10 Best RPGs With Tower Defense Mechanics

When gamers hear the term “RPG,” it’s very likely for them to associate the genre with the turn-based gameplay of classic Final Fantasy games, the tactical depth of award-winning Baldur’s Gate 3, or even the vast open worlds of The Elder Scrolls franchise. As such, it can be surprising for an RPG to even be associated with tower defense, considering the latter focuses on defending locations instead of defeating a great evil across a globe-trotting journey.

Surprisingly enough, some RPGs with tower defense mechanics can end up both immersive and engaging. After all, tower defense will likely make RPG components affect not just characters and their opponents but also the battlefield at large. Certain RPG titles manage to integrate this component properly into their gameplay mechanics, resulting in surprisingly more dynamic approaches to combat and strategy.

10 World Of Van Helsing: Deathtrap

Gothic Action RPG Combines Creature Slaying And Tower Defense

Technically a spinoff of The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing, the overall gameplay of World of Van Helsing: Deathtrap is taken from the short tower defense segment of the former title. Now a fully-fledged title, Deathtrap takes the Incredible Adventures’ setting of Borgova and transforms its locales into areas players must protect. They must choose among three classes (the Marksman, Sorceress, or Warriors) and fortify pre-determined pathways to stop hordes of enemies.

When waves begin, players take their chosen characters and fight opponents using their class’s special abilities. These can be improved and upgraded in between levels, forming the core RPG loop of the game. However, players can also use Essences to construct structures in between waves, allowing them to create unique contraptions such as long-ranged sentries or even tower blades designed to inflict as much carnage onto opponents as possible. Depending on the class, players can tailor towers to accommodate long-ranged support for the Warrior, heavy defenses and melee for the Marksman, or fortifications for the Sorceress.

9 Arknights

Class-Based Operators Diversify Combat Options

Players of Arknights take control of Rhodes Island, a paramilitary medical research organization aiming to find a cure for the progressive disease Oripathy ravaging the world of Terra. The majority of Arknights’ gameplay is a blend of RPG and tower defense, where Operators are positioned across a grid map and attack enemies to prevent them from reaching the player’s side. This straightforward gameplay loop is made more versatile with its RPG elements and gacha component.

Arknights characters are organized across eight Classes, each with up to 11 Branches or specializations. In turn, Arknights’ gameplay demands experimentation to create the most ideal party out of any situation. For instance, whereas a Sniper Operator can hit from afar and a Medic Operator can heal them, specialized roles mean a Besieger Sniper prioritizes heavy targets and a Chain Medic bounces healing across allies.

8 Sanctum 2

A Sci-Fi FPS With More Emphasis On Turrets, Active Participation

Following the same premise as its first title, Sanctum 2 improves upon its predecessor’s tower defense formula with more diverse gameplay options. Set in the distant future on the planet Loek-3, players take on the role of Core Guardians assigned to protect terraforming Cores against the native Lumes. Players can do this by outfitting their squad with various weapons and modifying their immediate area with a wide array of defensive options.

Levels begin with players customizing an area with a wide array of defenses, whether walls to hinder enemy movement or turrets to provide immediate counter-measures. As players have limited resources, it’s important to choose whether a level needs more weapons or specially upgraded ones. This caveat can be made more complex by the fact that specific turrets are made to tackle special enemies, forcing players to make tough decisions on how to handle specific levels.

7 7 Days To Die

Create The Perfect Base Or Die After 7 Days

After a nuclear attack in World War 3 devastates a large portion of the world, 7 Days To Die brings players to the fictional Navezgane county in Arizona. They begin as a survivor struggling to repel constant zombie attacks, at least until the moment in the tutorial where they can gather materials to build a base. Soon, 7 Days To Die introduces its premise to players: a large wave of zombies will attack their base every seven days. Players who haven’t created a sufficiently defensible base will likely die during this encounter.

Despite its premise as a survival-gathering game, 7 Days To Die provides various gameplay approaches. Its Perks systems allow players to take more hits, attack harder, or build faster. While Blade Traps and Auto Turrets form a basic part of its tower defense elements, the game’s base-building physics do encourage players to create choke points to lead enemies to traps or killing rooms where they can freely shoot or set zombies ablaze without too much risk.

6 The Riftbreaker

Prepare Intricate Bases For Intense Action Moments

Set in Galatea 37, The Riftbreaker players take on the role of the mecha Mr. Riggs and its pilot Ashley as they collect resources and study the planet’s geography to determine its potential as a new home for humanity. However, the player’s exploration is regularly interrupted by attacks from hostile local creatures, prompting them to create bases where they can safely gather resources. Players can upgrade Mr. Riggs across a variety of areas, be it overall shielding, regeneration speed, building cost, or even skill cooldowns. In turn, Mr. Riggs can theoretically contribute to the war effort should the need arise.

