Table of Contents HIDE
- The Last Spell
- Plants vs. Zombies
- Night of the Dead
- Defense Grid series
- Orcs Must Die! Series
- Dungeon Defenders series
- Kingdom Rush series
- Anomaly series
- Rogue Tower
- Bloons TD series
- Element TD 2
- Kingdom Two Crowns
- Mindustry
- Legion TD 2
- They Are Billions
- Factorio
- Age of Darkness: Final Stand
- The Riftbreaker
- Bad North: Jotunn Edition
- Diplomacy is Not an Option
- Tower Tactics: Liberation
- Iron Brigade
- Sanctum series
- X-Morph: Defense
- 2112TD: Tower Defense Survival
- Rise to Ruins
- Northend Tower Defense
- Ratropolis
- Warpips
- Dungeon of the ENDLESS™
- Prime World: Defenders series
- CastleStorm
- Taur
- GemCraft – Chasing Shadows
- GROSS
- Spirits of the Hellements
- Grim Nights
- 7 Days to Die
- MarZ: Tactical Base Defense
- Dark Prospect
Tower defense is a popular video game genre that has been around since the early 2000s. In this type of game, players must defend a specific area from waves of enemies by strategically placing defensive structures along a predetermined path. These structures can range from turrets and traps to barriers and walls. The goal of the game is to prevent the enemy from reaching the end of the path, which typically results in a loss of health or game over. The genre is known for its simple yet addictive gameplay, which requires players to think quickly and make decisions on the fly.
One of the defining features of tower defense games is their emphasis on strategy and planning. Players must carefully consider the placement and upgrading of their defensive structures to ensure that they are effective against the different types of enemies they will face. As the game progresses, the enemies become stronger and more numerous, requiring players to adapt their strategies and tactics on the fly. This can create a sense of tension and excitement as players try to stay one step ahead of the enemy.
This large collection brings together the best tower defense games for PC.
The Last Spell
The Last Spell is a tactical RPG with roguelite elements that takes place in a world devastated by magic. Players are tasked with defending their city against hordes of deadly enemies while attempting to cast The Last Spell, a powerful incantation that will banish all magic from the world. During the day, players must prepare their heroes, rebuild their Haven, and position their defenses strategically. At night, they must use a variety of weapons and skills to exterminate the monsters trying to breach their walls. Each map ends with an epic fight against unique, mind-bending bosses.
The game offers a flurry of stats, skills, perks, traits, and tons of items, including armors, weapons, trinkets, and potions. Players can even build their own classes by upgrading heroes with stat bonuses and perks and equipping gear of their choice. The game is designed to be hard, but players can tailor their runs thanks to limited Omens that offer bonuses such as more Action Points, more characters, sturdier defenses, and better loot.
Plants vs. Zombies
One of the most popular tower defense games for PC is Plants vs. Zombies. Players can choose to play as plants or zombies in different game modes such as Herbal Assault, 4-player co-op, and solo play. The game offers a variety of playable characters including 14 different classes and more than 100 plants and zombies. Additionally, the Backyard Battleground allows players to complete daily quests and interact with their favorite PvZ characters. With 12 maps full of personality and humor, players can join the battle for Suburbia and discover hidden secrets along the way.
Night of the Dead
Tower defense games not always fit into one specific genre, as is the case with Night of the Dead. The player assumes the role of Lucy, who is stranded in a city full of zombies after a human experiment gone wrong. The objective is to survive the zombie waves that occur at night while also gathering materials to build and upgrade bases, fortresses, and traps. Players must also find food through hunting and farming, craft items and equipment, and search for clues through journals to escape.
Defense Grid series
Classic of the tower defense genre, Defense Grid series challenges players to strategically place towers to defend against waves of enemies. The game features 21 maps, dynamic level movement, hundreds of challenge mode experiences, and multiplayer modes. With a level creation tool set, players can create and share their own unique levels.
