User Review : Pixel Junk Monsters

Think Desktop Tower Defense with trees you turn into forts, and then dance in.

The follow-up to Q-Games' PixelJunk Racers, PixelJunk Monsters now graces your Playstation Store for a mere $7.99 of strategic good times. The jist of it? Think Desktop Tower Defense with trees you turn into forts, and then dance in; PixelJunk Monsters is real time strategy with it's fair share of whimsy. You'll feel like a kid again as you convert the local flora into surface to air defense towers all to protect the little creatures of the forest residing in your home base. No word yet on how all those creatures of the forest feel about you destroying their natural cover in favor of an arsenal, but I have to figure they prefer it to death by local monster. Each baddie that slips through your defenses takes down one hopping innocent, and if that isn't enough to get your defensive juices flowing there's always the money.

Every tree you convert to a tower costs you shiny gold ones, from 100 coins upwards. Where's a local mask-wearing tribesman of the woods getting all the cash? From defeating those renegade monsters, where else (haven't we all learned by now that dead bodies turn into money, weapons, or food?). After completion of the tutorial you'll have three different tower types unlocked for battle, and you'll want to be quick about learning their capabilities.

The bottom of the screen indicates which enemy onslaught is expected next so you can choose your weapons accordingly, and as with any strategy game preparation is critical. A lethal variable is what path the fiends will take to get to your base. Quick assessment of key locations and which weapon will work best are essential. Each weapon has a different range, and you'll be dismantling that canon tower lickity split when it's sitting idle as monsters traipse by.

When the cash dries up and you can't purchase towers, it's time to dance. The glorious rump-shaking upgrades your towers, and the colored flags raised indicate each level (black is the max). If time management is an issue and dancing to an upgrade isn't getting the job done, or you're just hurting for more firepower, be sure to collect those blue gems from defeated enemies as they will purchase the upgrades (which include range, power, and speed).

The first few levels are pretty straightforward, but don't let them lull you into a false sense of security. Ultimately, if thinking isn't your game you may as well give up. As you progress through the map take note of the difficulty you are attempting as well as the petals beneath the options. The petals indicate a special ability you can acquire - the first is the ability to run, which you'll quickly learn is a pretty satisfying reward. A perfect level (signaled by a rainbow) unlocks more levels, and with the acquisition of new talents you'll find yourself replaying areas and perfecting your strategy.

A typical level has ten rounds of varying monsters and a final boss round. I struggled with the waves of nasties more than the big bad; as long as your towers are well upgraded you're in good shape. The special levels have more than ten waves comprised of the same monster. This adds a nice variety to the gameplay if it simplifies the strategy a bit. In these rounds the focus lies even more with discerning which points on the map are essential to a strong defense.

Monsters' two-player co-op is stellar; between the two of you collecting goodies and upgrading towers, defense is much smoother. Go ahead and rope your girlfriend into playing, she'll love working on your communication skills. Don't have friends? That's too bad, because the game actually functions best as a multi-player experience, particularly if you find yourself stumped.

The mechanics are smooth, from scurrying around tree-to-tree to the simple action button and pop-up menu there's no fumbling through bad controls to view your defense choices. Another plus is that the default audio avoids the mind-numbing qualities of Loco Roco, and while the soundtrack might be unremarkable it's definitely not ear poison. Oh, and fear not, the game includes the now standard online leader board.

The fixed, isometrically viewed forest is, well, it's pretty darn cute. Strong graphics aren't really the point, but in case you've spent the past week glued to Call of Duty 4 and forgot what games used to look like let me gently ease you into PixelJunk Monsters 16-bit variety beauty. It's simple, it's gameplay driven, and it's good. 20 levels in total may not sound like enough bang for your buck, but once you're struggling to perfect your strategy and replaying levels for the third time you'll realize you're a PixelJunk junky.