For Defense Grid: The Awakening on the Xbox 360, GameFAQs has 2 FAQs (game guides and walkthroughs).

Released a little over six months ago on Steam, Defense Grid: The Awakening has finally made the jump from online retail channel to brick and mortar stores with the announcement in June that it would be made available in most retail outlets.As the name suggests, Defense Grid: The Awakening is a game of tower defense where the objective is to repulse an alien invasion. The plot is a fig leaf at best. The player is assisted by a sleepy advisor (thus the?awakening?) whose memory is stored in a computer. He acts more as a cheerleader (?Bam!?) than anything else, though from time to time advice on new technology will pop up. With a strange fixation on raspberries, the voice is effectively just color narrative to an otherwise blank landscape devoid of human life.Selecting a scenario.The aliens appear to be a cross between insects and machines and the towers are stylized, well, towers with guns on them.Close up of an alien and tower.Initially the choices for which towers to use is limited, as is the path the aliens can take to find the player?s power cores and steal them. The enemy?s objective is simple: steal all the player?s power cores. The player?s objective is to weather a specified number of waves of alien assaults.

As the game progresses new tower technologies are introduced along with an increased number of choices for the player to guide the aliens along.The aliens stealing cores.Playing Defense Grid: The Awakening is an exercise in maximizing surface area. As the aliens attempt to penetrate the player?s defenses the key is to ensure that at every opportunity there is a tower pumping out damage to it. In the later maps the player is given a fair amount of freedom to direct the path of the aliens (aliens won?t cross through tower boundaries unless there is no clear bath to the objective power cores). The more byzantine the path, the longer it takes to reach the cores, the more damage can be inflicted on the aliens. On many maps the aliens then have to make a return trip through the same path, though on others the exit point is elsewhere.

Some maps are trickier than others, and sometimes the optimal path is not obvious, but in all cases the objective remains constant: destroy the enemy?s units before he makes off with your power cores. Graphics & SoundThe map is a static isometric view. The player can move along the X-Y axis and has three levels of zoom, though I used the furthest level out to see most of the map. The zoom levels are nice for watching the graphics as the enemy units get hammered, but provide no utility for the game.A temporal unit slows the aliens.Aside from the occasional commentary and narration from the computer, the only sound is lofty but subtle background music and the constant symphony of tower defense guns rattling and thundering.

I have to pause for a moment to highlight this aspect. Too often sounds are overlooked in games, but in Defense Grid: The Awakening there is an orchestra of sound rattling constantly, and it?s actually quite relaxing to slowly build a maze of defense towers into which the enemy casually strolls.

The blend of sound, music, and graphics can be soothing, and I admit that even after playing Defense Grid: The Awakening all the way through to the end, it?s still enjoyable to fire up a game, pick a map, and play through it. The challenge of building a perfect maze or beating a high score is, for me, secondary to the simple pleasure of creating a nearly (note: nearly) stress free environment of defense towers. There is challenge in Defense Grid: The Awakening.Setting up a maze.My defense grid - further evolved.Examining the path of the enemy's ground and air units.The player?s primary challenge is to select a blend of towers that offer an optimal mix of direct fire, area fire, and indirect fire towers.

In addition, there is a specific tower that slows time (temporal), one used exclusively against air units (missile). Some enemy units have force fields that protect themselves and sometimes other units.

Thus the player has to create not only a maze that slows the progress of enemy units, often appearing as an endless snake of units slowly trudging toward your cores, but has to do so with a blend of units that can weaken, slow, or otherwise damage the enemy?s units as quickly as possible. The challenge of choosing towers (which vary by cost, range, damage, and rate of fire) is complicated by the eventual need to upgrade the towers to improve their abilities. Should the temporal tower be upgraded first to increase the area it slows units?

Or should the inferno tower (which tosses streams of flames) be upgraded in order to increase the numbers of units attacked? Or should the cannon be upgraded, which can only target one unit at a time but deals massive amounts of damage when it fires?Selecting a tower.

. WW: July 7, 2010Mode(s)Defense Grid: The Awakening is a developed by for and on the. The game was one of the titles promoted by during their keynote speech on February 20, 2008. The game was released for on December 8, 2008 and for on September 2, 2009.

The version shipped from Virtual Programming on July 7, 2010.Players must defend military bases from waves of attacking aliens by positioning a range of tower-based weaponry. New levels provided as downloadable content have been developed in the two years since the game's initial release. Reviewers praised the game, with many noting that the quality of the game was high for a budget title.From July 1 to July 16 of 2013, Microsoft made the game available free to Xbox 360 Gold members.

This giveaway was part of Microsoft's 'Games With Gold' Program. A grinder challenge on the Veil of Ice level with health indicators on.The player must defend power cores, which are usually located at a power station, from the invading enemy using ten different tower types. Tower construction is limited to specific platforms. Towers cannot be destroyed by the enemies.Good tower placement is the key strategic object of the game. Each tower has unique trade-offs that affect ideal placement, such as line-of-sight or ballistic trajectory fire; a large area of effect or damage over time; and minimum and maximum ranges. The 'insectoid' enemies arrive in waves and travel along elevated pathways which connect various structures found at the bases.

Killing enemies earns resources, which can be used to build more towers and upgrade towers toward two stronger levels. Rescue the enchanter walkthrough games. Depending on the tower type an upgrade will provide a more powerful attack, an increased rate of fire and increased range. Tower strength is denoted by the colours green, yellow and red.

Towers may be sold (removed) if resources are needed or a player wants to alter pathways. Resources earn interest with the rate increasing the more resources are obtained.