Orcs Must Die! Series
One of the most unusual tower defense games, Orcs Must Die! 3 allows solo or 2-player co-op gameplay where players use a vast array of traps and weapons to defeat hordes of orcs. The game introduces new War Scenarios with massive orc armies and Mountable War Machines for even more destruction. With a new story set 20 years after Orcs Must Die! 2, players can enjoy new War Scenarios and War Machines along with endless mode and weekly challenges. Additionally, the free Drastic Steps campaign adds flying enemies and war guardians to the game. Finally, the new Scramble Mode introduces evolving and increasingly difficult enemies.
Dungeon Defenders series
Pay your attention to Dungeon Defenders 2, a game where you build defenses to protect Etheria from enemy attacks, then jump into battle to take down the hordes yourself or with up to three friends in online co-op. Choose from a variety of heroes, each with their unique abilities and defenses, and equip them with loot and shards to customize their loadouts. Build laser beams, flamethrowers, and other defenses to keep the Eternia Crystals safe. Explore different environments like forests, castles, and temples, and expect regular updates with new content, including heroes, maps, and loot.
Kingdom Rush series
If you’re looking for a tower defense game, Kingdom Rush Vengeance from the Kingdom Rush game series has got you covered! With 20 new towers, each with their unique abilities and upgrades, and 15 powerful heroes at your command, you’ll need to strategize to take on 60+ deadly enemies and 6 mighty bosses. With 31 challenging stages and 7 different realms to conquer, you’ll have hours of gameplay to explore and discover new lands. And with Vez’nan, the almighty wizard, returning to lead his dark army, it’s time for some royal vengeance in the kingdom!
Anomaly series
Anomaly is one of the oldest tower defense game series and Anomaly Defenders is the final battle against the humans, where you defend the alien homeworld from human invaders using 8 upgradable towers and special functions such as repair, rage, and explode. The attacking human troops can damage and destroy your defenses, and you need to react and counterattack enemies on the battlefield at all times. The game offers a full-blown tech-tree to tailor unique strategies, and you can outsmart humans by deploying towers that force them to change their movement path. There are 24 unique levels set on orbital stations and undiscovered lands to protect, and three difficulty levels adjusted for both new and hardcore players.
Rogue Tower
Rogue Tower is a tower defense game with roguelike elements where you strategically place towers on an expanding path to defend your tower. Tower placement is crucial as they get a bonus to damage based on their elevation, and the path’s shape and direction can be influenced to control how enemies move. Upgrade and unlock towers through randomly drawn cards, gain experience to unlock further upgrades, and face increasingly complex enemies. With over 400 unique cards and upgrades, there is nearly endless replayability.
Bloons TD series
Despite the cartoony graphics, Bloons TD is a serious strategy game where players craft their perfect defense using Monkey Towers, upgrades, Heroes, and activated abilities to pop invading Bloons. The game features massive and ever-expanding content updates, including 4-player co-op, boss events, and Odysseys. With 22 powerful Monkey Towers, 13 diverse Heroes, and over 100 meta-upgrades, the game offers endless possibilities. Additionally, players can earn Powers and Insta Monkeys through gameplay, events, and achievements. Bloons TD 6 also contains in-game items that can be purchased with real money, and disabling in-app purchases is possible.
Element TD 2
Sometimes, tower defense players need a challenge and Element TD 2 delivers just that. With 59 towers, 6 elements that combine to create unique defenses, and up to 8 player co-op, players will need to plan their defenses carefully to withstand waves of enemies, bosses, and modifiers. The singleplayer campaign offers 28 missions across 26 maps with unique biomes, while War mode and global servers provide competitive gameplay. Unlockable cosmetics let you customize your builder, and with replay support, you can learn strategies from other players to become the top scorer.
Kingdom Two Crowns
Even if you don’t like strategy games, Kingdom Two Crowns offers a minimalist, modern pixel art aesthetic where you play as a monarch on a steed recruiting loyal subjects, building your kingdom and defending it from greedy creatures. The brand-new campaign mode challenges monarchs to build a lasting kingdom and defeat the Greed. You can play solo or cooperate with a friend, locally or online. In addition to the traditional medieval setting, the game offers two new settings: Dead Lands, with gothic horror traits and unique mounts, and Shogun, with a feudal Japan-inspired landscape and mythological beasts. The game will continue to offer new themed settings in post-release updates.
