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I wanted a tower defense game that felt more tactical…

So I built one using chess pieces.

In Rook Tower TD – Chess Defense, every piece has a unique role:
Fire, Ice, Lightning, Speed, Economy.

Simple controls.
Clean strategy.
Endless enemy waves.

No complicated systems —
just positioning, timing, and smart decisions.

Built for iPhone & iPad.
Game Center leaderboard included.

Made for players who enjoy chess, strategy, and premium-feeling gameplay ♟️

Free Lifetime giveaways 🎁 (24 hours)

App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6759969110

I used to played that combines TD with roguelike elements, which gave me some fresh experience. Got tired of the traditional TD gameplay.

I've been vibecoding since early this year in my own startup, I usually collaborate on back-end and tracking solutions for online advertising. I am by no means a designer (I work a lot with talented ones) but I wanted to test my skills on creating a small project. I had the idea of a game similar to Factorio but in a way more casual way with competetive with a high replay value. I came up with a simple Factory tower defense game that keeps going forever.

I used Claude Code (Mostly Opus 4.8) and host it all on my own server.

You can find the entire codebase is also public at https://github.com/MelsomNO/orbit-factory-defence

If it is of interest I can also add the full session log in the repo with the prompts used.

I hope you enjoy it and I would love some feedback!

Instructions:

You start with nothing. Tap & drag ore (◆) from resource nodes onto HQ to bootstrap. HQ refines ore into plates (▣). Convey plates into ammunition plants to produce bullets (●) or missiles (▲). Convey ammo into your turrets.

The full chain:

◆ Node → Harvester → Conveyor → HQ → Conveyor → Bullet Plant → Conveyor → Gun Turret
                                  └→ Conveyor → Missile Plant → Conveyor → Missile Turret
                                  └→ ⚡ Power Plant → Laser Turret (uses global power)

Turrets each hold up to 10 ammo (more with storage upgrades). Lasers draw from a global ⚡ power pool fed by Power Plants — no ammo belts needed.

I want to buy a roguelite tower defence game and it seems these are the best but what has more content?

My grandpa came over last weekend and he was looking at my PC setup and asking what all the screens were for and stuff, and I figured why not just show him. I had a few games open and he seemed kinda interested in watching so I let him sit down and try a couple things himself.

Most of them were way too much for him, like he could not figure out WASD to save his life and anything with camera controls was an immediate no. But then I put Kingdom Rush on because I figured the click to place mechanics would be simple enough, and this man got HOOKED. Like he played for like two hours straight without looking up. He kept calling the units "them little guys" and would get so hyped when a big wave got wiped out before reaching the end. He beat the first few levels on his own and only needed help when the hero abilities unlocked, just cuz he didn’t really use them until I explained. Then I fired up Blitzkrieg Express for him, that was the simplest game I had installed and he loved that too. It was like watching a kid play in some ways, he would get really excited when he caused a big explosion or chain reaction. We had a lot of fun so now I’ve decided to hook him up with my old computer (it's gathering dust anyway). So now he has a 1060 GTX and 32 gigs of ram to work with, I think it's fine for him.

The thing is he's 72 and has never played a video game in his life before this. He grew up on chess and card games so I think the strategic aspect of TD just clicked with his brain in a way that other genres definitely wouldn't, and being able to pause the game is really important, he likes to take his time. I called him the next day to tell him I would be getting him a computer so he can play at home and he sounded pretty stoked.

I want to set him up with a few more games but I want to make sure they're accessible enough that he won't get frustrated and give up. What are the absolute easiest and simplest TD games you can think of? I wanna give him more options to choose from, and slowly work him up to more complex games, I think he can handle it once he gets used to playing a bit.

It's free, it's a maze, it will personally judge your life choices.

Would really appreciate some feedback. Pls tell your buddies.

https://reddit.com/link/1um2fp2/video/caq28hxmixah1/player

Serendia: Random Gear Defense is a defense game built around randomized equipment drops, gear combinations, and surviving increasingly difficult enemy waves.

Instead of following a fixed build path, you adapt to the equipment you find, combine pieces into stronger setups, and try to build a strategy that can hold out as the waves become more difficult.

What the game focuses on:

• Creating different builds through random equipment combinations instead of following one fixed path.
• Reaching tense late-game moments where the setup you built barely holds the line against overwhelming waves.
• Adapting each run based on the equipment you find and trying new strategies as the difficulty ramps up.

I’ve been developing the game for about 3 years as a solo developer from Korea. After its original Steam launch about a year and a half ago, I reworked a large part of the experience, including the core systems, UI, graphics, balance, and overall game flow.

A playable demo is available on Steam.

I’ve been thinking about first-person / third-person tower defense hybrids like Sanctum, Dungeon Defenders, and Orcs Must Die.

The tricky part seems to be that the game can easily split into two separate halves: first you build, then you shoot. The best versions make both sides affect each other. Building changes how you fight, and fighting makes the layout matter more.

For people who enjoy this subgenre, what makes it work for you? Strong tower strategy, satisfying direct combat, clever enemy pathing, meaningful upgrades,

or the way all of those systems connect?

I’m especially curious what makes the hybrid feel like one game instead of two games stitched together.