Cubetractor’s a cute tower defence game with a unique spin on the core mechanic. You don’t place towers down but, rather, pull them together from tiles placed about the level. It makes the game somewhat like a tile-sliding puzzle game while also being full of lasers, rockets, and robots.
I’ve had a brief go of Cubetractor and will likely have some thoughts up on the game later this week but it stands out from other tower defence games quickly. Mainly because, despite falling into that genre, it feels more overtly like a puzzle game.
You can only pull tiles in direct vertical and horizontal lines and you need to have two tiles colide with one another to build a tower. So, you’re limited in where you can place towers. You have to spot the best location and time your pulls just right to overcome the enemy towers and the other robots (called ‘meanies’. This makes me go ❤).
It’s likely reasons like that which led Cubetractor to win the Chinese IGF.