Fury of the Gods Review

What better tower to defend in a tower defense game than Mount Olympus? It's the ultimate tower. Well, it's up there at least until Stephen King releases his own tower defense game. But still, Chillingo's Fury of the Gods has its heart in the right place and really goes for it with the Greek Mythology. And why not? Who wouldn't want to command the power of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades with one swipe of their finger?

The opening cinematic of Fury of the Gods highlights the powerful Zeus, lightning bolts in hand, defending his temple from the unrelenting, rampaging, slavering hordes of terrible, foul, horrifying ... peasants? That's right, the people are revolting, pitchforks in hand, and its up to the gods to do what they do best -- get vengeful. Forsake this, peasants! That concept is probably my favorite part about this game. Just the idea of being a god and zapping/squishing people with your Almighty Finger is hilariously appealing.

Though I may speak lightly of the game's enemies, if you and Zeus aren't in-sync, the multiple angled, 3-D battlefield environment that is Mount Olympus will quickly become overrun with said rampaging peasants. For all of its cartoonish looks, Fury of the Gods can quickly become a challenging tower defense game.

Part of that could be due to my refusal to pay for any of the upgrades that are available through an in-app purchase. Considering this game is not free-to-play, the inclusion of IAPs are more of a gripe than usual. But at least the coins that you use as currency to buy things are not hard to come by.

In addition to adding a new twist to the tower defense genre, Fury of the Gods looks pretty good too. The enemies can be tough to spot though and sometimes it feels like they're not getting enough juice in the graphics department, especially if you're zoomed out. But overall, a pretty slick package. Considering that the Unreal engine was used in making this game, I should hope so.

As you move through Fury, you will unlock powers that will help you deal with stronger and stronger enemies storming their way up the mountain (they move from being your average farmer with a shovel to actual soldiers). Seriously, what are they feeding them down there? Perhaps a good famine will do the trick?

Completing levels will also unlock new units, like the cyclops. And if you complete five levels playing as Zeus, you get to play as his God of the Sea older bro Poseidon. Switching from Zeus to Poseidon definitely feels different, as you will have powers and threats from the sea mixed into the gameplay. But by the time all three gods have been unlocked, you might just be a little tired of the tap, tap, tapping gameplay.

After prolonged sessions of defending Mount Olympus with your digits, you feel less like a mighty god squishing heretics with but a flick of the wrist, than someone frantically playing whack-a-mole. The other units are fun to use, but by the time you're there, you might have already had your fill. If nothing else, Fury is a cheeky take on the god game genre that's worth a look if you're down with zapping peasants.

App Store Link: Fury of the Gods for iPhone and iPad | By Chillingo | Price: $0.99 | Version: 1.0 | 176 MB | Rating 9+