Fit check
Is Desperate Place worth it for you?
We tell you who should skip it, too.
Play it if you…
Good fit- Tower-defense players who want base layout and resource management alongside combat
- Strategy fans who enjoy adapting defenses as enemy threats increase
- Science-fiction players who prefer survival missions built around repairing a stranded ship
Skip it if you…
Saves you a refund- Players seeking a story-led adventure may find the repeated base-defense and resource-recovery cycle too focused on systems
- Those who dislike adjusting layouts during changing enemy routes and weather effects may hit a wall during later attacks
- Players looking for squad-level or direct military command will find a different structure here
Our take on Desperate Place
The bounce point arrives when defensive planning must account for several systems at once: resource returns trigger attacks, tower types have distinct ranges and damage, and weather can invalidate an established layout. Players wanting a fixed defense pattern may hit that disruption quickly.
What is Desperate Place?
Desperate Place is a science-fiction tower defense and base-building game set on an unknown planet.
After a damaged colonization ship lands, the crew must find helium-3, restore the vessel, and survive attacks triggered by returning resources. Players lay out extraction and research facilities, then combine towers, traps, barriers, obstacles, and terrain to protect the base. Artillery, laser, and missile defenses have different ranges and damage types, requiring placement around enemy routes. Creatures grow stronger and more varied over time, while unpredictable weather can disrupt existing defensive plans. A commander and an accompanying small robot can also contribute to the defense.
How Desperate Place plays
- 01Base Construction
- Resource stations, research facilities, barriers, traps, and defensive structures can be placed across the alien planet.
- 02Mixed Tower Arsenal
- Artillery, laser, and missile emplacements use different ranges and damage types.
- 03Escalating Attacks
- Enemy forces become stronger and more varied as the mission continues.
- 04Changing Weather
- Unpredictable planetary weather can alter established defensive plans.
- 05Ship Repair Mission
- The campaign centers on collecting helium-3 and restoring the damaged colonization vessel.
Desperate Place compared to similar games
Desperate Place centers on building a temporary planetary base, extracting helium-3, and defending against alien creatures with towers, traps, barriers, and terrain. Xenonauts instead commands persistent soldiers in turn-based squad operations while recovering alien technology, and Men of War: Assault Squad focuses on large-scale World War II battles with direct control of individual units.
Desperate Place: platforms & release
Is Desperate Place worth it?
It is worth it if: tower-defense players who want base layout and resource management alongside combat. Skip it if: players seeking a story-led adventure may find the repeated base-defense and resource-recovery cycle too focused on systems.
Where can I download Desperate Place?
Use the Download Now button on this page: it opens Desperate Place's store page, where you can choose how to get it.
What platforms is Desperate Place on?
Windows only.
