Aegis Defenders Review
Aegis Defenders is split up into 18 different levels that are separated into two distinct phases: platforming and tower defense. The platforming involves a little bit of combat and a whole lot of Lost Vikings-esque multi-character puzzles.
To start, only two characters are playable, easily switched between in single-player while also allowing for co-op play right off the bat. The puzzles are slow to ramp up, but when they start to kick into a higher gear, about halfway through when a third character is added, the clever design of these platforming segments are revealed. They’re rife with secrets, novel mechanics, and entertaining twists.Each character has their own abilities, with starter character Clu wielding ranged weapons and the power to drop bombs and the other starter Bart able to build turrets and whack enemies with strong melee weapons.
Switch Review - 'Aegis Defenders' by Andreas Salmen on Feb. 12, 2018 @ 1:00 a.m. Aegis Defenders is an 16-bit adventure that blends Metroidvania-style combat with tower defense strategy. Towering platform: Aegis Defenders review Technobubble. Aegis Defenders melds tower defense and platforming in a package that oozes a retro vibe. A link has been sent to your.
(2003–05). (2004–09). (2004–06). (2004–06). (2004–05). Looney tunes dash episode 3.
The pixelated characters are simple looking and color coordinated, making it easy to tell the powers apart as well as their colored affinity. The latter comes into play in combat, as each weapon and attack has a color associated with it. If it matches an enemy’s color, it’ll do more damage. All of these various pieces help make the platforming a whole lot of fun. Aside from the initial slow buildup, I’d play a game that just spent time with these puzzle platformer mechanics.
The tower defense doesn’t benefit as much from the slow ramp up in difficulty. Once I got a grasp on the basics of the tower defense segments, each round became rote and boring until things got more interesting about halfway through. The key differences that makes the gentle curve in the tower defense portions work worse than the platforming sections is that tower defense has a lot of downtime. Waiting for the enemies to run into your bombs and spikes so they die. Waiting for the enemies to be destroyed by your slew of turrets of all different elements and styles. When it finally gets more complex with the addition of more characters, the challenge increases, and as does the fun. It’s something I feel weird complaining about because it’s never an unpleasant experience.
The game is gorgeous, the music is soothing, and the tone is whimsical and pleasing. The pace is just on the slower side for the first few hours.But when Aegis Defenders kicks into gear, it ascends to very high places. The puzzles increase in complexity and ingenuity and the tower defense segments increase in depth and difficulty.
A number of moments in the back half twist the structure in ways that deftly serve the story while also providing neat set pieces and moments. In between levels, your weapons and abilities can be upgraded in your exploring team’s caravan.
A lot of the upgrades are standard stuff, like increased health and more powerful weapons. The various abilities can be combined in unique ways, allowing for a variety of strategy in the tower defense areas. For example, two of Bart’s resources can make a turret. Alternatively, combining one of Bart’s resources with another character’s makes for a turret with different firing capabilities and elemental properties. Early on, employing different strategies isn’t necessary, but when the going gets tough, having these different options and potential ideas is excellent.Throughout the whole game is an ample helping of lore and story. Your party is, well, defending the aegis (get it?), and the background of the world is told through artfully crafted cutscenes before levels.
I never found the backstory that compelling, though it never gets in the way. Aside from that expository dump, the characters are written with a lot of personality. The heroes are silly at times, but in a refreshing manner. While the big picture didn’t work for me, the smaller character beats were great.All of Aegis Defenders can be played in co-op with another player. It is the type of cooperative experience that almost requires playing the whole game together with the other player because of the way it builds up.
It’s one of the better split-screen experiences I’ve played, functioning similar to some Lego games where the screen is dynamically split depending where the characters are in relation to each other. I wasn’t able to play too much of the co-op, but it is nice to have another player around to work through puzzles with and control the characters separately. It was definitely welcome during some of the later tower defense parts.
