Protolife

About

"Protolife is a single-player Real Time Strategy game with a good plot and marvelous visuals. Players become a part of a cellular machinery, building defenses and upgrading towers using proteins and enzymes to protect the cell from infection. The game features keyboard controls, a manual for building and upgrading, and a team of developers including Alexey Grishin for code, music, and pirogi; Ruslan Kibets for code and PR; and Anatoly Sazanov for art and idea."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

86%

Audience ScoreBased on 579 reviews

gameplay60 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

Protolife offers a unique and engaging twist on the tower defense genre, requiring players to build towers using block patterns, which adds a layer of strategy and creativity.
The game features a challenging difficulty curve that keeps players engaged, with a variety of levels and enemies that provide a satisfying sense of progression.
The pixel art style and atmospheric music contribute to an enjoyable gaming experience, making it a charming and addictive title for fans of strategy games.

The controls are cumbersome and lack mouse support, which can make gameplay frustrating and hinder the overall experience.
The campaign is relatively short, and some players feel that the game lacks replayability and additional content after completing it.
Certain levels can be excessively difficult, leading to frustration for players who may struggle to adapt to the fast-paced gameplay.

gameplay
168 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
61%
4%
The gameplay of this tower defense game is characterized by its unique construction mechanics and a blend of RTS elements, offering a mix of simplicity and depth that keeps players engaged. While the core mechanics are innovative and addictive, some players find the complexity of the building system overwhelming, suggesting that a more streamlined approach could enhance accessibility. Overall, the game provides a refreshing experience with varied levels and replayability, though it may benefit from improved control options and clearer tutorials.
- “The core mechanic is brilliant and addictive, the levels are varied and cleverly designed, and the difficulty curve is just right.”
- “Every level introduces a new block combination, enemy, or gameplay concept, and keeps things fresh from level to level.”
- “The modular construction of turrets is a really fun innovation, and while the controls are of a simple WASD + spacebar implementation, these suit the gameplay just fine.”
- “Awful gameplay.”
- “Having to place the blocks in various combinations is just such a bad idea for gameplay.”
- “The only nitpick I have is that the clunky keyboard controls - most of the time they don't get in your way but for the more intense battles you end up really wanting for a stop-time turn-by-turn tactical overlay or any other mechanic to help implement your strategy.”
story
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
82%
4%
The game's story is generally perceived as underdeveloped and lacking engagement, with many players noting that it feels incomplete or barebones. While the campaign introduces various gameplay mechanics and ramps up in difficulty, it offers little narrative depth, leaving players wanting more lore and context throughout the missions. Overall, the story does not significantly enhance the experience, and many players feel it detracts from the otherwise enjoyable gameplay.
- “Some text narratives at the start or a short cut-scene explaining the lore over a few missions would have really been more immersive.”
- “The story elements at the end made me want more.”
- “The story really has untapped potential.”
- “Due to this, the story is slightly dry, as you don't really unfold the lore until the end.”
- “The only negative point I found is that the story is quite short.”
music
64 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
31%
53%
16%
The music in the game is generally praised for its catchiness and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many noting its effective integration into gameplay phases. While some tracks are considered grating or repetitive, the overall sound design is appreciated for its fitting and immersive qualities. However, there are complaints about the limited number of tracks available, leading to a desire for a more extensive soundtrack.
- “And then there's the catchy music and excellent subtle world-building delivered via flavor text between levels.”
- “The music and gory 8-bit art create a better atmosphere of gloom and discomfort than most AAA titles.”
- “The music alone should get it some positive credit with its sort of mix of peaceful technological management sound to its mechanical grinding upbeat terror it instills during the heavy wave attacks.”
- “A couple of the music tracks are a little grating, but the majority is fitting and pretty good.”
- “The music is pretty bad.”
- “The only downside is that the game lacks music tracks.”
graphics
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
50%
7%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the retro pixel art style and its contribution to the overall atmosphere, while others criticize the low-resolution visuals and desire for higher-quality graphics. Despite the varying opinions, many agree that the graphics, along with the music and level design, effectively enhance the gameplay experience, even if improvements could be made. Overall, the game's aesthetic is seen as fitting for its genre, though not universally praised.
- “Level design, tower pattern design, music, the visuals - they're all top-notch and really bring much needed dynamism and difficulty to the genre.”
- “I love the pixel art aesthetic as well.”
- “The graphics and music make for great atmosphere.”
- “Personally, I hate the graphics in this game. The game is very light on graphics, so why could they not have made nice high-resolution graphics?”
- “Sure, the graphics could use improvement, but the tower/base defense play is solid.”
