Tower defense games have been popular since they first entered the gaming scene, and it’s easy to see why with their easy to learn but hard to master philosophy. Luckily for us all, there are multiple tower defenses available that are totally free of charge, and some of them arethe best the entire genre has to offer.
There are a lot of great reasons to check out a free tower defense game. If you are a veteran of the genre, it can be a good way to explore more of what it has to offer. If you’ve never played a single tower defense game in your life, one of these free-to-play options will be a fantastic introduction to this beloved strategy subgenre.
8Arknights
Arknights is a highly tactical tower defense game that incorporates many RPG elements. You take control of several operators who use their melee and puzzle-solving skills to optimally place characters on the correct tiles. As the difficulty increases, the number of viable solutions goes down drastically.
Arknights can be downloaded on mobile devices and desktop computers. Thanks to its unique gameplay and appealing anime art style, it has been a very successful tower defense game and would be a great introduction into this diverse genre.
7Frost & Flame: King of Avalon
Set in a medieval fantasy setting in the middle of a very brutal winter, King of Avalon has you protecting the body of King Arthur as he lies in his special frozen tomb. With a unique setting and premise for the tower defense genre, King of Avalon easily sets itself apart from other strategy games.
Frost & Flame: King of Avalon is not to be confused with the MMORPG King of Avalon: Dragon Warfare.
King of Avalon can be played as a PvE and a PvP game, giving it loads of replay value for a game that costs nothing at all. Use your best team building and research skills to defeat every horde of enemies as you search for Excalibur.
6Citywars Tower Defense
Citywars is already setting itself apart from other tower defense games with its visual style. It looks like it has more in common with Roblox or Minecraft than your usual strategy game, but don’t be entirely fooled by this book’s cover. Citywars is loaded with content that’s all designed to provide a strategic experience.
You can collect resources for crafting, building and upgrading towers, and learn and upgrade skills pertaining to luck, stamina, combat and defense. With 30 different unique towers to craft. Citywars can keep you busy for a while with customization alone.
5Idle Hero Tower Defense
If you want a more cozy and relaxing tower defense game that’s light on the strategy and thinking, Idle Hero is a very solid choice. As the name implies, this is an idle game, meaning most of the action will run autonomously after a few simple inputs on your end. This makes it a great game for sinking a lot of time into it without having to sink a lot of brain energy.
That doesn’t mean you can completely turn your brain off - there are still some puzzle-solving and planning elements involved. With thousands of unlockable rewards, including characters and upgrades, there’s so much content here that you’ll be very easily tempted into uncovering it all.
4Dungeon Tycoon: Prologue
Tower defense games are already known for their resource management, but Dungeon Tycoon: Prologue takes this to the next level. Survival and progress in this game highly depends on your ability to optimally manage locations, layouts, finances and economy. This is a more high-octanedungeon buildingstrategy game where every second matters, and is best played by people who feel they thrive in high stress situations.
Dungeon Tycoon: Prologue is not to be confused with the free demo of Dungeon Tycoon.
It’s not all stressful though, as Dungeon Tycoon: Prologue also has decorative features and research-based sidequests that are procedurally generated. Keep in mind that this is not to be confused with the main Dungeon Tycoon game, as this is a free version of the former.
3CounterSide
Though it may not seem like it at first, CounterSide is indeed a tower defense game - it just happens to be many other things at once, too. There are strong JRPG elements, real-time tactics, card game features, and it’s even a robust visual novel with a lot of dialogue too. This makes CounterSide one of the most unique tower defense games out there, especially for fans of anime-inspired content.
Counterside offers four different playable employees and seven classes for a wide variety of combat combinations. Whether you want to be a Mech Siege or a Soldier Sniper, there are many options to choose from, giving you the customization features any great tower defense game is expected to have.
2Bloons TD Battles 2
The Bloons franchise is one of the most iconic series in the history of tower defense games. Though Bloons 6 is especially acclaimed and popular, in part thanks to itsgreat selection of playable heroes, Bloons 2 is still considered one of the best in the series. Being a free-to-play game, it is highly recommended for all tower defense game fans, especially those who have yet to enter the Bloons universe.
Bloons games are known for their polish, and Bloons 2 is no exception. The art style is cute, the controls are crisp and the customizable builds all feel well-thought-out and well-balanced. It may look silly and simple on the surface, but this is a deep game that will require everything you’ve got to realize its true potential.
1Dungeon Defenders II
For years now, Dungeon Defenders 2 has been by far one of the most popular tower defense games of all time. Thanks to its multiplayer online co-op and cartoon fantasy setting, it has a huge player base that has only expanded since its launch in 2017.
Though Dungeon Defenders 2 is free to play, this applies to the base game. Fees are required for accessing extra content, such as Bundle of the Beast or Vault Packs.
With yearly and seasonal updates, Dungeon Defenders II has tons of expansions and packs you can acquire for extra content. Though they will cost a fee, the base game is still free to this day, making it one of the single best ways to introduce anyone to the world of tower defense strategy.
