Reviewed: July 28 2009
Reviewed by: Jason Flick
Publisher
Chillingo Ltd
Developer
Chillingo Ltd
Released: June 3, 2009
Genre: Strategy
Players: 1
9
9
9
9
9.0
Game Info:
App Store Price: $.99
Tower defense games are practically a dime a dozen on the iPhone these days. It’s amazing just how many apps are out there that borrow from one another and get published on the iPhone. Not all tower defense-style games on the iPhone are created equal however. In the case of Chillingo’s Knights Onrush, they scored an instant win as a smile crossed my face and I flung, burnt and crushed little knights across my touch screen.
Knights Onrush, as I mentioned above, is a tower defense title that tweaks the genre by not making you creating a death gauntlet - rather it tasks you with outfitting a castle with a series of defenses to annihilate cute knights with huge helmets over a set number of days. Every time you smash or send a knight flying you earn gold to upgrade your castles defenses with fireballs, massive columns, ballista, cannons, hell gates and dragon altars.
All of these defenses can be activated by simply touching them on the screen. In the case of the fireballs you pick one up and launch it at the mob you wish to incinerate. One of my favorite things to do is grab a knight into the air and hang him on a dragon altar waiting for a dragon to swoop by and make him a snack.
There are eleven different enemies to hold off in Knights Onrush, each with their own abilities. You have the standard knights as well as horseback riders, mages, black knights, keg wielding monks and many others. The key to being successful in Knights Onrush is to prioritize your attacks. Letting a few lowly knights get by to attack a tougher enemy and then sending a well-placed fireball on those lowly knights.
There are twelve different castles that you have to defend. Each new castle is unlocked upon completing the previous castle. With each new castle there is an increased amount of days to survive and new enemies to repel. One of the simple rules that I found is that you need to reinforce the door before everything else. No defense will be enough if your door is week.
Between each completed day you are able to spend the gold you earn from your defeated foe. There are several upgrades that you can choose with your gold, but again there is some strategy required to choosing which defense at what time in you endeavor.
Knights Onrush is easily one of the most beautiful looking iPhone Apps that I have used since I got my device. The artwork is well done and the knights are all beautifully created. I shed no tear as they fall to their deaths in a bloody mess. The animations are nicely done without any sign of motion lag as multiple enemies and explosions are going on.
The audio for Knights Onrush is a blast. The background music is cool and not boring. The one thing that I like the most is the screams of the knights as you toss them in the air or smash them into the ground. I also like the fact that when you pick up a knight on horseback the horse cries out. The real fun is just hearing the enemies screaming for their lives.
Knights Onrush offers three different modes to enjoy: Campaign, Endless Siege and Madness. Campaign is the meat of Knights Onrush but for a real challenge players can try the other two modes. Madness lives up to its names as you get bombarded by wave after wave of enemies. Endless siege plays out much like the campaign mode. You can even upload your high scores from Madness and Endless Siege Modes via the OpenFeint server.
Knights Onrush is one of those titles that grabs you and doesn’t let go. I didn’t want to after starting it for the first time. Knights Onrush is a guilty pleasure that should be cherished by all. Its highly addictive gameplay and amazing graphics make it a win in my book. I highly recommend downloading Knights Onrush for your iPhone or iPod Touch.
