Any Expansion on the way?

[LittleDoggie]

Hey Hey,

Just got the game from D2D during their deal week and I'm really enjoying it . Any plans for an expansion etc?

Thanks,

LD

[jeff]

But we're interested in your feedback on which maps you like and which you didn't.





Jeff

[LittleDoggie]

I liked all of them ... lots of diversity. If I has a least favorite it would have been the last stand. Interesting concept, very challenging but somewhat mildy annoying,

I gues ill mention one other thing ... I just tried the grinder and was surprised that all the mobs were the same O.o.

LD

[scorpio5k]

Likewise I loved pretty much all the maps, the variety is very very good. Since this was kinda the opener, if there was more on the way I'd recommend more larger maps, preferably ones where you can mold their directions. The ability to choose which way to direct them opens up hours and hours of more gameplay using different strategies. But I guess they can't ALL be like that, you guys have found a pretty good balance. I really have nothing negative to say about anything.. So much for constructive criticism here lol.

[radbrad]

You know, I do not usually post on fourms. I am more of a Lurker. I have been playing P.C. games since there were P.C.'s.

I have to say this game gets my vote for game of the year.
Superb graphics, nice litte story, great voice acting, and the strategy is excellent. I am stuck on the last stand though.

I would love to see and expansion pack and keep this game going for many years. Like the sims.

Another option is a make your own version, where people able to make their own levels and upload and share them.

I love this game, it is my favorite. I am a big shooter fun, but no shooter can compare to defense grid.


Thank you,
Radbrad

[kvrdave]

I think I have played through this about 4 times now. First time was awesome, then I set the goal of never losing a core. The variety of maps is fine. "Last Stand" is a great example of how you have to place towers as part of the strategy and others merely let you shoot and can't block aliens. It's a great mix. Where there are so few good tower defense type games out, this is amazing, and it needs another 100 levels. It is either that, or I do work, and no one wants that.

[fox2001]

I personally like the maps which offer the flexibility to change their direction. The set path maps were not as interesting, but were still good to play a few times. There was an indy game, tower revolutions, which had an interesting feature in that the aliens shot back and you had to revisit towers to not only upgrade but repair as well. The upgrades were a neat idea as well, instead of one option, you could select the type of tower. For instance, the gun tower could have an option for armor piercing but shoots slower or fast shooting but less impact. I'm not suggesting to rip them off but those were two ideas that would be neat to expand on. Also, there is the option to introduce live or multiple player features with co-op. Or have one player pick the type and control the path of the aliens and the other defend the map.

[cavanam]

Hi Jeff,
I posted a lengthy review on the other site, so won't repeat myself (at least I'll try not to). There's been any number of suggestions posted here and the Steam site for improvements. I know you're asking what maps we liked best - but I assume this is to get an idea of what to keep, what to modify, what to completely overhaul; and where the best 'new' direction might be. Can I make one plea - don't over cook this game. Right now I think it's so close to what it needed to be that you guys should be able to retire on permanent pensions and just live off your laurels. To the maps - some of them were favourites at first play, but then others became favourites once I got serious about getting better results. The map I have most enjoyed is Turnabout - but that's because it's potentially easy and there really is one best set up, so getting better is about minor adjustments, and I can concentrate on those, and yes, I do love the (imagined) smell of burning (simulated) aliens in the morning! The one map I 'hate/love' is Waste Disposal - it's tricky to get everything timed and placed, the mix of aliens is among the best (ie most challenging), and there are blind spots if you're not careful. I agree with intent of previous comment - you could make more of the flyers, but I appreciate that there are only a small number of towers that will deal with flyers, so limitations are obvious. And you really don't want to turn this into a 'shoot the flyers' game. Patterned flight paths are artificial and don't alter ie don't respond to tower placement (gee, is that a thought?) as ground based aliens have to. In the end, I think the main thing is that maps have inherent variations in terms of possible strategies, and I think the maps you have - in the main - get this right (couple of exceptions which I've mentioned in post on Steam). So for me, whatever comes next should be about tweaking what you have, and definitely an editor. Major re-thinks should wait until version 3. And thanks again for developing such a great game.
cheers

[Dillonn]

I really liked the variety of maps in 'Defense Grid: The Awakening'. I thought I'd put together some observations on the original game and some ideas about possible directions for a further expansion or sequel.



