Towers above all the rest

PixelJunk Monsters
PS3
Rating 4/5
IT’S hard to believe that a game costing less than $10 and purchased via a digital download interface could possibly keep you glued to the TV for hours. But PixelJunk Monsters, the latest PlayStation Store release for the PlayStation 3 and PSP does just that.
At the cheap price of $8.45 you’ll pick up a game best described as a tower-defence style title. A static map containing a tribe of pixel men at the end of a long, and often varying path, is what you have to protect.
Your character is more a cursor than an actual avatar, moving to trees on the map and building a variety of towers that fire projectiles at the monsters who traverse the path in a bid to slay your tribesmen.
Each map has 10 ‘waves’ of monsters, and with each wave you’ll have to vary the array of towers, and also work on upgrading existing ones.
It sounds a reasonably simple game – and PixelJunk Monsters’ cartoon-like graphics would lead you to believe that this budget title is a push over.
But the truth is far from the assumption, with the tutorial itself being harder than most beginner levels in other games.
The gameplay is trial and error by nature, but as you progress and unlock tower types the game becomes a rock-paper-scissors style affair, with certain towers being more or less powerful against certain enemy types.
The difficulty is increased through the upgrade system – you have to have your character ‘dance’ within close proximity to each tower to accelerate its upgrade to the next level.
You can also buy upgrades with gems – but these are best spent on new tower types which are more powerful even at lower levels.
When all is said and done, PixelJunk Monsters costs a little more than a new release DVD yet will offer you a multitude of hours in return for your investment. There is a cooperative mode so you can work together with a friend, and the controls are easy to understand.
The game lacks depth, but never eludes to offer it, particularly at its price point. Winners are grinners – and although PixelJunk Monsters’ difficulty may have you frustrated during gameplay, you’ll be all smiles with that overwhelming feeling of satisfaction once a level is cleared.