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Defenders of Ardania

Defenders of Ardania has a good premise - attacking and defending at the same time, and while it is an unique concept, the execution is a bit lacking.
Defenders of Ardania Game Cover
39%Game Brain Score
story, humor
gameplay, graphics
30% User Score Based on 87 reviews
Critic Score 57%Based on 4 reviews

Platforms

Playstation 3Xbox 360PCPhoneiPadXboxMobile PlatformiPhoneWindowsPlayStation
Defenders of Ardania Game Cover

About

Defenders of Ardania is a single player and multiplayer arcade real-time strategy game with fantasy and historical themes. It was developed by Most Wanted Entertainment and was released on March 14, 2012. It received neutral reviews from critics and negative reviews from players.

Defenders of Ardania (DoA) is a next-generation tower defense game set in the rich fantasy world of Majesty, but with a twist. Besides the addictive core mechanics of placing towers to stop advancing enemy units, DoA also allows players to take on the role of the attackers seeking to conquer the enemy base. DoA’s innovative new game concepts include light RTS elements, taking the popular genre to…

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30%
Audience ScoreBased on 87 reviews
story6 positive mentions
music2 negative mentions

  • Unique twist on tower defense genre combining defense and offense, requiring both building towers and sending units to attack enemy castles.
  • Fun and engaging for fans of the genre with an interesting setting and lore from the Ardania world.
  • Decent graphics and audio, with some players enjoying the story's humor and the game's strategic elements.
  • Poor and clumsy controls with awkward interface, originally designed for mobile and poorly ported to PC.
  • Campaign is short, repetitive, and often easy to win by spamming units, with many gameplay and balance issues including poor AI and lack of strategic depth.
  • Technical problems such as bad mouse control, lack of resolution options, crashing, unskippable long dialogue, and dead multiplayer servers.
  • story
    23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is quirky, humorous, and filled with nerdy references, providing some charm despite being clichéd and often unskippable, which disrupts pacing. While the narrative attempts a thematic medieval campaign, it suffers from amateur voice acting and limited depth, feeling more like an excuse for gameplay content than enriching world-building. Overall, the story is seen as mediocre or unremarkable by many players, though some appreciate its lighthearted tone.

    • “I like how I'm not just building defenses but also organizing attacks. I like the comprehensive upgrade and experience systems, and the story so far is interesting.”
    • “Story is quirky and full of nerdy jokes, puns, and references, so at least it does not take itself too seriously.”
    • “The only good thing besides the last map is the story or lore. When I say good, I mean I like the silly Monty Python style it has to it, but some of the jokes are dull and others are just bad.”
    • “I liked the attempt at a thematic medieval fully voiced campaign but the voice acting is amateurish, the story is almost a cliché of itself, and any exposition or world building really comes across as what it really is: an excuse to throw more of the same at you.”
    • “Boring, I'm sure somebody likes the story; at least it has an interesting premise, but the controls and mechanics get in the way a lot and it's filled with bad fake accents.”
    • “The main campaign is quite short and the storyline is not very exciting.”
  • gameplay
    14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay received mixed feedback, with some praising its strategic depth and fun mechanics, especially in multiplayer, while others criticized it for sluggish controls, repetitive or stale combat, and poor single-player AI performance. Technical issues and unclear mechanics also detracted from the experience for some players. Overall, it can be enjoyable but suffers from balance and engagement problems in solo play.

    • “The mechanics are really good for the genre, actually, and the game is surprisingly fun.”
    • “Once an enemy has their defenses up, it's easy to get bogged down in protracted combat with them, but this is also where the game particularly shines; there are many tools at your disposal for subverting your foe's defenses, and clever moments where you find a silly way to bypass an enemy can make you re-examine the mechanics in a new light.”
    • “Its replayability is high, graphics are good, sound effects are good, story is meh, but the gameplay is fun.”
    • “Very poorly done mechanics.”
    • “Unexplained, but crucial, game mechanics.”
    • “I am not far through this yet, but so far it has been nothing but disappointing, with boring non-interactive gameplay, sluggish lack of strategic decisions that matter, and even terrible voice acting.”
  • graphics
    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics are generally decent and visually appealing with a colorful art style, though some find them unpolished and derivative of other games like Majesty 2. While visuals are a highlight for many, they are often overshadowed by poor gameplay and other aspects. Overall, the graphics contribute positively but don't fully compensate for the game's flaws.

    • “Graphics are quite decent and have no problem going all the way up to 1680x1050 on my dual monitor setup.”
    • “Its replayability is high, graphics are good, sound effects are good, story is meh, but the gameplay is fun.”
    • “The visuals and audio are good. It has an interesting new concept of attacking and defending simultaneously.”
    • “Art is alright, but graphics, music, gameplay... everything is simply terrible.”
    • “I said tried because you first have to disable your integrated graphics card, then after the worst tutorial in a game ever the towers just start building themselves and you have no control over anything, just can't describe how bad this game is.”
    • “But sadly the graphics aren’t that polished and the game seems to use the same engine as Majesty 2.”
  • music
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music receives mixed feedback, with some noting it reuses themes from related strategy games, featuring sweeping orchestral pieces, but overall it is considered unimpressive and contributes to a negative experience.

    • “Art is alright, but graphics, music, gameplay... everything is simply terrible.”
    • “In addition to borrowing graphics, defenders’ music also uses the same themes as that of its strategy-game counterpart, which was filled with sweeping orchestral pieces.”
  • grinding
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The grinding aspect in the game is inconsistent, as building up the economy can feel slow and tedious, yet spamming units allows for quick and easy victories. Additionally, repetitive voice acting adds to the overall sense of monotony during gameplay.

    • “Generating the economy to take down foes' castles is usually way too hard, slow, and grindy, or you can just spam units and immediately steamroll everyone.”
  • humor
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is enjoyable and adds to the story, though it could be stronger. Overall, it provides a decent amount of comedic entertainment for its price.

  • monetization
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's monetization is heavily focused on capitalizing on the tower defense trend, coming across as a casual cash grab rather than offering substantial value.

  • replayability
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers high replayability, largely due to its fun gameplay, despite a mediocre story.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Defenders of Ardania is a arcade real-time strategy game with fantasy and historical themes.

Defenders of Ardania is available on PC, Phone, iPad, iPhone and others.

Defenders of Ardania was released on March 14, 2012.

Defenders of Ardania was developed by Most Wanted Entertainment.

Defenders of Ardania has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked this game for its story but disliked it for its gameplay.

Defenders of Ardania is a single player game with multiplayer support.

Similar games include Tower Wars, 8-Bit Hordes, Ancient Planet, Fluffy Horde, Swords and Soldiers HD and others.