Swordtail

What happens in play

According to Poki's description, the job is to defend your kingdom against waves of monsters. Between the fights you gather resources, craft items and upgrade your gear so that you can survive the harder waves that follow.

Movement is the only thing you steer. You walk with WASD, the arrow keys, or by clicking and dragging. Collecting and attacking happen on their own when you are close enough: walking near a resource gathers it, and walking near an enemy attacks it. That means positioning matters more than pressing buttons.

Poki also lists a two-player mode, so a friend can join on the same game. Escape pauses play, which is useful when you want to look at what to upgrade next.

Knobs and keys

• W A S DMove
• Arrow keysMove
• Click and dragMove towards the pointer
• EscapePause

Tips for the first sessions

1. 1

   Spend calm moments collecting. Resources gathered before a wave are what turn into stronger gear.

2. 2

   Since attacks start when you walk close, approach enemies on purpose rather than drifting into groups.

3. 3

   Upgrade gear between waves instead of saving everything; the later waves are the ones that ask for it.

4. 4

   If you play with a friend, agree who gathers and who defends so that both jobs are covered.

Who it is made for

Players who enjoy the loop of gathering, crafting and defending, and anyone who wants a simple action game that can be played with another person.

Points to consider

• Poki shows ads around the game, as with other titles.

• Because attacks are automatic, the control is simple but there is less direct skill in each fight.

• Poki's short blurb for this game differs from its longer description; this page follows the long description and the controls.

Questions about Swordtail