Perhaps setting The Riftbreaker apart from conventional tower defense titles is its emphasis on active base-building components. Large maps eventually allow players to teleport across various locations, while a tech tree lets players diversify their arsenal of protective traps and turrets. While much of the game’s time is spent optimizing a base with thick layers of walls or collecting resources to meet objectives, the chaotic fights between players, their turrets, and the attacking creatures can make for some extremely memorable moments.

5 Dungeon Of The Endless

Slowly Explore, Develop, And Defend A Roguelike Overworld

Players of Dungeon of the Endless crashland into a hostile planet while aboard a prison ship, with no means of survival except venturing further from their location. Unfortunately for players, not only do they have to manage the survival of their two to four heroes, but they also have to defend themselves against waves of opponents constantly. In turn, a core aspect of the gameplay loop is deciding whether the rooms they discover should be dedicated to their survival or defense and the best method for achieving this objective.

As a game with a minimal tutorial, it’s up to players to understand the intricacies of tower defense and survival in Dungeon of the Endless. Characters can be upgraded and positioned across the map based on their specialties. Meanwhile, rooms can be transformed into death traps that either defend the rest of the base from enemies or chokepoints where enemies could be lured. The roguelike aspect of the game ensures there’s no one way of approaching objectives, making Dungeon of the Endless extremely replayable.

4 Dwerve

A Warsmith Needs To Fight And Protect A Base Simultaneously

In a world where Trolls have driven Dwarves away from their mountainous homes, Dwerve explores the titular character’s journey as he searches for his lost mother. Being an inexperienced Warsmith, Dwerve needs to learn how to use Power Stones to summon a variety of contraptions such as crossbows and spikes. In the game, this is represented by a gameplay loop where Dwerve is given a set timeframe to set up a limited number of traps before he’s tasked to defeat waves of enemies.

Dwerve becomes interesting in its real-time action, which sees Dwerve having to complete objectives through his traps and conventional hack-and-slash gameplay. He also has the option to retrieve Power Stones to recreate contraptions on the fly, adjusting his defenses based on the combat situation. Carrying a set number of traps among multiple options will force players to maximize their flexibility.

3 Dungeon Defenders

Use Fantasy Classes To Summon Defenses

Despite its age, Dungeon Defenders remains a must-play for players looking for an engaging co-op with a relatively decent take on replayability on a tower defense title. Set in the land of Etheria, players need to defend the Eternia Crystal from hordes of opponents by taking the role of up to eight Hero classes. Each of these Heroes follows stereotypical fantasy conventions (where the Squire attacks in melee while the Huntress is a sniper) with special attacks. However, where they shine is how their toolkits come with unique summon-based Defense mechanics.

For instance, the Squire summons blockades featuring spikes, bounce mechanics, or blades. Meanwhile, the Apprentice can summon towers that release different elemental attacks. These unique mechanics extend to the DLC classes, such as the Ranger which boasts traps, or the Barbarian which has buffing totems. Gameplay in Dungeon Defenders also gets more versatile thanks to its RPG mechanics, wherein players can not only improve their characters’ skills but also get them loot that can significantly affect their combat performance.

2 The Last Spell

A Dark Fantasy Roguelite With Turn-Based Combat, Tower Defense Mechanics

Tower defense and turn-based mechanics aren’t often associated, yet The Last Spell makes the concept rather compelling. Players must defend their small village in a post-apocalyptic fantasy world, where bloodthirsty Crawlers have arisen from a war. Levels are played out in two parts, with the tower defense’s first half relying on players building structures and setting up traps and defenses against opponents. Structures not only aid in repelling opponents but also give benefits to players, such as healing, teleporters, and even extra breathing room for long-ranged attacks.

The second half of each The Last Spell level is its RPG component, where battles are turn-based. Players have randomly generated heroes with random stat-altering traits, which they can customize with skills from gears and other effects. They take these heroes to battle in the arenas that players created, adding complexity to base-building as players must consider their characters’ skill sets when creating their defenses. Winning and failing across runs rewards players with Tainted Essences to acquire Favors that can give a more productive run and Omens that give buffs before levels.

1 Defender’s Quest: Valley Of The Forgotten

Characters Themselves Become The Towers In A Straightforward Title

Set in what’s only known as The Pit, Defender’s Quest: Valley of the Forgotten puts players in the shoes of royal librarian Azra whose build-up of magical powers accompanies her desire to escape her horrifying prison. As Azra attracts corrupted souls to her position, her companions desire to protect her at any cost. This explains the core gameplay loop: a maze is the only thing separating Azra from many monsters, and her companions have unique abilities that can help Azra in her mission.

In Defender’s Quest, the companions themselves serve as the player’s “tower” in the title. In a manner similar to Arknights, characters in Defender’s Quest also have dedicated Classes and Skills. However, the game offers more customizability in how characters can be tailored to fit specialized roles or functionalities. Despite the straightforward nature of the game with its RPG-based tower defense mechanics, Defender’s Quest provides an accessible gameplay loop for both fans and newcomers to the genre.