Fieldrunners 2: Tower defense just doesn't get any better

A tower defense sequel that is a worthy successor to the original

Tower defense is one of those genres that really translates well to a touch-only device, and one game that has made that extremely apparent is Fieldrunners. For coming up on two years now, it has been a staple in the Tower Defense category on Android and iOS alike. If you've been playing it from the start, there's no doubt you've been waiting for the sequel -- even more so as we saw it launch on iOS first.

The wait is now over, and whether you're an old pro or new to the entire genre, we think you're going to be impressed. Stick around with us after the break and see what Fieldrunners 2 is all about.

The first thing you can say when opening up Fieldrunners 2 and entering the first level is "wow". It's clear that a whole lot of development time has gone into the smoothness of animations, the clarity of graphics and the overall tidiness of how everything comes together. From the subtle animations and sounds in the menus down to the way the levels are drawn, this feels like a game made to impress on all fronts. While this probably isn't the most resource-heavy game available today, we still have to give credit where credit is due that the game ran absolutely flawless for us.

If you haven't tried out Fieldrunners (or another tower defense game) before don't worry, as it is extremely easy to pick up and start playing. Veterans of the original will feel right at home as well -- a tough balance to achieve. When playing the game for the first time, you're quickly taken into the first level on an easy mode to get acquainted with all of the new features. Tutorials and tips pop up as you place your towers, making sure you understand the way everything works. Tower defense is pretty simple though -- just stop the incoming enemies by placing different towers in a strategic pattern. You'll quickly pass the level, and get onto the real fun. After the first level you'll be able to get a look at the whole world of levels available going forward. Double tap or pinch to zoom in on your next one, and if you're up to it select one of the two harder difficulties.

Beyond a complete visual overhaul, Fieldrunners 2 adds a whole host of new upgrades, towers and gameplay mechanics to keep things fresh. As the game progresses, you'll have the option to unlock and equip up to 6 different towers at a time, with over 20 to choose from in total. Beyond the normal towers, you also have about a dozen different special "items" as limited use tools to help you get through tough rounds of enemies. Items for example can rewind game progress or kill enemies with hidden mines -- things that will be basically required when on "heroic" difficulty.

New towers and items are unlocked by passing levels on harder difficulties, and purchased with in-game coins that you also receive for passing through levels with higher marks. You can buy additional coins as in-app purchases ranging from $1.99 to $99.99, but if you want the biggest challenge, you'll just grind it out yourself. The developer, Subatomic Studios, says there is well over 20 hours of gameplay to be had in Fieldrunners 2, so don't worry about finishing this game too quickly.

If you're even remotely interested in trying out a tower defense game, Fieldrunners 2 is well worth the $2.99 price of admission. You may never make it through over 20 levels on heroic difficulty (although they say it is possible), but for some good casual fun when you need it, this game hits the spot. It's no understatement to say that this game is a joy to play.

Andrew Martonik

Andrew was an Executive Editor, U.S. at Android Central between 2012 and 2020.