- “I wish the developer would make a 2.0 version with some graphic updates.”
replayability
34 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
47%
24%
Replayability in this game is a mixed bag; while some players praise its high replay value due to challenging missions, custom level support, and various gameplay modes, others criticize it for a short campaign and lack of meaningful replay options. The presence of features like research mode and procedural level creation offers potential for extended play, but many feel that the game ultimately falls short in providing substantial replayability. Overall, opinions vary significantly, with some finding it highly replayable and others deeming it lacking.
- “A highly challenging modular tower defense game with excellent replayability and exceedingly difficult missions which would be off-putting to some.”
- “Excellent replay value with the research mode that enables you to research and craft your own turrets.”
- “A campaign that will take a good player 6-8 hours to complete and an intriguing set of new features under development looking to increase replayability makes Protolife well worth the price.”
- “The game is short and lacks replayability that I thought the experiment mode would bring; this lets you procedurally create levels based on how hard and long you want it.”
- “Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to play anymore because there's not much in the way of replayability.”
- “Sadly, neither are present at launch, so be aware that you're only buying a (rather enjoyable) single campaign with little to no replayability.”
atmosphere
14 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
71%
14%
14%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised, with reviewers highlighting the effective combination of gameplay, graphics, and sound design that creates a compelling sense of gloom and discomfort. The low-fi graphics and grotesque sound effects enhance the overall experience, making it more immersive than many AAA titles. Overall, the music and visuals work together to establish a convincing and enjoyable atmosphere.
- “Music and visuals create great atmosphere.”
- “The music and gory 8-bit art creates a better atmosphere of gloom and discomfort than most AAA titles.”
- “The premise and setting do well to build atmosphere, complemented by the low-fi graphics and sound effects, which are wonderfully grotesque.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be a complex balancing act, requiring strategic resource management and spatial planning while transporting crystals one by one. The challenge lies in deciding whether to build efficiently or quickly, often leading to tough choices that can compromise defenses and overall progress. The game's music enhances the experience, blending peaceful management sounds with an intense atmosphere during enemy waves.
- “The challenge is to manage how to fit them into tight spaces, well together, against the right enemies while also managing the resources and time, as crystals have to be carried one by one. If you need 4 for the biggest tower (which might not be as useful as some other turrets), you either tediously carry them from your core where you already made some, create them on site (but what about the space?), or do you take it from another turret because it is not useful right now, or maybe out of desperation?”
- “Do you take the hit on your defenses and push out on one side, taking more room and partially securing one side, but practically compromising the entire other one? You might kick yourself as you realize you do not have the resources to clear the now corrupted blocks or stay in place, rebuilding what has been lost at the cost of having to endure longer and the enemy getting stronger over time, possibly not being able to hold that one small spot because you cannot build enough to defend there.”
- “The music alone should get it some positive credit with its mix of peaceful technological management sound to its mechanical grinding upbeat terror it instills during the heavy wave attacks.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The stability of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users reporting significant bugs, such as issues with full-screen mode and unintended enemy spawns. However, there are also comments praising the game as being bug-free and highlighting its fantastic gameplay. Overall, stability appears to be a concern for some players while others have had a smooth experience.
- “The game is bug-free, and the gameplay is fantastic.”
- “Very buggy, cannot view in full screen.”
- “@maker: the karst layer is a little buggy; if you kill all of one of the branches before the time's up, it still spawns aliens even when there are no spawning pools.”
- “Very buggy, cannot view in full screen.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a deep emotional connection to the game, describing it as a rewarding journey that challenges their skills and evokes feelings of both accomplishment and frustration. The experience is enhanced by the game's difficulty, which can lead to moments of self-doubt, yet ultimately fosters a sense of gratitude towards the developers for creating such an engaging experience.
- “In case the developer reads this, because I'm guessing development stopped... thank you for the game, it was a great journey that also made me feel stupid because even on fourth difficulty I am starting to fail the procedural levels, but that is actually mostly on those wave attack ones, haha.”
optimization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The optimization of the game is perceived as lacking, with many users noting that it feels like an early access title due to ongoing issues with performance and content balance. Frequent updates aimed at fixing these optimization problems suggest that the game is still in a developmental phase.
- “It feels a bit like early access, with a lack of content and the constant need for fixing optimization and content balance.”