Editor's Note: geoDefense came out a while ago, but Rob also includes some comments about the recent 1.2 update. Plus, I'm a sucker for both tower defense games and Geometry Wars! -Demian
Tower defense games take a certain type of neurotic, micro-managing, obsessive-compulsive basket case to truly excel at them. While I wouldn't say that I excel, exactly, I must evidently fit a required minimum of these criteria; the release of a new tower defense title puts me into a borderline 'fight or flight' mode as I reach for my bank card. However, Critical Thought's
geoDefense for iPhone and iPod Touch is not run-of-the-mill by any means. This is a tower defense game that pushes the other tower defense games down on the blacktop, takes their lunch money and then dangles thick, chunky loogies scant centimeters over their cringing, fearful faces while the rest of the crowd of kids watch and laugh.
Gameplay is your standard tower defense fare: you set up various types of attack turrets to prevent waves of enemies (or "creeps") from making it to the exit of the map. The amount of creeps you're allowed to let through varies based on the map, though ten is the default. Nothing much is new there. However, when it comes to difficulty, this one is pretty brutal.
Eschewing the open-ended, Fieldrunners/Desktop Tower Defense style of map in favor of a series of pre-set pathways, geoDefense is never easy, even when set on Easy. It's not uncommon to find yourself redoing a single map ten, twenty, maybe even thirty times as you look for that perfect combination of laser, blaster, missile, and shock towers to allow you to survive the onslaught. Indeed, there are times you'll feel that the designers only had one solution -- one magic combination of towers in mind to allow you to beat a particular level. This can be seen as either a detriment or a challenge, depending on if you like the idea of having to out-think or match wits with the minds that crafted some of these fiendish puzzles. The payoff you feel when you finally manage to pass a level that has mocked you for dozens of tries, however, is exhilarating.
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