Ultimate Defense – By Crazy Monkey Games & Likwid Game Studios
July 18, 2009
| Publisher | Crazy Monkey Games & Likwid Game Studios |
| Platform | Internet |
| Multi-account | No |
| Type | Tower Defense |
| Initial Review Date | 7/18/09 |
| Last Updated | 7/18/09 |
| FAQ | |
| Files/Tools |
This is a fairly simplistic but well done tower defense type game. In it you position, archers, mages, ninjas and dragons to defend against wave after wave of insects.
What struck me as interesting is the way the scoring in the game works. Basically as you kill enemies you earn gold which allows you to purchase additional units. The more powerful the unit the more costly it is. However, your gold supply is also your current score. This means that the fewer defenders you can get away with purchasing, the higher your score will be. Of course this also means that how much gold you go into a level with is dependent entirely on how much you spent on the previous mission. It also means that your score is some what cumulative as your gold can build up a fair amount from level to level.
Each unit in the game can level up to 3 times and at each level their damage output increases. However, units get the most xp for getting the killing blow on a monster. This means that in a row of 3 archers the last archer will always level much more quickly then the other two. While this may seem unfair it can be used to your advantage, since level 3 archers and mages can be sold for more then their initial buy cost. This means that one way to earn points is to level up archers and mages which you then sell off and replace with level 1 versions. This of course also means that it is often better to stagger your units whenever possible. That way the same unit will consistently get the killing blow against certain creatures. This means they will level more quickly, allowing you to sell and redeploy them multiple times. This is also the only way to move units in the game. As they can not be moved (except for a single rotation) once placed.
| Archer | This is your basic unit. They do the least amount of damage and only have a range of two. They are also the cheapest unit you can buy and will initially be all you can effectively use to complete missions |
| Mage | This unit does twice as much damage as the archer but they are also twice as expensive. This would make them hands down better, except that they also have a slightly slower rate of fire. Like the archer they only have a range of two. |
| Ninja | This unit has a similar rate of fire as the mage and only does a little more damage then the mage. The main advantage that the ninja has is that they have a range of 3 squares. Unlike Archers and Mages they can never be sold back for more then what they cost you. |
| Dragon | This is a very expensive but fairly powerful unit. It has a slow rate of fire, but each attack hits all 6 squares at the same time. This means that it can hit units more then once and it doesn’t have to chose among multiple targets. Like the ninja it can not be sold back for more then what it cost yo |
| Rotate | Once placed, each unit can be rotated exactly one time. This means you need to be very mindful of where you place them. Since you only get one opportunity to reface them. This ability to reface can allow a unit to attack multiple times though if used right. Specfically if you place a unit on a corner. However, because this can only be done once it’s best to save this feature for the final “boss” of each level. Which basically just consists of a single gigantic bettle or rock creature |
| Poison | This ability only costs you magic to use rather then gold. However, you only have 100 magic points and poison costs 70 to use. While you do earn back magic points for each creature you kill I’ve found that the best use for this ability is against the final “boss”. Because the poison never wears off and it does continuous damage, I’ve found it useful to poison the boss as soon as it appears. Often this is the difference between winning and losing. Additionally, I’ve found that it adds enough damage that I never need to purchase additional units just to defeat the boss. |
| Flatten Terrain | For a cost of 100 gold you can remove rocks and trees from the land. While useful for freeing up ground for additional units, if you find yourself doing this often you should probably invest in more powerful units as it will likely be much cheaper for you in the long run. |