Mindustry
Something unusual about Mindustry is that it combines factory building, tower defense, and RTS elements to create one of the best tower defense games on PC. The player must create complex supply chains using conveyor belts to feed ammo into turrets and produce materials for building. The game has a campaign mode where players conquer different planets, and they can also play with friends in cross-platform multiplayer co-op or team-based PvP matches. The game has a vast array of technology blocks, units, and achievements to unlock. In addition, players can use the Steam workshop to browse community-made maps and mods and even create their own maps to share with others.
Legion TD 2
If you like an immersive multiplayer tower defense game, Legion TD 2 is the game for you. Defend your lane against endless waves of enemies with over 100 unique fighters, auras, and spells. Choose your playstyle by building defensively, playing offensively, or prioritizing economy. Master your legions with 8 unique legions and over 100 fighters. Party with 1-8 players in 2v2 and 4v4 matchmade games. Enjoy single-player/co-op campaign and 5 levels of AI’s. With 9+ years of development and driven by both data and feedback, the game offers infinite replayability and best-in-the-world game balance. Legion TD 2 also offers stats, esports, fairplay detection system, and weekly challenges. No pay to win, in-game purchases are 100% cosmetic.
They Are Billions
This strategy game, They Are Billions, is set in a post-apocalyptic world where zombies have taken over. The game features a campaign mode with 48 missions and a survival mode where players must build fortified colonies to survive against swarms of infected. The game allows players to pause the action to make strategic decisions, and they can build and manage their colonies by collecting resources, expanding energy distribution, and building walls and structures to protect against the infected. Players can also train and contract mercenaries to help defend their colonies. With custom engine, the game can handle hordes of thousands of infected creatures, and players must prevent the infection from spreading. The game has beautiful 4K graphics with a Steampunk and Victorian style.
Factorio
Don’t be surprised of having Factorio in this collection, as this game can be defined as tower defense as well. In Factorio, you’ll start by manually chopping trees and mining resources, but eventually, you’ll create an industrial empire, using automated machines to extract, process and manufacture. The planet’s natives are not happy with your environmental impact, so you’ll have to defend your factories from their attacks. Multiplayer mode lets you collaborate with others to create even larger factories, and mods allow you to tweak the game to your liking. Scenarios provide additional challenges, and the Map Editor lets you create your own custom gameplay experiences.
Age of Darkness: Final Stand
One of the best tower defense games on PC, Age of Darkness puts you in a desperate last stand against an endless onslaught of evil. Fight against the darkness with the power of light and fire, and hold the line against the swarms of Nightmares that crawl up through fissures in the earth. Survive Death Nights and random afflictions, and choose blessings to enrich your experience. Use powerful and unique Heroes to lead the charge against the horrors of the night, but beware of the Elite roaming champions of the Nightmares. Build defenses, expand territory, and fight against the darkness to claim victory.
The Riftbreaker
This game is very similar to a combination of base-building and survival games. You play as Captain Ashley S. Nowak, also known as the Riftbreaker, who enters a one-way portal to Galatea 37 with the goal of building a two-way rift back to Earth. As you construct your base and disrupt the planet’s natural order, you will face attacks from thousands of hostile creatures. The game also features exploration, with varied biomes and unknown fauna and flora to discover. The campaign spans multiple hours and offers a remarkable degree of freedom in a detailed, procedurally generated world. Additionally, the game offers a survival mode with randomized missions, a sandbox mode with full control, and customizable gameplay options.
Bad North: Jotunn Edition
If you like real-time tactics games, Bad North: Jotunn Edition is a charmingly brutal roguelite where you defend your idyllic island kingdom against Viking invaders. Your soldiers navigate and engage intuitively, but lose a commander and they’re gone forever. Strategize carefully around each island’s unique layout, as everything is at stake. Develop your subjects into seasoned warriors with greater rewards from a stronger, smarter defense. Lead the desperate exodus of your people, not for power or riches or glory, but for hope of peace to come once again in the harsh lands of the Bad North.