Observations:</br>[*]Excellent game, good job guys![*]Good mix of large/small open/tight maps.[*]I felt that the usefulness of tower types was very subtely skewed. Most maps could be completed with just guns and the occasional inferno, meteor, missile or temporal depending on the map. It would have been nice to have maps that really required some of the less significant tower types - concussion, command, tesla, laser and cannon. I liked the variety of tower types, but after playing through a few times I found half of them are marginalized because of their cost, usefulness, strength or weakness against particular types of aliens. Don't get me wrong, I loved the game but was a bit disappointed to find the most effective strategy on most maps is the least creative.



Suggestions:</br>[*]Aerial attack skewed maps. 50 - 75% aerial waves with the occasional ground based attack. [*]Tower balancing (subtle fine-tuning). Guns and meteors are a little overpowered compared to other towers when taking cost into consideration. From what I can tell guns are effective against all aliens types and are the cheapest tower in the game. Meteors have a HUGE range and are relatively cheap compared to other tower types. Temporals and command towers are a little too expensive at level 1. Perhaps they should start out cheaper for level 1 and upgrades get progressively more expensive like other tower types. On the open maps I found that I'd almost always choose 3 x lvl:1 guns or 1 x lvl:2 gun over a temporal or command tower.[*]The introduction of a cheap 'foundation' tile (50-75 resource cost) that would allow the player to path ground based aliens. The foundation tower might also add a bonus or increase the radius of aerial based weapons should you decide to build a cannon or missile tower on it later. For ground based towers the foundation tower might also provide better line of sight for towers located behind other towers. One of the biggest changes this would provide is an alternative to using guns to path aliens on bigger maps, just because they are the cheapest tower to use.[*]New alien types that are stronger against the more commonly used towers and more susceptible to specific, less commonly required tower types. (concussion, laser, tesla). I think this would make the game more enjoyable especially on the closed maps - it would force you to make tough decisions about tower selection instead of just throwing down guns and upgrading them. e.g. An alien impervious to guns that flys for a portion of the map (so that missiles could take them out or cannons could weaken them), and then lands and shields over aliens within a radius from projectile weapons but is susceptible to electicity (tesla). Maybe another new alien that shields from heat based weapons (meteor, inferno, laser) but is susceptible to concussion towers?[*]Multiplayer would rock! Ideally for up to 4 players complete with co-op maps, multiple bases and alien points of entry and exit. New games types could include 'specialization' where each player is in control of certain tower types e.g. One player is the designated aerial defense specialist and gets control of missiles and cannons, a 2nd player manages temporals, command towers and guns; player 3, fire based towers (infernos, lasers and meteors). Finally player 4 gets the remainder of the tower types and is the only player that can sell towers (for when the path to the cores gets blocked which I imagine would happen frequently)! Obviously the mix would need a little balancing but you get the idea. I think it would result in pandemonium, intensity and fun.[*]Maybe even a versus mode where players take turns to influence the alien mix based on alien resources while the other player defends as normal?



Anyway thanks again for a very fun and enjoyable game and keep up the good work. I'd buy you a drink if I could!</br>


-D

[tyrwith]

I think most of your observations are spot on. It's a shame that you can earn gold easily with 90% of your towers being gun or cannons. A foundations tower would add a new strategic angle, and aliens with kinetic shields and heat shields, and flying aliens that land would all increase the tactical complexity of the game for later levels. Multiplayer Co-Op would be a must have.

I disagree about temporals, though - I find them to be awesome not only in the kill zones, but all over the map. If you ever get a core stolen and kill the runner halfway through the map, the temporals help that core escape back to the holding pen and the benefits are therefore extend far beyond just multiplying the effectiveness of one kill zone.

