Tower Defense genre has went nowhere since Warcraft 3. Every single standalone game looks like uninspired, soulless garbage that makes you want to avoid it, while Warcraft 3 still looks great today. They are loaded with pointless progression systems that are put there to drag on game time, in worst cases, the game requires you to respec between the maps to be able to beat them. This is accentuated by the boring campaigns that drip feed and introduce you to the arsenal. Why not just remove all of that entirely and give the player every tool from the beginning, to let them figure out for themselves what works best and what do they like? This is actually the most fun part about video games – figuring out what works and what doesn’t. Over time, I’ve tried playing various TD games only to repeatedly come to the same conclusion that they all feel like severe downgrades from whatever I can find in Warcraft 3. The only exception to this that I can think is Bloons series, those are actually fun.

>>2062839 (OP)
>I don't like tutorials
Whole point of them is to get people who are interested with no experience to put down money for the game.

Have you played Axon TD? It's probably the most enjoyable one I've played in awhile because it actually did innovate with how you had to both maze using both towers and environment with some interesting towers

>>2062839 (OP)
Bloons is it sadly

>>2062858
Anon, I’ve just explained that I can not stand that bland eyesore that modern games call visuals and you point me right at another culprit. I’ve tried Red Alert 2 for the first time ever this year, one of prime things that motivated me to play the game were the visuals, the game has a pleasant, eye catching art-style and when I saw it I immediately thought “That looks cool, I want to try it out.” Look at the screenshot I attached, it is from the game Crusader: No Regret, you can’t tell me that it doesn’t look appealing and doesn’t catch your interest at least a little. And it’s why I keep trying out various old games, including the ones that were made even before I was born, because, aside from their other strong sides, they have catchy visuals, catchy music that make you want to try them out. Meanwhile, the modern games, including the example that you provided, have the exact opposite effects, they look so dull and uninspired that you just never want to do anything with them, even flash games made 15+ years ago, like Back2Back or Protector look and sound better than this.

I think it unironically peaked in Warcraft 3 custom games.

>>2062905
>Back2Back
That's an obscure thing to remember. My faves include Desert Planet, Overhaul, and Mars Commando.

wc3 was the peak
fucking sc2 customs were dogshit

>>2062905
>Anon begins to discover the concepts of "preference" and "taste"

>>2062839 (OP)
You know whats a fun Tower Defense game?
Revenge of the Titans.

Its a really fun game thats got a lot of polish for a Tower Defense game.

>>2062839 (OP)
Do you mean Real Time Strategy? Tower Defense is its own thing. Warcraft 3 is usually categorized as an RTS.

>>2062927
Meh, there was still room for improvement back then. I agree its been done to death, but if you mean tower defense games are for filthy casuals, well, you're not wrong, but get a life, fatty.

>>2063200
No, WC3 custom maps were a major hotbed of Tower Defense games, with a few of the earliest being Starcraft user map settings.

>>2063142
Don't try to brush it off as a matter of personal preferences alone, that's dishonest and you know it. Everyone who has eyes can see that Warcraft 3 provides an incredible framework for various custom games, coming with great visuals and sounds on top of that, evidently, much better than anything else that came over the years. Moreover, Warcraft 3 custom game format naturally prevented the addition of the aforementioned tedium. I see nothing wrong with the addition of plot or campaigns into TDs as long as they are not turned into glorified tutorials. Stop treating player like an imbecile and let him figure out things for himself, being spoonfed practically unlosable content is what creates boredom. It can be possible to kill two birds with one stone by making the campaign a series of challenges with various special rules, like T1 towers only or no more than 5 towers are allowed to be placed, or you no longer lose lives for leaking creeps, but you have to kill everyone, before the time runs out etc. That way it could serve as an introductory experience of sorts and provide entertainment for those, who don't want to just grind out endless survival, or serve as a temporary break for those who do. The "off map" progression and upgrades are just pointless, by investing into certain towers, you naturally limit the other ones, that by itself creates build variety, especially if the map or the game already features systematic upgrades, like element td, for example, where 6 element build is very different from 3 element build.

>>2063283
Be succinct

>>2063283
If you hate tutorials and like to figure things out on your own, you might like Infested Planet. Make sure to skip the Story Mode and jump straight into skirmish on Abyss difficulty, and if you want extra challenge, go with the Planetary Campaign on Expert difficulty or higher.

>>2063348
That one actually looks alright, I'll check it out someday, thanks.

I randomly found WitchCraft TD where the main mechanic was merging towers and sometimes selling towers in demand for extra profit. I only played the free browser version.

>wc3 bloons
there is no point in trying to be different or quirky besides you wont be quirky or different by parroting some youtubers anyways
wc3 and its mods were primitive back then let alone today go play more games

I like Tower Dominion

>>2062839 (OP)
i had a blast playing even blizzards preinstalled TD in frozen throne, this shit slaps

>has went

>>2063458
lmao

>>2062897
Not at all.

Kingdom Rush TD games are S-tier, easily the best. Such good quality, good music, great variety of units, 5 titles out there, lots to do in each, challenging on the highest difficulties.

Bloons doesn't come close to Kingdom Rush. It's B-tier at best.

>>2063437
Ew it's so hard to look at. I wouldn't even try it with those grainy pixelated graphics.

>>2063972
Looks okay. I might get it on a half-off sale in the future.

>>2066805
I also forgot to mention a notable runner-up for one of the better TD games, Defense Grid. First one was better than Defense Grid 2, but they both play virtually the same. The second game just had bloat with lots of options and modifiers you could choose on levels. It sounds good but it felt like there was too much to choose from. Base game played pretty much the same as the original Defense Grid though.

Anyway, Kingdom Rush best, then Defense Grid and Bloons kinda tie. Bloons is addictive, it's not bad, but it's bloated to hell now and there's no challenge except CHIMPS which you unlock on each stage by playing it 5x or so on easier settings. And it goes slow, even sped up. The rounds take forever and it's way too tedious.

>>2062942
You might like "Methus' TD". I can also recommend "The Last Shelter" which is well made but a bit simplistic.

>>2062839 (OP)
mindustry, dungeon of the endless, im sure theres more that have good twists on them.

I wonder why LOAP games were never made considering how popular they were as maps.

X-Morph Defense is fun.

>no mention of creeper world
dissapointed