Diplomacy is Not an Option
This collection would not be complete without Diplomacy is Not an Option, a tower defense game for PC. As a minor Lord in a kingdom plagued by rebellions and neglected infrastructure, you must defend against over 10,000 enemy units and make difficult decisions to save the kingdom. Physics, society, economy, magic, and freedom are all vital to success in this game as you strategically place towers and defenses, manage resources, and battle with the enemy. With no peaceful resolution in sight, it’s up to you to save the kingdom and restore stability.
Tower Tactics: Liberation
A 2D tower defense game can also become a deck-building roguelike experience in Tower Tactics: Liberation. Players deploy towers, collect trinkets, and cast spells to fend off the Salkoth. Each game features procedurally generated maps, changing layouts, and a wide assortment of towers and spells to choose from. With more than 150 cards and 120 trinkets, players can craft unique decks and find powerful relics to enhance them. The game also features over 30 different offerings to increase power, more than 60 combat environments, and 30 mysterious events. With 18 decks with completely different combat strategies, players must ascend to the highest level and invoke the power of the Shrine for a chance at victory.
Iron Brigade
Do you like battle robots? Then join Iron Brigade and defend humanity against the evil Monovision in this Tower Defense Shooter from Double Fine Productions. Use both mobile firepower and stationary defenses to overcome the enemy across Europe, Africa, and the Pacific. With thousands of possible loadouts, customize your trench and fight alongside allies from around the world. After defeating the monovision threat, continue your service with Iron Brigade: Rise of the Martian Bear, facing new enemies in a brand new Martian Campaign and unlocking over 80 new pieces of loot to fight in 4 defense missions, 2 survival missions, and an all-new Boss mission.
Sanctum series
Sanctum 2 is a Tower Defense/FPS hybrid game where players pick from four unique character classes to protect the oxygen-producing Cores from hordes of deadly aliens. Players can choose their own loadout of towers, weapons, and perks to defend against the unrelenting hordes. The game combines elements from multiple genres, allowing players to construct towers and walls during the building phase and then jump into the fray and blast everything to pieces in FPS mode. The game features a vast customization system, a progression system, and a 4-player co-op mode.
X-Morph: Defense
An unusual game, X-Morph: Defense is a unique fusion of top-down shooter and tower defense strategy for PC. As an alien invader, you must harvest Earth’s resources while defending your harvesters from waves of incoming human forces. Strategize in the build mode to carefully select various types of alien towers or throw yourself right into the heat of the battle. Tear down buildings and collapse bridges to support your defense or to indulge in a spectacle of destruction. Possess a range of unique alien weapons and use defense strategies like never before. The game offers split screen co-op mode, unique boss fights, and fully destructible environments that influence gameplay.
2112TD: Tower Defense Survival
2112TD: Tower Defense Survival is a fresh tower defense game that was released in January 2023. Set 100 years in the future, players battle inter-dimensional flesh spawn across the solar system to defend Earth’s colonies from complete annihilation. The game’s pace is steady, but the stakes are high as hordes of enemies amass to overrun your mobile command center. Unlike traditional TD games, micro-managing dynamic action-based abilities such as airstrikes, charged attacks, fortification walls, and the tactical drone is crucial. Mistakes are punished, so strategic deployment of your arsenal is key.
The campaign offers various difficulty levels, including normal, hard, nightmare, and survival. Players can upgrade their towers and unlock new abilities and weapons through research. With an artistic style inspired by the nostalgia of the RTS golden era, players can immerse themselves in the game’s world and dominate the battlefield.
Rise to Ruins
Rise to Ruins combines classic real-time strategy and resource management games with godlike elements, tower defense, and survival mechanics. Players manage their village, defend it from monsters, expand during the day, and survive as long as possible. The game offers several modes: Survival, Traditional, Nightmare, Peaceful, Sandbox, and Custom. It also includes godlike abilities to alter terrain, blast enemies, pick up objects, heal villagers, and more. Additionally, there are tower defense mechanics to protect the village at night, hand-made world maps with different biomes, and an original soundtrack. The game is DRM-free, and players receive frequent content patches for free.
