Mixes very easily and the lemon lime legit tastes like Gatorade. Creatine.

16-Bit PlotAegis Defenders wears its heart on its sleeve. The anime and JRPG influences are undeniable. Yet, rather than relying on them as a crutch, the game uses them to weave a charming storybook narrative.A classic story of rebels fighting an evil empire, the game manages a fresh take on an old idea. Players follow Clu, a plucky ruinhunter whose chance discovery of an ancient artifact sets her on a perilous path to adventure. If that premise sounds familiar, there’s good reason for that. Aegis Defenders draws heavily upon narrative tropes present in other stories, from to to.While the game’s story is simple and predictable, its characters are endearing enough that this works in its favor. Whether it’s the lovably gruff Bart or the cocksure Zula, the main cast’s distinct personalities shine through fun dialogue and gorgeous designs.

We played Aegis Defenders - Interesting lore and world, beautiful graphics, nicely blended multi-genre gameplay, many options for strategic thought. AI doesn’t do a whole lot in solo play, some instances definitely seem balanced for a human partner.

Not only do they feel alive, they feel like they inhabit their world.Aegis Defenders makes the effort to establish its world and mythology, dispensing narrative through a variety of ways. Dialogue, cutscenes, and the environment itself tell a vivid story through both explicit and implicit means.While there could certainly be more to expand the story, what exists in the 10-12 hours of gameplay is satisfying on its own. Even so, the story doesn’t exist in a vacuum; it’s merely one part of the larger picture.

Painting with PixelsLike its narrative, Aegis Defender’s art is a heartfelt homage to what came before it. In a market saturated with retro, game-y graphics, the game takes it a step beyond by painting with pixels. Its distinct sense of style evokes a level of artistry not unlike that of.A cursory look at game director reveals a lengthy library of illustrations. Kho’s body of work is impressive not only in its volume but its technique and style.

His traditional artistic sensibilities easily transfer into a digital medium and breathe wonder and magic into Aegis Defenders.Broad scenes of sweeping vistas and soaring landscapes flesh out the game’s world. Lovingly detailed environments intermingle with vivid color palettes, bold tones framed within strong linework. The presentation is a crucial part of the experience, for both gameplay and narrative.Through a series of cinematic cutscenes, the player learns about the fall of the Deathless at the hands of humanity. Stark monochromatic tones set against a black void give the impression of legends long past.In addition to beautiful visuals, Aegis Defender s‘ sound design does a wonderful job of immersing the player into the experience.

Beautiful, melancholic, and ethereal sounds relay a world struggling to pull itself from the brink.Aegis Defenders abounds with style in so many regards, calling back to the classic JRPGs it draws so heavily from. Whether braving a deep, dark forest or traversing windy, craggy peaks, the game goes to great lengths to immerse you in its wonderful art style and soundtrack.What’s Old is New AgainAegis Defenders distills the core concept of “Tower Defense” and captures its most salient points: building structures to defend an objective. As a video game genre, Tower Defense exploded in the mid-2000s, thanks to mods and flash games like. Games like, and have experimented with the mechanics (to varying degrees of success), seeking to recapture the addicting appeal behind Tower Defense.Through its various design choices, GUTS Department has made Aegis Defenders quick and snappy to play. With a robust framework of systems and mechanics, it gives players the tools to be creative within a fast-paced context. Unlike traditional Tower Defense games, Aegis Defenders encourages quick reactions and improvisational adaptability.Aegis Defenders advertises three key components to its gameplay: explore, build, and defend.

As an action-platforming, tower defense game, it throws a lot at the player. Different environments, enemies, towers, and abilities fill the rosters. Yet it never feels like a chore to learn them.GUTS Department exhibits a masterful understanding of game design in emphasizing “learning-by-doing.” It doles out new mechanics piece by piece during the exploration phase, framing them as small platforming puzzles to actively engage in.

After learning whatever new concepts the level has to offer, players finish off with a hectic Tower Defense.Structured CreativityNew enemies and abilities are put to the test during the Tower Defense segments, encouraging the player’s creativity. Because the game doesn’t restrict you to a grid-like most Tower Defense titles, you can move and create as you please. There’s no “right” way to play.

The eighteen structures and four available heroes allow for a variety of strategies.Tower Defense, by nature, requires the player to multitask. It demands you pay attention to the flow of combat, structure health, and placement, as well as your resource pool. Add to that four controllable characters with unique loadouts and abilities, and you get frantically fun combat.The ability to pause the game when switching characters gives Aegis Defenders an interesting dynamic. It eases much of the stress in multitasking while still requiring you to predict and adapt to the flow of combat. In the later levels, things can quickly spiral out of hand if you aren’t smart about your choices.Aegis Defenders is quite challenging, especially on harder difficulties. Still, the game offers a nice selection of upgrades to give you some wiggle room for mistakes.

Even if you do die, it never feels like a hassle to retry a level. Between the core gameplay and free-form building, the game just feels fun to play.That said, Aegis Defenders does have some minor issues. There are times when the platforming mechanics feel stiff to control. These are more pronounced in co-op mode, where pausing doesn’t exist as a mechanic.You and your friend must communicate through hectic callouts, trying to cover ground with multiple characters. This disrupts the strategic flow of combat present in single-player and exacerbates the platforming issues. While co-op is still fun, the game functions best as a single-player experience.Pros. Gameplay that encourages the player to be creative.

Vivid art style that breathes life into the world and characters. Well-designed platforming segments that teach you mechanics. Great blending of two genres. Simple, but entertaining story. Beautiful electronic/orchestral soundtrackCons.