The tower defenses are supplemented by the use of an orbital which completely destroys all aliens in its blast zone in one strike. The laser is not available in early missions and takes time to recharge. No resources are earned from enemies destroyed by the orbital laser.During the game, the player battles fifteen types of enemies, each with unique capabilities and strategies. Some aliens are protected by shields which have to be destroyed first before the alien's will decrease. The aliens will always take the shortest route and some of the aliens fly, requiring towers with aerial weapons for defense. The invaders are able to carry between one and three power cores. If an alien is killed while carrying a core, the orb will slowly float back to the power station.

While returning the power core can be grabbed by an alien which will then head for the exit without reaching the power station. A ticker at the top of the screen advises players of the approaching alien wave's formation.Players have the ability to speed up a game, along with being able to see weapons' range and aerial aliens path, and can also revert to a previously, automatically saved checkpoint. Defense Grid can be viewed at three different levels of zoom. When a level is successfully completed a set of challenges using the same map become available. Players earn medals depending on how well they complete a level. A leaderboard that provides a comparative ranking of player's game scores and other statistics is available.Plot The story is based on alien invasion of a planet that has a dormant defense grid.

As the player is re-activating the defense system with the assistance of a computer to control the machinery and with only limited resources, the aliens attempt to steal power cores. Power cores are 'tiny floating orbs' that provide vital power to the defense grid. Cores are carried by aliens, and when the aliens carrying them die, the cores are dropped, and will slowly float back to their central holder. Once all power cores have been taken from the level, the game is over.

Only one power core needs to remain when the last wave of aliens are defeated to complete a level.Defense Grid is set in the distant future. Most levels feature ancient ruins with defensive military bases built amongst the decaying structures. The game was originally planned to be set amongst an urban environment which has been ravaged by war but that was changed to something more original. The main character in the game, which is called Fletcher, is a computer with human-like qualities that wants to protect his homeworld from destruction.Development During development, which started in late 2007, the game was known as Last Stand. The development team were aiming to create a standard tower defense game but in 3D, downloadable and with high production values.The game was created by Mark Terrano, the lead designer of, and uses the engine. Defense Grid also uses the GFx user interface engine. The lead designer for the game was Michael Austin.

Lex Story contributed to the design of the 30 different towers which appear in the game. Downloadable content Defense Grid: Borderlands was the first set of new levels provided as. Defense Grid: Resurgence was announced on 29 May 2010 by Hidden Path Entertainment. The downloadable content is made up of eight new maps, released in installments of two maps each week throughout June 2010. Each map includes a campaign mode and four challenge modes. The content is available for PC and Xbox 360.In December 2011, Defense Grid: You Monster was released for PC and Xbox 360. Featuring the character from, the add-on pack offers a new story mode of eight levels and 35 challenges.

In preparation for the release, Hidden Path updated the core game with user interface enhancements, new game modes and challenge missions.In December 2012, Hidden Path released four free maps called the Community Levels DLC. These levels were selected from designs submitted by Kickstarter community members using the level visualizer tool given to all backers that pledged $20 or more. The DLC was originally released exclusively to Kickstarter backers in conjunction with the Defense Grid: Containment beta. These levels were later made available to the public for free in exchange for registering to the Hidden Path newsletter.In January 2013, Defense Grid: Containment was released for PC. It contained 8 maps and a story that bridged the gap between the original Awakening story line and the planned sequel,.

Wild ones manga. Kickstarter backers who pledged $50 or more were allowed to test the Beta version and were granted pre-release access to the completed DLC. Reception ReceptionAggregate scoreAggregatorScore81/100Review scoresPublicationScore7/104.5/58.9/1090%VGrevolution8/10PC Advisor4.5/5GameFocus9/10GameSharkB+The Gamers ' Temple80%Thunderbolt Games8/10Gamervision8/10AwardPublicationAwardPC GamerEditor's Choice badgeOn December 16, 2009, included Defense Grid on its Best Of 2009: Top 5 Console Downloadable Games.

As of years-end 2011 the game sold nearly 116,000 copies on the Xbox 360.The April 2009 issue of awarded Defense Grid a 90% and an Editor's Choice badge, stating, ' Defense Grid is such a charming and challenging experience that shouldn't be missed by tower defense fans. Even if you're not a fan, it may turn you into one.' Said, ' Defense Grid: The Awakening is a prime example of that sudden transformation of taking an unoriginal, well-known style of video game and turning it into a masterpiece for your PC', awarding the title 4.5 stars out of 5. 's 8 out of 10 review stated, 'It's an addictive time suck that will have you wishing for more once you've wiped up the last alien.' The GameShark review thought Defense Grid was a 'solid, well-rounded strategy game'.

A Thunderbolt Games review thought the game was 'a charming little tower defence title with a decent story and challenging gameplay.' A Gamervision review thought the later levels could be 'frustrating difficult' but liked the replayability from challenge modes.The Destructoid review lamented there being only 20 levels.

A number of reviewers felt the game would be much better if it came with a level creator. At least one review drew attention to the lack of a rotatable camera.

The Gamepro review felt some gamers might find the game a little repetitive. A few reviews noted the lack of any multiplayer options. Another review noted that navigating the menus can be a little clumsy. Main article:In July 2012, a project was created by Hidden Path Entertainment to help fund a sequel game titled. In August 2012, the Kickstarter project failed to reach its ultimate funding goal of US$1,000,000 for Defense Grid 2's development. However, the project did succeed in fully funding development of a new 8 level expansion to the original game which was named Defense Grid: Containment. Hidden Path continued to talk to potential investors in an attempt to secure the funding to develop the aforementioned sequel, and on March 6, 2014 it was announced that Hidden Path had partnered with in addition to Steven Dengler's Dracogen Inc.

For the sequel. The sequel was released in September 2014 for, and.References.