Northend Tower Defense
One of the best tower defense games for PC, Northend Tower Defense, offers innovative real-time action gameplay, allowing players to be the Commander of their own army and make instant decisions that will affect the outcome of battles. With over 20 unique units, each with their own strengths and weaknesses, including vehicles, airplanes, and tanks, and 8 different battlefields such as desert, beach, trench, and city, each round presents new challenges and strategic decisions to make. With over 77 upgrades, 4 passive powers, and 5 abilities, players can customize their army to suit the challenges they face. Players can also control the Commander directly and use skill mechanics to defeat their enemies in big battles with many units on both sides, all of which is optimized for smooth gameplay.
Ratropolis
When you play Ratropolis, you combine elements of roguelite, deck building, and tower defense in real-time strategy gameplay. Your mission is to lead your small rat outpost to safety and defend your rat citizens from predators and monstrous creatures. Build the largest ‘Ratropolis!’ by choosing from over 500 cards of economy, building, military, and skill types to execute your strategic command. Defend your rats with aid from advisers and unlock new cards to expand your options and make each defense a new experience. With unique gameplay and high replayability, lead Ratropolis to victory and save your Ratizens from destruction!
Warpips
This tower defense game, Warpips, combines the gameplay of Command and Conquer and Nexus Wars, allowing you to assemble your army from a diverse roster of infantry, vehicles and airplanes. With no micromanagement, you can focus on the big picture and launch missiles, deploy troops, and call down airstrikes. The game features randomly generated battles that offer different strategic combinations each time you play, and an unlockable upgrade tree that enables you to choose complementary unit synergies. The physics-based combat leads to explosive battles that are easy to learn but hard to master. Best of all, there are no microtransactions or pay-to-win elements.
Dungeon of the ENDLESS™
In the space, a group of condemned criminals is being shipped to the Auriga system on board the prison hulk “Success”. Upon arrival, the ship is destroyed, and the surviving prisoners fall to the planet below, which turns out to be an ancient dungeon belonging to the Endless civilization. The player must form a team of heroes, equip them, and manage their strengths and weaknesses while building defenses using the resources they collect. Each door represents a new challenge, as they explore an infinite number of levels and layouts while fighting off waves of monsters and carrying their crystal to the exit of each level. They must make their way to the surface to uncover the truth about Auriga. The game features four-player co-op, and players must manage the balance between ex-prison inmates and guards while earning powerful abilities and discovering life-saving technologies in the Endless ruins.
Prime World: Defenders series
If you’re looking for multiplayer tower defense, Prime World: Defenders 2 is a great choice. Battle against monsters and other players in a 3D fantasy world, using towers, spells, and tricks to protect your castle and conquer new lands. With a variety of challenging battles and unique towers to choose from, put your strategic skills to the test and become the best defender in Praya.
CastleStorm
Castle defense can be defined as one of the popular tower defense genres. CastleStorm, one of the best tower defense games for PC, combines 2D physics destruction with tower defense brawler. Players control the battle in real-time using medieval artillery, ground attacks, and powerful spells. The game features a story-driven solo campaign, a custom castle editor, and online multiplayer/co-op modes. Players construct custom castles that determine the types of troops and resources available during battle. With multiple paths to victory, players can capture the flag, destroy the castle, or complete other objectives. An arsenal of weapons including explosives, ground troops, and spells is available for use. Powering up unlocks new weapons and troop classes for use in battle.
Taur
In Taur, a sci-fi action-strategy game developed by Echo Entertainment, players control the powerful Prime Cannon with primary and secondary weapons while unlocking and upgrading different weapons and abilities to defeat the galactic droid empire known as the Imperion. Players must use resources gained from secured war zones to build auto-turrets, droids, aircraft, and more to defend against various types of attacks. The game features destructible environments where every unit, structure, tree, and plant can be destroyed, leading to tactical advantages or disadvantages. Players must prevent the planet of Taurea from falling into Imperion hands and defeat the Imperion Overlord to end the campaign.
