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I had such an unexpected surprise when I was scrolling Steam’s new releases and spotted Bean Beasts' release! It’s been quite a while since I played a tower defense game and Bean Beasts definitely ticked all the boxes for intriguing me. I instantly picked it up, had it installed, and was setting up my first defensive run in probably the fastest impulse decision possible, and you can ask Daxel, I don’t make a ton of fast impulses when it comes to buying games. Was it the cute blue lizard main character riding his trusty turtle steed? Was it the dog beast galloping by your side, defending you with all his might? Maybe it was the feeling of impending doom with a giant dinosaur looming just over the horizon, roaring to challenge those who enter his domain. Who’s to say? All I knew was I was in it to win it, and Bean Beasts was scratching the itch of conquest.
The gameplay of Bean Beasts did a great job of ramping up the right amount of difficulty as you unlocked new beasts and traps to help complete each level. Some levels really offered a good bit of challenge, which is a breath of fresh air for Tower Defense games. Some, I feel, are more to put you to sleep while playing on your phone just before bedtime. Not Bean Beasts though. Quickly, the situation could get out of hand if you missed an upgrade to a trap, leveling of your beasts, or using that special ultimate move that just charged up. While there was a lot of choice going into each run, there was definitely strategy in picking which Beast to bring for their unique element, as well as which traps to bring. Do you pick the box trap to force different pathing of the attacking monsters, maybe the cannon for the push back, or why not a mecha beast machine gun turret to mow down everything? All of the traps were useful in their own way and balanced well with the cost of placing and upgrading. Many times I debated if I’d try to brawl through the first wave or two with just my beasts so I could afford the much more expensive traps, or have a firing line of crossbows early on. The levels were designed really thoughtfully in a way that really encouraged the player to use all the different types of traps, so there was never just one dominant way to play. I definitely had my favorites and preferences, but when you usually pick your electric beast and there’s only immune to electricity enemies on the level, maybe you should mix it up. While playing you also earned gems, which could be used to unlock special shop upgrades. Each biome area unlocked another tier of rewards to use your gems on. Some of the rewards included flat upgrades, beasts, mounts, and traps. However, one thing I really liked, even though you unlocked these upgrades in the shop, was that the game was fully playable without any of the upgrades. So if you were like me and wanted to play through the game so you had all the main campaign unlocks first, and then unlocked the shop upgrades for a second run through on the hardest difficulty, you could absolutely do that. Also, while completing the campaign you unlock several endless hoard levels, which ramp up in difficulty the longer you last. I'm saving my endless modes for after I beat the full campaign but had a friend do the opposite and play them as soon as they unlocked them.
Overall, I think I have to say my favorite biome was the Haunted Hillside. The atmosphere and aesthetic really brought the visuals together for me. Even though Haunted Hillside was my overall favorite, Bean Beasts did not lack in the biomes it had, and picking my favorite was a hard choice. Each biome’s individual lighting and style matched and was conveyed so well to the player. The pixelated art was also really clean and each creature, be it beasts, enemies, or allies, really fit into its biome. I enjoyed all the animations and how everything interacted with the environment; especially the bosses. Without any spoilers, the bosses' art and interactions were really nice, and I loved the introduction to the final campaign boss. It gave my friends watching me play and myself a literal vocal reaction of ‘WWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO —-------*spoilers*-------------” To say the room was amped is a downplay. You could feel the hype! Really well done, and unexpected, and I love when a single dev indie game game can do that for you.
There’s not too much you can do with the sound in a Tower Defense game, especially when a lot of the gameplay can be sped up. Bean Beasts does a good job balancing the background music with not being too chaotic but also putting the pressure on when needed. I really like how the menus and areas outside of the levels remind me of those 90’s rpg games. Always a fan of feeling nostalgic because of an original game. There's something special about when, even with all the fresh content, something in the back of your mind remembers those fun old experiences.
Overall, I had a blast playing through Bean Beasts, and will continue to enjoy playing it more! I do hope the developer has plans to unlock another set of biomes to continue the game. There were several times I played the game in Discord with some friends watching and helping me strategize for the win and it was just a blast. Also DID I MENTION THIS WAS A SINGLE DEV GAME?? Great work, and what a sleeper of a game. Now to get back to getting my but kicked on Beast Mode.
