Total Defense 3D Review

It should come as no surprise that Total Defense 3D is a tower defense game. It may, however, be surprising to players that they will find a unique perspective on the tower defense genre in this little freemium title. This game takes a few of the things players might take for granted in a tower defense game and gives them a little push in a new direction. The free floating camera, for instance, is a significant difference players will find in Total Defense 3D. Whereas in most tower defense games players have to watch the action from a set angle and distance, in this game players can move the camera to any angle they want and be very close to the action at ground level or farther away with a bird's-eye view.

The gameplay is fairly standard for the genre. There is a base that players must protect from advancing waves of enemy units. To do this they have to place various stationary turrets with varying weaponry around the paths that they enemy takes in order to attack and destroy them before they can reach and fire on the base. There are some subtle nuances in the mechanics that stand out as unique variations on the standard tower defense fare. Sometimes, more sophisticated enemy units will appear and forge their own, new paths forcing players to react quickly to new threats in order to protect their base. In some levels, in addition to protecting their own base, the player must also place turrets to attack and destroy enemy structures.

These simple variations on gameplay make for a very unique game that players familiar with the genre will enjoy. There are some drawbacks, however. There is almost no in-game instruction and players have to struggle on their own to figure out what weapon types and upgrades are available. Furthermore, the upgrade and currency system is equally unexplained and sometimes very confusing in the heat of battle.

Even with these setbacks, this is an enjoyable tower defense game once the player figures out how to play it. The free version of the game only comes with a quarter of the available levels unlocked and the rest have to be unlocked via in-app purchase.