GemCraft – Chasing Shadows
GemCraft – Chasing Shadows is a tower defense game for PC that pits you against waves of demonic avatars. You must use magical gems to create powerful attacks that can be placed atop towers, traps, and amplifiers. With fast-paced real-time strategy and cunning tactics, you can poison or slow your enemies with traps, discover powerful artifacts, and unlock new abilities. The game features over 190 unique stages with different challenges, passive skills to level up and enhance your power, over 400 achievements that will reward you with more skill points, and the ability to craft and combine nine different gem types. With the option to control the speed of battle and replay completed stages for more rewards, GemCraft – Chasing Shadows is a deep and rewarding strategy game.
GROSS
Each game from this collection has its own unique mechanics, and GROSS is no exception – it’s a thrilling combination of tower defense and first person shooter genres. Build barricades and turrets to create mazes and launch attacks on waves of enemy attackers, experiment with different combinations of defenses, and get ready for intense, fast-paced combat. With a huge arsenal of guns and a range of active abilities, you’ll have to make split-second decisions to take down waves of zombies and gather valuable resources. Every action you take has consequences, so stay sharp and stay ahead of the game to come out on top in GROSS.
Spirits of the Hellements
Some tower defense games may seem repetitive, but not Spirits of the Hellements. In this game, you must strategically use Fire, Lightning, and Wind tiles to create a maze and defeat the endless hordes of Hell. The Hellements can also be used to augment your defenses or inflict debuffs on your enemies. With blessings to create unique mazes and diverse Spirit builds, only the most masterful strategists will succeed in this epic battle.
Grim Nights
Underground exploration, resource gathering, and village expansion are just the beginning of Grim Nights’ survival strategy gameplay. Train soldiers and defend against waves of undead enemies in this indie game, featuring randomly generated villagers with unique abilities, 11 unit types to train, and 15 enemy types to face. With three different maps and a mix of RTS, tower defense, and management elements, Grim Nights offers a roughly 7-8 hour single player experience with the option to continue playing for as long as you like.
7 Days to Die
7DTD is not a tower defense game in the classic sense, but it definitely can be defined as one due to its mechanics. In a post-apocalyptic world overrun by the undead, players must gather resources, craft weapons, and build a fort to survive against hordes of zombies that become progressively harder. The game features an open-world with huge unique environments, 5 different biomes, and worlds up to 100 square kilometers in size. Players can also design their fort with traps, electric power, auto turrets, and defensive positions. Additionally, they can choose to cooperate or compete with other players to build settlements or raid other player’s bases. With over 60 unique zombie archetypes, real hardcore survival mechanics, and an extensive crafting system, 7DTD is the definitive zombie survival sandbox RPG that offers infinite possibilities.
MarZ: Tactical Base Defense
What about tower defense for PC? MarZ: Tactical Base Defense is a strategy game where you must build and manage your defense base to fight against hordes of undead on Mars. With a 20-mission story campaign and multiple game modes, including skirmish and outbreak mode, you’ll have to carefully research and upgrade your towers to survive. Use the Marsform map editor to create custom maps and share them on Steam Workshop, and uncover the terrible secrets of the undead on Mars. With Twitch integration and localization in nine languages, MarZ offers endless possibilities for tower defense fans.
Dark Prospect
In Dark Prospect, players can choose to play as a soldier in a first-person shooter or as the overlord in a real-time strategy game. As a soldier, you must gather resources, craft weapons, and defend the Plasma Cannon from the overlord’s monsters. As the overlord, you control an army of creatures with special abilities, cast spells, and gather souls to make your monsters stronger to destroy the soldier’s base. With five different maps, players can choose to control the RTS gameplay or use AI, while FPS teams can be filled with bots. Custom games with various settings are also available, with up to 32 players and in-game communication options.
Tower defense for PC is a diverse and engaging genre that continues to thrive even in the era of ultra-modern graphics. From the post-apocalyptic world of They Are Billions, to the undead hordes of MarZ: Tactical Base Defense, and the demon-infested battlegrounds of Dark Prospect, these games offer a unique blend of strategy, resource management, and intense action. Whether you’re a veteran fan or a newcomer to the genre, there’s never been a better time to dive into the world of tower defense gaming.