Combining easy-to-understand mechanics with highly immersive details, you might think that the Tower Defense genre was literally created for mobile platforms. The genre, which is in perfect harmony with our companions -smartphones- meets you once again with Defense of the Kings, which draws attention with the finely crafted formula of Leke Games. So, what does the game, which debuted on Android and iOS, offers us?
A fresh take on the Tower Defense genre!
The formula is always simple; we have a castle and must destroy the soldiers, creatures, insects, and whatever is attacking it before they reach their target. To do this, we need to place our ‘tower’ units correctly, build labyrinths that extend their time to reach the target, and strengthen these units during our time in the game to prepare for the following map.
Tower Defense games usually take two different paths at this point. The first one has a fixed path on the map, and you can place the towers you want at fixed points on that path. In the second type, a game model is adopted, leaving you free to move between points A and B on an X-sized map. Defense of the Kings, on the other hand, has chosen a unique and different path. Of course, there are still specific points, but since almost every point on the map can be used to build towers or units, it’s entirely up to you to start the defense from the front area or set up close to the castle.
I’m sure you’ve already thought about arranging your defenses in a labyrinthine maze when enemies aren’t attacking towers, but Leke Games has come up with a gameplay model that will make your job positively tricky. Enemies in Defense of the Kings not only have different speeds and weaknesses, but they also take a different route each time. This means that they can find a way to reach the tower without ever entering your maze. At this point, I recommend concentrating your defenses in the areas close to the tower and trying to slow down the raids as much as possible.
Tons of content
At the time of writing, Defense of the Kings has four map themes of 30 chapters each, with more on the way. This gives you more content than you’ll ever finish, even if you don’t get up for a long time, and it’s not just the variety of maps.
There are four units distributed across five different races. There are 20 different units in total, which is quite impressive for the game’s early days. To briefly look at the races, at the beginning of the story, the Ancients, a race of mythological creatures, will accompany you. This race has some very balanced units. Although Gem Monster will help you clear the early maps with its fast-firing / low DPS units, it’s rarely effective against bosses. Dragon, which you can summon when you gain 160 battle points, will help you maintain a serious balance between small units and bosses. Of course, our biggest helpers regarding bosses are Satiros, who is bulky but can finish roses wherever he hits, and Frost Drake, who not only terrorizes with his icy breath but also slows down enemy units significantly.
After the Ancient race, you will encounter new races that you can unlock as you progress, and the first of these is the Human race, which has the most balanced units possible. The Archer, Ranger, Warrior, and Mage units are so well-balanced that we don’t need to write about their abilities. To unlock the Human race, you need to accumulate a minimum of 250 gems and level up to level four, which you’ll be able to reach within an hour or two.
Of course, as you progress through the maps, you don’t have to settle for Ancients and Humans. Orc, Forest, and Undead races will also come into play now. These units, each more powerful than the other, will help you deal with the hordes in terms of speed and power.
A detailed development tree
So how do we get the gold and gems we need? Leke Games has been very generous with the rewards. In addition to the rewards you can collect after each battle and every time you enter the game, there are daily, weekly, and achievement-based rewards. You can also spin the wheel of fortune at certain intervals and watch videos to unlock new chests.
You can strengthen units with the gold you earn and access more powerful units with gems. As I said before, I found the reward system quite generous, and the microtransactions are integrated into the game in a very reasonable way.
I have to say that Defense of the Kings will make tower defense fans happy. Although I tried the beta version, I encountered almost no issues, and the optimization and battery usage was very good. So, although the system requirements have not been announced yet, I think it will run efficiently on most of the phones on the market.
Defense of the Kings, the first game developed by Leke Games after TDZ, is a very successful one; if you are close to the genre or looking for a game that can be played in a limited time, you are in the right place.
