5 Best Early Access Base Defense Games

The base defense genre is both broad and varied, with roots in real-time strategy games such as Stronghold, which took the base-building aspects of the RTS genre and shined a spotlight on them. In more recent years, indie developers in particular have tapped into the joy of building and defending a base. From smash-hit indie titles like They Are Billions to the more recent Thronefall, there are a variety of experiences to be had in the base defense genre.

While there are a variety of highly polished, readily available titles to go out and purchase, there are also an array of Early Access base defense games for players looking to get in on the ground floor. Games such as the aforementioned Thronefall, as well as the recently released Cataclismo, have proven that this genre has massive potential.

5 Age Of Darkness: Final Stand

A Dark Fantasy Base Defense Game With A Focus On Real-Time Strategy

Playing similarly to base defense games such as They Are Billions but with a dark fantasy twist, Age Of Darkness: Final Stand is an Early Access base defense game with a focus on real-time strategy mechanics. Age Of Darkness: Final Stand features a stylish, grimdark aesthetic, multiple unique playable factions, and hordes of nightmarish creatures.

In classic real-time strategy style, Age Of Darkness: Final Stand is heavily focused on micromanagement, and efficient management of units is integral to the player’s success. Scouting, tactical positioning, and strategic thinking play key roles in survival, making Age Of Darkness: Final Stand a game that constantly demands the player’s attention. This is especially true early in the game, when each unit matters most.

4 Diplomacy Is Not An Option

Building And Defending A Castled Town

Tasking players with building and defending a castled town against hordes of unrelenting, physics-simulated enemies, Diplomacy Is Not An Option offers base-defense fans an Early Access experience with an ambitious sense of scale. The hordes of enemies that players must defend against are truly massive, but Diplomacy Is Not An Option gives players a variety of ways to protect their town and its people from certain death. As its title suggests, however, diplomacy is not one of them.

Diplomacy Is Not An Option features real-time-strategy gameplay with an active pause, allowing players to raise and command armies to bolster their defense against the hordes of enemies. Players will also have to manage the town behind their walls, carefully managing their resources and economy in order to sustainably defend themselves. Diplomacy Is Not An Option also features powerful magic spells that allow players to take out large groups of enemies, increasing the variety of the gameplay and offering players yet another option for defense.

3 From Glory To Goo

An Equal Measure Of Base-Defense And Real-Time Strategy

From Glory To Goo is a pixel-art, science fiction RTS game with an emphasis on survival. In the game, players will need to build, expand, and defend their colony from hordes of the titular goo. Players do this primarily by building and managing an army of soldiers, led by a variety of unique captain units. However, From Glory To Goo also features tower defense elements that allow players to supplement their army with a variety of automatic turrets.

There’s plenty of strategic thinking to be done in From Glory To Goo, all in spite of its current state in Early Access. The game’s visuals may be minimal, but it is consistently easy to read, and the user-interface is relatively intuitive. For fans of real-time strategy games and base-building alike, From Glory To Goo is an incredibly distinctive and refreshing experience.

2 Thronefall

A Minimalist But Mechanically Deep RTS Base Defense Game

This minimalist combination of real-time strategy, tower defense, and base building is a tremendously unique indie title with a heavily stylized aesthetic and accessible gameplay. In Thronefall, players ride around distinctive levels on horseback, fighting enemies and commanding their units with intuitive controls. Between waves of enemies, players can spend their hard-earned cash on economical and defensive buildings to increase the strength of their defenses. All of this is done in an effort to defend the player’s central castle; if this building is destroyed, the player is defeated.

What makes Thronefall so special is its incredibly accessible gameplay that allows players to strategize and micromanage without being overwhelmed. However, despite its accessibility, Thronefall manages to be a mechanically dense experience that rewards strategic thinking and encourages experimentation.

1 Cataclismo

A Stylish, Modular Base-Builder With A Gloomy Atmosphere

This stylish, dark fantasy base-builder stands out from the crowd with its modular building system that allows players to have deep control over their base. Players need to raise battlements and manage their units efficiently in order to succeed, defending themselves against hordes of countless horrors in Cataclismo.

The game’s art-style is minimalist but incredibly stylized, resulting in a consistently pleasing look that’s both dark and mysterious. The gloomy atmosphere, modular base building, and the addictive loop of the day/night cycle make Cataclismo a surprisingly engaging experience despite its Early Access state. At the time of writing, Cataclismo has only just been released, but it’s already worth playing for fans of base defense and dark fantasy settings alike.