Project "Thor" Review

By , on March 15, 2010


Project
Download on the AppStore
3 out of 5

PROS

  • Unique castle-defense gameplay that combines Asteroids with Arkanoid.
  • Auto-upgrades to simplify late-gameplay difficulty.

CONS

  • No mission checkpoints, only auto-saves.

VERDICT

Project "Thor" is more of an investment than it is an immediate pick-up-and-play game that demands attention before it rewards gamers, but for those that persist it's well worth the time spent.


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Project Thor by Jury Shortki is a bit of an odd-ball when it comes to classification. Strictly speaking it's another castle-defense game, but replace castle with planet and defense with Arkanoid. If nothing else, Project Thor demands attention for being so genuinely unique.

It's hard to describe the gameplay, but it goes a little something like this: While defending a new planet for humanity, you control a giant shield that reflects incoming attacks while building a large temporary "outer" shield to provide auxiliary defense. Both platforms can be rotated using a control stick and "Thor"'s weaponry can be fired with a touch button that can be configured from the pause menu for more power, different firing modes or entirely different weaponry.

Gameplay in the main campaign is initially very slow as you gradually upgrade Thor and the outer platform to reach a population of 111 million. Eventually things get more lively, but it'd be nice if the game cut to the chase earlier or provided more early challenges to keep you interested. The graphics are mostly 2D sprite based, but are beautifully rendered with an easy to read interface.

There's some replay value in the "First Blood" mode, but proper mission checkpoints for the main game would have helped immensely as a single game can take a very long time to complete. Project "Thor" is a unique castle-defense game that will keep you busy for a while and an interesting addition to any fan's collection.

Screenshots

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