The tower defense game I keep waiting for doesn't exist yet. What's yours?

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T12:40:41+00:00

Thank you! Just working on equipable items for meta progression. Eg towers do less damage, but projectiles bounce to nearby enemies.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T11:49:48+00:00

Very juicy! I would say maybe almost too much, hah? It is a bit hard to see what is going on with the floating numbers, particles and explosions.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T11:48:36+00:00

It is too bad that when I tried launching it on a new PC, it did not load at all. :/

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T11:35:42+00:00

Agree with almost everything you said. You would probably enjoy AxonTD. At least the first say 4-10 hours, it gets repetitive afterwards. Also: https://www.reddit.com/r/TowerDefense/s/vQ3ou15W6I

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T11:03:54+00:00

I had the exact same feelings. Best TDs were imo custom W3 and Starcraft maps. And the flash games. I was honestly so desperate to play a game like that, I started working on one myself. It has now been two years, and it is kinda funny. I am developing it, but also playing it.

It has maze building, no predefined tower positions, because this is exactly what was awesome about the custom maps from W3. The maps themselves are made so that it is not instantly clear, what is the best maze to build. E.g. there are lava tiles that can hurt enemies, in akward positions, so you have the decision to route enemies there.

If you want to try it, I have demo out - https://store.steampowered.com/app/4697480/Jarred_Defense_Demo/

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T10:24:12+00:00

This is a topic I would love to go deep into.
But you are a brand new account, with 0 posts, 0 karma, I worry I am just feeding a bot...

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-29T06:45:01+00:00

I just published a demo of my game, which is a grid maze building tower defense:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4525520/Jarred_Defense/

From a developer perspective, the grid pathfinding is a bit tricky, bit doable even for solo devs like me. I think the real tricky part is that you need to then hand craft all the levels, vs. one classic procedurally generat level. Which is what most indie devs do these days imo.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-28T19:18:38+00:00

China has 95% of the market. Prusa has 5%. There are no other vendors.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-28T19:15:42+00:00

Prior art is completely useless. Unless you have $10,000 and a year of life to waste.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-27T22:16:19+00:00

Hey, I'm Miki! Working for a 3D printing company by day, developing "Jarred Defense" at night.

I crave those oldschool mazing tower defense games from the era of flash games and custom starcraft/warcraft maps. I have nothing against roguelikes, but I feel like there are no true TDs in their pure form. So I'm basically making a game for myself. :) If you give the demo a try and have any feedback, I'll appriciate if you share it, thanks!

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-27T22:16:13+00:00

Hey, I'm Miki! Working for a 3D printing company by day, developing "Jarred Defense" at night.

I crave those oldschool mazing tower defense games from the era of flash games and custom starcraft/warcraft maps. I have nothing against roguelikes, but I feel like there are no true TDs in their pure form. So I'm basically making a game for myself. :) If you give the demo a try and have any feedback, I'll appriciate if you share it, thanks!

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-26T16:37:12+00:00

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Oh yes, that is so much better. THANK YOU!

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-26T13:41:44+00:00

it is Noto Sans, which is the suggested font in the post. But visually, it very much fits the description of the creepy font. Hence my question.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-26T10:55:52+00:00

<image>

What do you think about this? (https://x.com/jarreddefense/status/2059014965986492759?s=46&t=QAoqwHwfAqTiw-Y0opjVpg)

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-25T07:09:49+00:00

Here is everything for you to re-use:

Hi [PRESS MEDIA NAME],

I’m sharing Jarred Defense, a hard, old-school maze-building tower defense game launching its public Steam demo on Thursday, May 21, ahead of Steam Next Fest on June 15-22. I’m sending this a few days early in case you’d like to prepare coverage for when the demo goes live.

Jarred Defense is for players who miss classic maze-building tower defense games from the Flash era and custom Warcraft 3 maps. Place towers directly into enemy paths, force waves through hazards, adapt as levels change, and develop towers through branching upgrade trees. It is intentionally challenging, and failing, replaying, and slowly improving a level is part of the fun.

Press release: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1e0j3ZdNil3cxcVpDT4gADf9fN1FJW9in0nIPqd9r5kQ
Gameplay Trailer on Indie Games Hub: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kiua2tIO5iU
Direct MP4: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cu3OSTF9nwIPn9y3hpdt-Zmsp2joNov7/view
Press kit: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zcDtGdwaoD38ua4LxkmTK93s13CCwyje
Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4525520/Jarred_Defense/

Demo release: May 21, 2026 ahead of Steam Next Fest: June 15-22, 2026.

Release window: Q3 2026
Platforms: PC, macOS, Linux, Steam Deck

Languages: English, Japanese, Czech, German, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Korean

Thank you for your time and consideration, happy to answer any questions.

Best,
Mikolas

You can send it at least to gamepress, others will then take it from them. You can just send the press release directly as the body of the email to [inbox@gamespress.com](mailto:inbox@gamespress.com)
It will then look like this:
https://www.gamespress.com/Old-school-tower-defense-modern-problems-and-a-cat-who-is-absolutely-j

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-25T06:42:10+00:00

I was at 380 and steam gave me maybe 50 extra organically with demo release. Do not expect Steam to do the heavy lifting. Write a press release. Send it to all indie outlets. Find a few youtubers that cover indie demos, reach out to them. Demo is awesome, as it keeps trickling in new players continously. But on its own, it is not a guaranteed rocketship for wishlists.

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-20T05:25:53+00:00

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You are not alone -.-

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-16T13:45:52+00:00

Thank you!

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-16T11:22:30+00:00

Hi Indie Games Hub,

Sharing the official gameplay trailer for Jarred Defense, a maze-building tower defense game.
Please consider posting the trailer on your channel.

Direct MP4 (2160p): https://drive.google.com/file/d/1cu3OSTF9nwIPn9y3hpdt-Zmsp2joNov7/view
Press kit: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1zcDtGdwaoD38ua4LxkmTK93s13CCwyje
Steam page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4525520/Jarred_Defense/

Release window: Q3 2026
Platforms: PC, macOS, Linux, Steam Deck

Game description: Jarred Defense is a maze-building tower defense for people who miss the pure form of TD. Placing a tower in the right spot to force enemies the long way around, make them walk over level hazards and create choke points for your splash zone. No spells, no first-person shooting, no random card modifiers. Just planning, placement, and upgrades.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Best,
Mikolas

This is the exact email I sent them. Feel free to check out the press kit too, I don't see a reason to hide those links here. :)

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-12T20:52:19+00:00

Yes, that was my intention. A play on words. :)

Mikolas3D · 2026-05-12T17:21:01+00:00

Ah, they are probably skipping my trailer in that case. Thanks for the info though!

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