Retro Defender

About Retro Defender

Retro Defender is the purest expression of the idea that survival games are about triage. You have six cities along the bottom of the screen and a single interceptor you aim with the pointer. Objects fall toward the cities from above. Your interception rate is fixed. The incoming rate is not. Within a minute you are structurally unable to stop everything, and the entire game becomes a sequence of decisions about what you are willing to lose.

The scoring makes those decisions concrete rather than abstract. Cities are worth points while they are alive — a continuous trickle that scales with how many you still have. Losing a city does not end the run, it reduces your income. So the question is never simply 'can I save this?' but 'is saving this worth what it costs me elsewhere?'

Three threat types create genuinely different triage problems. Standard objects fall straight and slowly. Splitters break into three at a set altitude, so intercepting them above that point is worth three interceptions and below it is worth one. Fast movers arrive in under two seconds and cannot be reacted to — they must be anticipated from their launch flash. Reading which is which, immediately, is the skill.

How to Play

Keep as many of your six cities alive as long as possible by intercepting the threats that matter most.

Every game on this site can be paused with P or Esc and restarted with R. Sound, retro screen effects and fullscreen are toggled from the buttons above the play area.

Game Mechanics

Interception timing

Your interceptor takes time to travel and detonates in a radius. Leading the shot and choosing the detonation altitude both matter — a well-placed detonation can clear several objects at once, which is the only way to keep pace past the first minute.

Splitter altitude

Splitters divide into three at a fixed altitude marked by a faint line across the screen. Intercepting above the line stops all three; below it, you have three separate problems. This single rule generates most of the game's prioritisation decisions.

City income

Each surviving city generates points continuously. Losing one permanently reduces your scoring rate, which means early losses compound. Defending aggressively at the start is worth more than it appears.

Scoring

Your best result is saved in this browser only. Nothing is uploaded, and there is no global leaderboard — see the storage policy for exactly what is kept.

Tips & Strategy

• Intercept splitters above the line. One shot above the split altitude does the work of three below it. This is the single highest value action in the game.
• Aim between two threats. The detonation radius can clear both. Multi-intercepts are how you keep pace with the rate.
• Decide early which cities you will abandon. Trying to defend all six equally means defending none of them well. Pick the cluster you can actually hold.
• Watch the launch flashes. Fast movers arrive in under two seconds. If you wait until you can see the object, it has already landed.

Common Mistakes

• Intercepting whatever is closest to the ground. It is usually already too late, and it is never the most valuable target. Prioritise splitters above the line.
• Firing single-target shots. Your interception rate is fixed and the incoming rate is not. One-for-one trades lose eventually and quickly.
• Panicking after the first city falls. Losing one city is expected. Losing your composure costs the other five.

Features

• Six independent cities with continuous score income
• Three threat types with different interception windows
• Splitter altitude line that rewards early interception
• Radius detonation that can clear multiple threats
• Structural impossibility of stopping everything — triage by design
• Local best score and best cities-surviving count