The action-platforming can be hit or miss at times. Co-op issues with gameplay flow and inputs. The multitasking and difficulty scaling can be potentially overwhelming.

Guts DepartmentI’m a terrible juggler.At a minimum, I would assume that you need to be able to alternately toss at least three items in the air for it to be considered an adequate attempt at skillful juggling. I top out at two.Which makes it odd and a bit funny that I like tower defense games. The genre is basically the video game equivalent of juggling, requiring you to pay attention at multiple things at the same time.I remember sinking a ton of hours, for example, into Plants vs. Zombies games as well as South Park Let’s Go Tower Defense Play.

To this day, I still have flashbacks of character Tuong Lu Kim trash talking invading Mongolians while perched atop his great wall as he asks them how they like his hot sauce.One of the things that I especially like about the tower defense genre is how creative some games can get in reinterpreting its classic formula. One such recent entry is Aegis Defenders, which tries to freshen things up by mixing 2D platforming with tower defense, all the while wrapping its world in a sprite-based retro gaming aesthetic.As someone who cut my gaming teeth during the glory days of Atari and the Nintendo Entertainment System, I’m a big fan of Aegis Defenders’ old-school look. As someone who also remembers the dark days of 2D gaming’s decline after 3D games became the hot, new thing, I’m just glad that the old art style I grew up with is considered cool again. If you love the pixel art from games of yore or even newer retro-style games such as Owlboy, Aegis Defenders’ visuals will definitely be right up your alley. Guts DepartmentThe game starts out by introducing you to protagonists Clu and her grandfather Bart, a spunky pair of relic hunters who explore ancient ruins for all sorts of treasure as they search for the ultimate prize: the legendary weapon known as the Aegis.

I actually find these two to be quite charming and I quickly developed a soft spot for the duo. There’s a bit of a Japanese anime vibe going on with its art and storytelling, which, combined with the retro approach provide the game a sense of warmth and whimsy.After going through the initial tutorial, Clu and Bart decide to leave their usual stomping grounds and head out to explore new territory that promises even greater loot but also greater danger for the two. This kicks off the pair’s main adventure, which promises lots of spelunking amid the backdrop of a sinister foe.In order to defeat the enemies who stand in the way of their attempts to collect precious booty (no not that kind of booty), Clu and Bart must work together while taking advantage of their unique skill sets. Clu, for example, excels at range thanks to her crossbows and shotguns. She can also use gimmicks such as mines, traps and special fields that can slow down enemies. Bart, meanwhile, excels at close range with his hammer and can also use his engineering prowess to build barriers, turrets and drones.

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Later on, you will also get two additional characters, each with their particular set of skills that Liam Neeson would be proud of.Aegis Defenders’ definitely encourages you to use its diverse mix of protagonists as you progress through the game. Its side-scrolling platforming stages, for example, require you to solve puzzles and switch between characters in order to overcome obstacles and gain access to blocked areas. Each character also comes with his or her own unique color type, allowing that character to inflict extra damage against similar-colored foes.The addition of platforming elements adds an interesting wrinkle to the genre. Although most tower defense games are focused on one area, Aegis Defenders adds actual platforming sections that you will need to navigate until you reach your end goal. Once you do, the tower defense portion of the game kicks in and you will need to hold back wave after wave of invading foes in order for you to acquire your prized treasure.It’s an intriguing concept for sure that makes the game a lot more interesting.

At the same time, it also exposes some of the chinks in Aegis Defenders’ otherwise solid armor. Character controls, for example, are just a tad bit unwieldy and didn’t feel quite as accurate as I’d like in terms of movement and controls, especially when compared to dedicated platformers like Mario or Mega Man. Guts DepartmentThe biggest issue I had with the game, however, is how its difficulty is tuned for solo play.

South Park Let’s Play Tower Defense, for example, offered both single-player and multiplayer modes and felt fun either way. While playing that game solo was challenging, however, it never felt impossibly overwhelming. I couldn’t say the same about Aegis Defenders.

While the preparation time and difficulty feels just right when playing with another person, it can get quite unforgiving when played solo as the difficulty ramps up.It doesn’t help that the ally AI can be totally unreliable when things get hot and hectic so you really need to take over and micromanage every little thing in order for you to succeed. This becomes especially frustrating when you do escort missions, which tends to trigger PTSD on my part about all the other games I’ve played in the past that use that polarizing mechanic.In that sense, Aegis Defenders is a tale of two games. One is admittedly fun if you can scrounge up an ally to play with. During times when you go solo, however, what feels like a nice challenge in co-op can devolve into a stressful mess if you find yourself overwhelmed while your AI ally essentially farts around. Then again, if you’re one of those folks who can juggle three balls or more, this might be just perfect for you. All things considered, I give the game an 8 in co-op mode and a 6 in solo mode so just keep that in mind depending on how you plan to play the game.(Note: Aegis Defenders has since added an Easy mode option for the Steam version.

This review was done on PS4.)FINAL THOUGHTSA retro art style, charming characters and intriguing gameplay that mixes action platforming with tower defense makes Aegis Defenders a welcome addition to the genre. Floaty controls combined with a punishing solo experience, however, takes away some of the sheen from its otherwise great concept. To get the best Aegis Defenders experience, I recommend finding a co-op buddy to play with. Rating: 7 out of 10. Cost: $19.99, PC, PS4, Switch. covers games, gadgets, technology and all things geek.

Follow Technobubble poobah Jason Hidalgo’s shenanigans on Twitter @jasonhidalgo or his Tabiasobi Youtube channel.