Everseed

Overview

My journey started with Plants vs Zombies on my iPod during my school days. From there, I sought other games that were similar or had the same addictive gameplay loop. This led me to Kingdom Raids, which added more depth to the tower defense genre I was gradually falling in love with. Bloons Tower Defense was the next game I played extensively on Cool Math Games when the site was still active. As I transitioned into Web 3, I found a tower defense game called Everseed. Its complexity, along with the charm of its characters, captivated my attention for hours on stream and even more off-stream trying to conquer levels that had previously stumped me.

Gameplay

Upon entering this browser-based game, you are welcomed by a delightful sign-in page that verifies your ownership of in-game assets. After this, an art-rich welcome screen greets you, inspiring curiosity and eagerness to explore the game's offerings. The game features a shop and inventory accessible via distinct pop-ups. However, I was unable to purchase any items during my playthrough. My inventory displayed the NFT plant that I owned, which permitted me to play the game, but there were no added features within this section.

Jumping into the game and pressing the start button opens a menu from which you can choose different levels varying in difficulty from beginner to hard, including a final boss fight level. The beginner mode is an ideal tutorial level, challenging enough to require following the tutorial – as I learned when my attempt to skip it led to a less successful playthrough. After a few chaotic rounds on my first attempt, the second run was smoother, although still not easy. The game doesn't launch you straight into the action as typical tower defense games do. Instead, it guides you down a straight path, with each area providing a different perk or utility for your upcoming battle.

The game features various allies, including a cute dog, a bear, and a kangaroo-looking rodent, each with unique abilities. Additionally, you can choose from different types of plants, from classic thorn-spitting plants to icy thistles that slow down enemies, and even more, granting electric and fire powers or increasing enemy damage in their vicinity. These allies and plants assist you in battle and require strategic selection for effective synergy in your defense setup.

Unlike other tower defense games, Everseed does a fantastic job of reinventing a fan-favorite style. When you load into the map, the game design's primary focus on gameplay is evident, as the map lacks vibrant color and life. Nevertheless, this doesn't detract from the game's fun aspect.

The game offers various enemy types, each increasing in difficulty as the rounds progress. Starting with smaller, slower foes that your allies can easily defeat, the game introduces fast, tanky, shielded enemies that will frustrate you when they just barely reach your home base. The unpredictable spawning of enemies from multiple locations creates challenges for players who place all their troops at the start of the game. Additionally, the game's difficulty ramps up with each level, making each round's completion a significant achievement.

Review

Everseed is an extraordinary twist on the classic tower defense titles that we all adore, successfully taking the strengths of those games and incorporating them in a remarkable manner. It excels in providing players with a captivating game loop, enabling customization and offering various enemy origins, all while prioritizing gameplay over visuals. While the graphics may currently lack polish, it's important to note that this is an early alpha version and improvements to visuals are likely planned for later stages, rather than being the primary focus.

The game offers a variety of plant types, numerous enemy varieties, and a choice of three different allies. It does an exceptional job of engaging the player for hours on end, leading to the satisfying reward of victory. One of the most thrilling aspects of any tower defense game is conquering a level that initially seemed insurmountable. This feeling of triumph occurred more than once in Everseed, even at the beginner level, generating immense joy each time.

Everseed takes the modest features we have seen in other tower defense games and enhances them, resulting in a unique and outstanding experience for any fan of the genre, all while maintaining an appropriate level of challenge. Overall, testing and playing this game has been a delightful experience thus far. As we anticipate a new beta release, there's excitement around potential additions of new levels, allies, plant types, and more, which could result in an even richer and more immersive player experience.