[avien]

I'm new here, so this might be said many times already, but this game needs a map editor. With a community around map building and the thousands of maps this would create, I think your game would never die. You would also be sure that a lot of people bought the sequal, if you plan to make one.

[doncasteel8587]

Jeff,

With a game like this, variety is the spice of life!

There were no maps I didn't like, and none that I prefered over others. You guys did it just right, each map was different, and required it's own strategy.

Don't overthink this.... What maps do I like?.... more... more... more!

What about a map/level forge? Let users try to come up with and share their own maps. I realize that would be a huge technical challenge, but worth it. I'd even pay another $10 in points for this.

I like the idea of foundation blocks, I kept feeling like I was being wasteful placing guns in places where firepower wasn't needed, but I needed to direct the path.

I have to disagree with the comments of tower biasing, I do think the costs for placing and upgrading need adjustment, but tower strength and capabilities seemed fine to me. Alien strength and salvage value could use some adjustment however.

The one thing I didn't like is the strength of the spawner aliens, in early waves they are much stronger than the normal aliens. This would be fine if they were to just roam randomly and could not steal cores themselves. But too often they can not be killed quickly enough ending up with lost cores, while the spawned aliens are easily dispatched. OR just not bring them in quite so early.

All in all this is an outstanding game! I look forward to many many new levels!

Don

[Echo]

Thanks for all the feedback!*

[rico1950]

I'm way too old to be playing games like this... but that's exactly what I do as soon as I get home from work. It's addictive, and very enjoyable. I hate to think of how many hours I've spent killing those pesky little aliens.

I always play in grinder mode, so please make sure you include that with any future expansions. Most of the maps are good, with the more complex maps with multi-levels being my favorite. The last three are very good. So, good job, and keep it up! I'll buy the expansion as soon as it hits the market.

Thanks!
rico1950 #299 in games played & 101 in aliens destroyed

[saiku]

This is truly a great, fun game.

Some suggestions:
<ul>[*]Bring out a sequel pronto[*]The air units are second class aliens. Make some of them be able to bomb towers?[*]An alien air unit that can pick up a dropped core[*]Hybrid aliens? Air becomes land unit and vice-versa.[*]New tower types (teleport tower?)[*]Skinned units (tanks, jeeps, bombers, trucks). I would LOVE this because all aliens look like variations of bugs to me with very little to remember them by.[*]Bring out a sequel pronto. Did I already say that?[/list]

[saiku]

This is truly a great, fun game.

Some suggestions:
<ul>[*]Bring out a sequel pronto[*]Multiplayer[*]The air units are second class aliens. Make some of them be able to bomb towers?[*]An alien air unit that can pick up a dropped core[*]Hybrid aliens? Air becomes land unit and vice-versa.[*]New tower types (teleport tower?)[*]Skinned units (tanks, jeeps, bombers, trucks). I would LOVE this because all aliens look like variations of bugs to me with very little to remember them by.[*]Bring out a sequel pronto. Did I already say that?[/list]

I think the best point I've seen on here was the very last. A way to keep this game viable is to let go of what I think is being coveted above all else, content control / the ability for user made maps etc. If you look at games that have found a niche such as this one, like Heroes of Might and Magic (1&2) which are still being developed, you can see how the loyalty of the customer base provided regular income for the justification of 3 further full fledged sequels.

It needs to make financial sense for further development, and having a community to do all your advertising and conversion of the masses for you is the most valuable asset for achieving this. Give the crazy modders their tools, and they'll make sure this game never dies (and picks up regular re-purchases for the future). The best additions can be incorporated into sequels with little or no wasted energy.

Anyways, just my two cents..

One day perhaps I'll try to pitch you guys to let me fund an expansion for a vc company! (if you'd ever consider that, it'd be an honor!)

Congrats on a great piece of work guys!!

I love TD games, and this one is honestly the best. So addictive! I've played through on all the modes multiple times and I need more! Thanks for the Borderlands expansion, but that was just a tease! Not that I think you should release a map editor because maps are your biggest asset to this game, but I'd love to see one. Anyways, more maps please!!! I need more of my drug, I'll pay!

DP