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Anomaly 2

Anomaly 2

11 Bit Studios have made a name for themselves turning tower defense on its head and now Anomaly 2 hits PlayStation 4.

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Typically, tower defense isn't perfectly suited to consoles. Mouse and keyboard is simply superior when it comes to panning over a map and placing towers, but Anomaly 2 isn't tower defence (at least not in single-player) - tower offence is a better description, as you control a commander that heals, boosts and, well, commands his creeps through a map full of enemy towers.

The game was released last year on Steam and now it has arrived on PlayStation 4 and it has to be said that while it's not visually spectacular, the transition, thanks to it's heavy focus on tactical gameplay (rather than strategy), suits the DualShock 4.

Anomaly 2

There is a story here. Earth has been hit by an alien anomaly, machines have pushed back the remnants of humanity and the temperature has fallen to new lows. As you'd expect the story only serves to set up the missions of the campaign, and it's rather forgettable. Colonels and scientists are telling you what you need to do next. For the most part we ignored that. It's like one of those Saturday morning cartoon for young boys with men of action and enemies of steel, and it takes itself a little too seriously. If that's your thing, maybe you'll enjoy the story of Anomaly 2. Either way, it's not central to enjoying the experience.

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As the commander you have four abilities you can lay on the map - you can heal your units, place decoys, stun towers and focus fire power on a specific tower. These abilities are unlocked as you progress through the campaign along with additional units. And while it's a common setup, there's the sense that you never quite leave the tutorial, as the game is paused to introduce new mechanics and units.

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Each unit has two configurations and you can either morph inside your squad menu or do it real-time with the commander. This really is key to succeeding - often the different morph states will allow for great close quarter combat or long range bombardment.

Fire rate is also key as some towers need to be taken out with a slow rate of fire (as they otherwise absorb the energy and transform into an even more devastating tower), while certain towers with shields need to be taken out with rapid fire. When faced with both of these types of towers on the same map, as you can imagine there's a lot of morphing and switching of places in your line of creep units, and that's really the essence of Anomaly 2. Rather than being heavy on strategy and placement as many tower defence titles are, this game focuses a lot on quick actions, micro-management and tactical skills.

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Multiplayer in Anomaly 2 is interesting (though hard to engage in online on PS4 due to very low player numbers thus far) as it pits one player with placing down towers and the other with commanding a set of units to take them out. The defence part is much like the offence; very much focused on tactical skill, and making sure abilities are administered at the correct time. It is, however, a great deal of fun when you find a good adversary on your skill level. The problem here, naturally, is that most players will feel more comfortable with playing offence following their time with the campaign. That's not to say playing as towers is boring in any way, it just takes a little more practice online.

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In many ways Anomaly 2 is a take on tower defence for those who have grown a little tired of the basic concept and want something a little more intense and challenging moment to moment (not saying that tower defence isn't intense, but there's a different sort of intensity found there).

It's challenging (especially if you turn up the difficulty setting), and if you have friends with a similar taste in games, the multiplayer matches can be very entertaining. The campaign will last you a couple of evenings (unless you turn the difficulty down too low), and there is always the lure of doing just a little better and climbing the leaderboards.

07 Gamereactor UK
7 / 10
+
The Tower Offense concept works really well, Plenty of challenge, Interesting versus mode.
-
Visuals aren't spectacular, Story is generic and bland, Repetitive sound effects tend to annoy.
overall score
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Anomaly 2

REVIEW. Written by Bengt Lemne

"It's challenging, and if you have friends with a similar taste in games, the multiplayer matches can be very entertaining."



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