breaking the fourth wall, tongue-in-cheek humor and references. The atmosphere of the game is a refreshing change from the dark fantasy style we have been getting for so long, with enemies ranging from pretentious archers and cowardly soldiers to boxing golems and idiotic trolls.”
    • “Another huge benefit to me is that it runs perfectly on my potato of a computer and has a very charming atmosphere, story, narration, etc.”
  • optimization
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is praised for its beautiful graphics and smooth performance, achieving high marks in technical performance with minimal bugs. Players report a seamless experience even at the hardest difficulty, indicating strong optimization overall.

    • “Played the entire game at the hardest difficulty, achieving full 5 performance stars on each mission.”
    • “Beautiful graphics, smooth performance, and an awesome soundtrack.”
    • “The game suffers from significant optimization issues, leading to frequent frame drops and stuttering during intense moments.”
    • “Despite the engaging gameplay, the lack of proper optimization makes it frustrating to play, especially on lower-end systems.”
    • “I encountered numerous bugs that hindered my experience, indicating that the game was not thoroughly optimized before release.”
  • monetization
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is free to download, with a one-time payment option to remove ads and receive a weekly supply of consumables. However, it features two additional types of in-game currencies, which some users find complicate the experience, particularly in relation to the castle-building mechanics that are perceived as unintuitive.

    • “It's free to download, there's a one-time payment to remove ads, get a weekly cache of consumables, but the game does have two other types of in-game currencies.”
    • “The game's only real weak point is that the castle builder is counterintuitive and not as user-friendly as the ads for the game make it out to be.”
  • stability
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Overall, players report a stable experience with no significant bugs or glitches affecting gameplay. However, some users feel that the castle editor feature is less valuable compared to professionally designed presets, which are perceived as more balanced and higher quality.

    • “The castle editor is pointless. Don't get me wrong, it's fun and all, putting your castle into action and creating an unstoppable design, but when the preset ones are already there, made by professionals, completely balanced, and tested for the most efficiency, there's no point in building your own where there's certain to be a gaping hole in your defense or not enough space for a troop's barracks. It's the same problem as LittleBigPlanet; the created levels are fun, but the ones made by professionals are almost certain to be better, less buggy, and of a higher quality.”
  • character development
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Character development is highlighted through charming and zany character designs that contribute to the game's humor and replayability. Players appreciate the engaging writing and unique character traits, making it particularly appealing to fans of the genre.

    • “The character designs are charming and it has a lot of replayability; I especially recommend it for anyone who's a fan of any of the genres stated before.”
    • “You'll also be laughing throughout at the zany writing and character design.”
  • emotional
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a straightforward narrative, yet it is complemented by poignant cut scenes that evoke strong emotional responses from players.

    • “The story is rather simple but has some very heartfelt cut scenes.”
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74%Critics’ scoreBased on 8 critic reviews
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8h Median play time
12h Average play time
5-20h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 12 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

CastleStorm is a tactical shooter game.

CastleStorm is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Steam Deck and others.

On average players spend around 12 hours playing CastleStorm.

CastleStorm was released on July 29, 2013.

CastleStorm was developed by Zen Studios.

CastleStorm has received mostly positive reviews from players and mostly positive reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

CastleStorm is a single player game with multiplayer and local co-op support.

Similar games include Orcs Must Die!, Dungeons 3, Orcs Must Die! 2, Kingdom Rush, Swords and Soldiers HD and others.