Top 10 best tower defence games on Android

Tower defence is possibly the most used and abused genre in mobile gamingdom. So much so that it makes the endless-runner section of the Google Play Store seem underpopulated.

Okay, so there isn't an endless-runner category in the Google Play Store. Smart-arse.

Anyway, the point is this: there are lots and lots of tower defence games out there. We all whinge about it, we all roll our eyes when a new one turns up, but just take a moment to ponder a question. Why are there so many of the damned things?

It's simple, really. The tower defence game, at its best, represents everything that's good about mobile gaming. Intuitive yet deep; visually rich yet easy to follow; and perfectly at home on a touchscreen-driven interface.

With that in mind, let's cut a path through the masses of mediocre TD examples and raid the bases of the top 10 tower defence games on Android.

Oh, and before you complain, we've omitted titles from devs that don't subscribe to the basic tower defence brief. That means no 'reverse tower defence' or 'tower offence' games. So there.

Kingdom Rush: Frontiers
By Ironhide Game Studio - buy on Android

We gave the original Kingdom Rush props in our Top 10 strategy games on Android feature a few months back, but we're going to give its sequel a chance to shine here.

Both games are fantastic, sharing a similarly balanced core of tower building and upgrading in a cartoon fantasy world. However, Frontiers is slightly easier, has a whole new (and slightly more extravagant) arsenal of defensive towers, and is packed with more unique level elements.

Fieldrunners 2
By Subatomic Studios - buy on Android

Fieldrunners was arguably the tower defence game that really kicked off the craze on mobile platforms, though it surfaced on Android a little late for our liking. This sequel didn't, and it's even better than the first game.

This is a true triple-A tower defence game, with a spruced-up 3D engine, excellent variety between the level types, and the same fine mix of tower types as the original.

Plants vs Zombies
By PopCap - buy on Android

With this gleefully ghoulish and incredibly popular casual strategy game, PopCap kick-started its own sub-genre of tower defence (a sub-sub-genre?). In it, you defend your home from the undead in clearly defined lines of attack, in a weird kind of trench warfare.

In place of shells and bullets, there are explosive potatoes and pip-spitting flowers. Plants vs Zombies is quite wonderful, and it gets the nod over its expansive sequel thanks to the welcome absence of that intrusive IAP system.

Sentinel 3: Homeworld
By Origin8 - buy on Android

An oldie but a goodie. With Sentinel 3: Homeworld, Origin8 adds a subtle twist to some thoroughly solid tower defence mechanics by introducing an RPG element.

There's a sophisticated experience and unit customisation system here that's pretty uncommon even in modern tower defence games. As is the ability to utilise a one-off über-potent commander unit.

Monster Trouble
By Magic Dream Games - buy on Android

In most tower defence games, the action is spread out across twisting paths or sprawling arenas.

In Monster Trouble, however, Magic Dream Games focuses the action on a single central defensive point with multiple entry points. Think Rorke's Drift or The Alamo.

Despite this hemmed-in approach, you have plenty of defensive options as you freely chop and change your defences to meet the shifting threat.

Guns'n'Glory WW2
By HandyGames - buy on Android

HandyGames's breezy take on tower defence is a little different from the rest. You still get waves of enemies going from one side of a map to the other, sure. Rather than building a job load of fixed defences, though, here you have to marshal a small number of mobile ones.

This means that you have to take a fluid approach to defence, creating on-the-fly choke points and then dispersing to tackle another threat. It works well.

Tower Defense
By Com2uS - download on Android

It's not the original tower defence game, as the name might lead you to believe. And nor is it the best. But Com2uS's Tower Defense is a very accomplished example of the genre.

There's no one standout feature here, other than the sheer amount and range of content. If you've enjoyed a traditional tower defence game before, you'll find more of the same - and then some - here.

Radiant Defense
By Hexage - buy on Android

We've written about Hexage a number of times over the years. This Czech Republic-based developer stands out for its long-standing commitment to the Android platform, as well as the distinctive and quirky feel of its games.

Even Radiant Defense, an ostensibly straightforward tower defence game, has that Hexage 'feel'. There's the neon-soaked retro visuals, an unusually deep tech tree, and barricades to help redirect the enemy forces.

Jelly Defense
By Infinite Dreams - buy on Android

You know those people who say that graphics don't matter? Yeah. Well, they're talking rubbish.

Though Jelly Defense is a pretty run-of-the-mill tower defence game, it gets lifted to another level through the delightfully squishy art style and exquisite animation.

For those who find the militaristic tone of most of these tower defence games a complete turn-off, give the lovably tactile world of Jelly Defense a shot.

Bad Hotel
By Lucky Frame - buy on Android

Let's finish on a leftfield choice.

Bad Hotel isn't like any tower defence game you'll have played before. Here, you see, you're setting up defences to protect your oddly shaped pastel-hued hotel from attack.

The twist is that each weapon you build doubles as a new instrument contributing to a jazzy background groove. Crazy!