On Switch, I ran into a few minor technical hiccups that affected gameplay. A few levels were mired in slowdown, which resulted in accidental deaths. The HD Rumble during levels is cool, though, and naturally, the Switch is great for co-op.Dripping with a fanciful charm, Aegis Defenders is a joyous blend of puzzle platforming and tower defense. While it starts slow, it’s an artful fusion of two somewhat disparate genres that comes together as a beautiful whole near the end, making it well worth a look in the crowded Switch eShop.
The entire contents of this Web site, unless otherwise noted, are Copyright © 1999 - 2020 NINWR, LLC. All Rights Reserved.™ and © for all products, characters, and indicia related thereto which are contained herein are owned by the companies who market or license those products.This Web site is not endorsed, sponsored, nor otherwise affiliated with Nintendo. It has been created for the sole purpose of entertainment and knowledge.Reproduction in whole or in part in any form without consent from NINWR, LLC is prohibited.
Blending genres to create interesting gaming experiences usually has mixed results. However, Aegis Defenders' combination of 2D platforming and real-time strategy is an absolute blast that you can enjoy with a chum so let's start hunting for relics!
Aegis Defenders stars a gang of Ruinhunters who are on a mission to explore the ruins of an advanced civilization after humankind entered a new dark age. At the start, you and a friend control the curious Clu and her delightful grandfather Bart. Each stage consists of two phases: a platforming phase where you explore a somewhat small Metroidvania-like level and a tower defense phase where you build traps and fend off encroaching enemies to protect a valuable central asset. Exploring to uncover a wealth of collectibles (known as relics), materials, and possibly a power-up then using your found materials to construct turrets and traps only to successfully fend off the final phase's monsters feels just awesome. This is especially true when you play with a friend as you can communicate to ensure that you perform effectively as a team. Overall, I'm thoroughly impressed with Aegis Defenders' satisfying mix of mechanics.
The world of Aegis Defenders comes to life with gorgeous environments that are composed of subtle hues, well-done character artwork, and a stunning soundscape. You'll hear urgent orchestral pieces during the defense phase that'll keep you on the edge of your seat while characters grunt as they struggle to keep up. The story sequences come to life with lively dialogue and the odd vocalisation that helps set the tone for whatever characters are saying. In the end, Aegis Defenders is a fantastic looking and sounding game.
One aspect that Aegis Defenders accomplishes far better than most games is provide a gentle yet constantly engaging learning curve. You start the campaign by building simple traps and learning the ropes and by the end; you'll be controlling four characters simultaneously while a ridiculous amount of monsters fill the screen. However, you'll never find yourself struggling when it comes to how to play because Aegis Defenders does such a phenomenal job of slowly introducing new mechanics, traps, and characters. You'll also purchase new contraption recipes and upgrades as you progress which helps give the campaign an even more rewarding sense of accomplishment.
Although Aegis Defenders is an incredible game, it has a few disappointing aspects. For starters, it's definitely not as fun playing solo. Having to switch characters and keep track of where they're at and what they're doing isn't as fun as having a friend just control them. Speaking of which, considering you eventually need to control four characters simultaneously, it's surprising that there is no four player support. I can see that being super fun yet you can only play with a maximum of two players.
Finally, one small gripe is that collecting all of the relics in a stage can be pretty annoying due to one frustrating flaw. Basically, when you reach the defense phase, you often can't go back. In some stages, a relic may be hiding just past a hole that leads to the defense phase. As a result, not being able to collect everything on the first try will likely make perfectionists frequently irritated.
Aegis Defenders is one of the most rewarding and enjoyable cooperative indie games on the market. If you're looking to spend some 2D gaming time with a chum then you can't do much better than joining this ragtag group of Ruinhunters.
- + Awesome mix of 2D action, exploration, and tower defense gameplay
- + Fantastic characters, graphics, and sound
- + Perfectly implemented learning curve
- - Missing collectibles can be annoying due to reaching points of no return
- - Not as much fun playing solo
- - How come there's no 4 player support?