22 Comments
  • @Andrew Martonik Thanks for the post. good for this type of game players. hope they will enjoy a lot playing this. Thanks in Advance
  • I enjoyed the first game, but it seemed rather limited in some ways, especially compared to something like Bloon Tower Defense 5. BTD5 is an absolutely amazing game. I know 5 guys right now who are absolutely addicted to this game.
  • Yeah, BTD5 was amazing. I probably played over 20 hours.
  • I'm still resistant to this pricing model that has you paying upfront & still has in-app purchases. I can forgive anything when a game is "freemium" and don't mind larger price points when I get all the content at once. It's just a weird psychological thing that wouldn't matter if the game is balanced well, but I still don't like it.
  • Totally understandable. When we initially launched the game on iOS, we did it without any in app purchases. People begged us to add them so we did, and we did so without changing the balancing at all. So, the game is totally beatable without any IAP, but it's there for people that really want it.
  • You have got to be kidding. This game is a terrible follow up to arguably the best tower defense game ever. Most heinous of all offenses is that it will take forever to upgrade to even the first new weapon without using the required in-app purchases. If playing the same levels with the same weapons and the same results while trying to build up the piddling rewards to progress in the game is fun for you, give a quick check of the comments in the Play Store since it came out of beta and you will see a lot of contrary opinions. Reviews like this for games created by overly greedy developers calls into question the integrity of this site. You should be more careful with what gets published here.
  • $2.99 is a steal for a game that so much time and effort was obviously put into by the developers. You can still play through the game without in app purchases, it just takes longer.
  • Yes, you can play through it if you have nothing better to do than continuously repeat levels. But there is absolutely no reason for a paid app to require that people either slog through the game or spend more money to progress. And if the developers feel that the game is worth more than three bucks then they should have charged more. I would have paid it up front. Hiding costs inside a game that I have already paid for is sleazy.
  • In-app purchases were not part of the original iOS release, but so many people bitched and moaned that they eventually added it. It still isn't part of the Steam release. You don't need to use any of the in-app purchases to finish the game; I didn't.
  • I have a hard time believing that even iUsers are dumb enough to beg to pay for a game multiple times. As for playing without paying again (and again?), I bought the game as soon as it was available and have put a little more time into playing it than what I assume most casual players would since, and I have yet to be able to get even the first new tower. So, even IF iOs users are that silly, and you are that good at this game, that doesn't address my points very well at all. This is just greed on the devs part. Period.
  • More a Grave Defense HD kind of guy myself.
  • I love Fieldrunners, Tower Raiders, etc. but I do agree that Grave Defense HD is the best tower defense game around and I hope they release a sequel soon!
  • I really like Grave Defense HD as well. (My son LOVES it too!)
  • I'm gonna start by saying that I LOVED the original Fieldrunners HD.
    I still play it all the time.
    I bought Fieldrunners 2 yesterday morning, before I saw this review.
    Other than it is a bit flaky on my Evo 4G LTE, (I can't have ANYTHING else in memory else it just dumps back to my desktop) it is a VERY fun game.
  • Anyone having problems getting towers onto the bottom row of the grid? I was in the beta, and kept reporting a bug where I couldn't place any tower on the bottom row. My finger fell off the screen before it got there. I want to buy the game, but I'd rather not plop down $3 if this hasn't been fixed.
  • Bought it for my Nexus 7. I really like Field Runners 1. I'm hoping this isn't so unbalanced that it requires huge in-app purchases. I'd prefer it be a well balanced and fair game and just charge me $10 upfront. I don't like in-app purchases to progress in a game because I don't know if I'm spending money to "cheat" or spending money to get "ripped off" (like upgrading a weapon that because worthless two levels later). Like when should I buy the upgraded towers? If I buy them too soon, do I just defeat the level design of the game? Will I buy them and then find them useless?
  • Glad you liked our original game! Fieldrunners 2 was balanced without IAP in mind, so if you aren't a fan of IAP, you should be fine getting through the game without it. We had a lot of people asking us to add IAP when we launched on iOS, and I feel like we did a pretty stand up job allowing both IAP lovers and haters to have a quality game that meets both their needs. Pro Tip: Get the Ice Tower as soon as you can. That thing is a beast and you should have enough coins to grab it within the first 8 maps if you are playing on Medium or Hard and laying down sick combos. Combos are key to earning coins! Google search "Modojo Fieldrunners 2 coins" and you'll find a sweet guide with dev tricks on how to wrack up the coins nice and quick :) Hope that helps! (Would've posted a link but it was marked as spam...)
  • FR 2 is too hard for me. I much prefer the original. In the sequel I don't care for the new level types
  • Those tips are mostly crap. You guys got greedy and no about of babble about balancing changes that. Neither does repeating the same lie about it being easy to advance without paying (again). Fieldrunners HD is easily one of the best games ever, but you blew it on the sequel. Your users keep telling you how you screwed up but instead of listening you tell us we're wrong. We are not. This game could have been so great, but it most assuredly is not. In app purchases required in a paid game is garbage. Instead of running around spinning this, maybe you should be taking notes to get this fixed. I am still astounded that Android Central gave this bomb a review like this. Sort the comments at the Play Store by newest to oldest and you'll get a more objective opinion from us suckers that aren't so happy.
  • Those tips are mostly crap. You guys got greedy and no about of babble about balancing changes that. Neither does repeating the same lie about it being easy to advance without paying (again). Fieldrunners HD is easily one of the best games ever, but you blew it on the sequel. Your users keep telling you how you screwed up but instead of listening you tell us we're wrong. We are not. This game could have been so great, but it most assuredly is not. In app purchases required in a paid game is garbage. Instead of running around spinning this, maybe you should be taking notes to get this fixed. I am still astounded that Android Central gave this bomb a review like this. Sort the comments at the Play Store by newest to oldest and you'll get a more objective opinion from us suckers that aren't so happy.
  • This game is great. Played alot of td games and this one is the best one.
  • "Bug Rush" is pretty awesome too - has simpler yet more in depth gameplay and it's free. https://www.androidcentral.com/e?link=https2F2F...