As Evan the toaster oven, players will have to defend against the onslaught of robots coming for Tina, his toaster girlfriend. Because a computer in the next room realizes he can never be with Tina, he sends an army of robots to destroy Tina and Evan both. Evan responds by recruiting other NPCS to defend his girlfriend, at the same time as he shoots projectiles from the door that also works as his mouth. In an interview with Game Rant amid the game’s Kickstarter campaign, Wooten said he has witnessed players simply choosing one way to play instead of implimenting all the tools the game offers.
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The Map Layout
Wooten discussed his inspirations and how he decided to layout the map for this innovative game. The inspiration comes from old-school platformers like the Super Mario arcade game and tower defense games like the Bloons series. Through these ideas, he created a vertical map where the enemies will be spawn at different heights and drop down to attempt to destroy the tower; Tina in this instance. The player will have a chance to place down turrets on the map in the hopes of deterring the incoming robots.
The Need for Planning and Action
Toaster Defense uses the best of the two genres it takes inspiration from to create a mental challenge for gamers. While more of an arcade-style game, it still requires the ability to plan ahead, as well the ability to move quickly when a trap doesn’t work exactly as intended. While this would normally spell the end for that round and be cause to try something new, that’s not the case in Toaster Defense. That being said, Wooten said he witnessed players choosing to focus on one of the genres as opposed to the other.
When the action picks up in a game, it can be hard to remember to use all of the tools that were put in front of the player. However, in Toaster Defense, that is evolved upon to the point where it would quickly become impossible to play as just a platformer or a tower defense game. The combination of mechanics therein is the key to succeeding, as there are a number of rare enemies specifically geared toward being resilient to the typical platforming or tower defense mechanics.
Toaster Defense is a game that is setting out to create its own playstyle using a unique mash-up between tower defense and platforming games. While it will initially take some getting used to, players will likely catch onto the mechanics within a few short rounds. The demo is available now, and those who are interested in participating can donate to the game’s Kickstarter.
Toaster Defense is in development for PC.
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Source: Kickstarter
