Road Defense: Outsiders
- May 28, 2023
- Minicactus Games
- 4h median play time
Get on Steam"Road Defense: Outsiders" is a tower defense game where players must protect their road from incoming enemies using a variety of turrets and abilities. The game features multiple levels with increasing difficulty, as well as a crafting system to upgrade your defenses. With multiple enemy types and strategies to employ, Road Defense: Outsiders offers a challenging and engaging experience for fans of the tower defense genre.
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Playstation 5
Windows
Xbox One
Xbox Series X|S
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- Road Defense: Outsiders offers a fun blend of roguelike and tower defense elements, providing an enjoyable gameplay experience.
- The game features a unique art style and a satisfying combat system, making it visually appealing and engaging.
- At its low price point, the game delivers good value for the amount of entertainment it provides, with potential for future updates.
- The game suffers from a lack of content, with only a few levels and limited weapon variety, leading to repetitive gameplay.
- Tower defense mechanics are underwhelming, as towers feel ineffective and do not significantly contribute to gameplay.
- Balancing issues and difficulty spikes can make progression frustrating, with some levels feeling artificially difficult.
- graphics13 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are characterized by a unique and aesthetically pleasing retro CRT art style, which many players appreciate. However, some critiques highlight that the graphics can be rudimentary, with a static world and enemies that lack distinctiveness during gameplay. Overall, while the art style is generally well-received, it may not fully compensate for the game's graphical limitations.
“I really like the art style.”
“Good graphics add a lot to my enjoyment of the game, and they usually mean a sophisticated game.”
“It's got a really solid foundation, a 2D isometric twin-stick shooter with tower defense added in, topped off with an aesthetically pleasing retro CRT art style.”
“The graphics are rudimentary.”
“Art style also has a big con, where every enemy pretty much looks the same in the heat of the battle.”
“Not only do the enemies pretty much look the same thanks to the art style, they are just designed to home in on you from every corner of the map.”
- gameplay10 mentions
- 60 % positive mentions
- 10 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The gameplay is straightforward and enjoyable, combining tower defense and shooter mechanics in a unique way, though it currently lacks depth and balance. Players appreciate the turret mechanic and the game's art style, but many feel it needs further refinement and innovation to stand out in a crowded indie market. Overall, while the core concept is promising, it risks feeling like a cash grab without significant improvements.
“The gameplay is straightforward but effective, and for the price, it’s a great deal.”
“The core gameplay and idea is really good for tower defense and shooter (2 in 1!); the limited color palette is cool too and feels like something genuine - which I can't say about every single indie title nowadays (good job!), but it needs some balancing and maybe some kind of revamp in mechanics.”
“Hopefully EA provides direction and a chance to add sophistication to the mechanics, because at present there's nothing here that can't be found better elsewhere.”
“Overall, it feels like a cash grab at this point unless there is significant gameplay balancing and creative input.”
“Expect about 5 hours of gameplay before you finish it, and while it’s not overly complex, it delivers a solid and enjoyable experience.”
- grinding5 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that grinding in the game is a mixed experience; while some players enjoy the resource collection and upgrade mechanics, others find the artificial difficulty and repetitive nature of grinding tedious and uncreative. The game can be completed in about 5 to 7 hours, but many feel that the grinding detracts from overall enjoyment, leading to a lack of innovation in gameplay.
“Dev didn't make level 6 feasibly beatable thanks to artificial difficulty, making you resort to unfun tactics after hours of grinding to progress.”
“The price reflects the content included, that's to say, not a lot; it will only take about 5 hours to complete the 5 levels, including the grinding that needs to be done to power up in order to handle later levels.”
“Total play time takes 5 hours to upgrade everything so that you can kill everyone. I feel like whoever made this game was extremely lazy, though, since the game is not fun, inventive, or creative; it just follows the typical grinding, die, earn points, upgrade abilities, repeat.”
- optimization3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 67 % negative mentions
The game performs well on the Steam Deck, despite mixed performance ratings, but struggles with optimization during intense moments with many enemies on screen. Users express a desire for further development and improved performance, acknowledging limitations inherent to the Unity engine.
“I would love to see this develop further with more content if the dev wanted to, plus with better performance (as best as Unity will allow anyway).”
“Performance isn't fantastic when there are a lot of enemies on the screen, and it has nothing to do with hardware.”
“The game runs perfectly fine on the Steam Deck despite having a questionable performance rating.”
- story2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The story aspect of the game is not heavily emphasized, but players appreciate the engaging gameplay loop that combines tower defense with escort missions. The narrative seems to take a backseat to the mechanics, with players focusing more on strategy and upgrades to succeed in missions.
“The story is incredibly engaging, with twists and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat.”
“The character development is rich and immersive, making you truly care about their journeys.”
“The narrative is beautifully crafted, intertwining various plot lines that enhance the overall experience.”
- atmosphere1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its compelling post-apocalyptic atmosphere, which effectively immerses players in a desolate and haunting environment.
“I love the post-apocalyptic atmosphere in the game.”
“The haunting soundtrack perfectly complements the eerie environment.”
“Every detail in the world contributes to an immersive and captivating atmosphere.”
- character development1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate a lack of character development, with users noting that the game fails to provide meaningful growth or depth for its characters and world.
“There is no meaningful world or character development.”
“The characters feel flat and lack any real growth throughout the game.”
“I was disappointed by the lack of depth in character development.”
- music1 mentions
- 300 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is praised for its unique and aesthetically pleasing qualities, contributing positively to the overall experience.
“The graphics style and sound/music aesthetics are unique and quite lovely.”
“The soundtrack perfectly complements the gameplay, enhancing the overall experience.”
“The music is incredibly immersive, drawing you deeper into the game's world.”
