Want to play a cozy game that doesn’t involve building farms? Are you also a fan of any media that involves a magic school? Then perhaps Artificer’s Tower might be the game for you. This cozy tower defence title is from RodentGames, and the goal is to build and grow your own magic school, while also defending it from hordes of monsters. Do you have what it takes to protect and raise your students? And does this game have the resources and essence to fulfil that fantasy?

Artificer’s Tower has five levels to choose from – Tutorial, Peaceful, Lively, Survival, and Custom. What’s great about this game is that it doesn’t force you to do a tutorial. You can jump in as you please if you feel confident enough to do so. The levels also add a bit of challenge, depending on what you’re after. For example, if you just want to play at your own pace and build your own magic school without much risk, then Lively mode is the one for you. But if you want to have a challenge and see how long your mages can live (because they can die in the game or quit their jobs), then go pursue the harder levels.

If you do choose the tutorial level, the game warns you if you’re breaking instructions. This is great as it tells you that it will no longer hold your hand if you decide to leave and that you’re now confident to do things on your own. The game’s mascot, Marvin the Wizard, appears both in and out of the tutorial levels. While he’s not in the tower with you, he plays as the typical “important notifications guy,” letting you know that you’ve unlocked something new and giving you tips on how to progress.

This game starts you off with three mages that you can choose from. Each of them has its own stats block and personalities that will affect how you’ll get through the game. Some mages are good at certain tasks, some may require better food or clothing, and some might not be skilled at certain things. If you don’t like what’s on offer, you can choose someone else using the shuffle button. Unfortunately, you can’t edit their appearance, nor can you modify their stats and traits. The same can be said for the students who will want to join you in your tower.

When it comes to the game’s art, Artificer’s Tower‘s appearance isn’t that amazing, but it does the job in the simplest way possible. While it’s unfortunate that we don’t see some variety in the people in this realm, the game makes up for it with its room designs and the monsters in the game. As for the humans, it feels as if they’ve been churned through an appearance randomizer.

What’s great about Artificer’s Tower is that there is no plot, which is nice if you’re after a fun game to zone out to. It’s just an endless survival game to see how far you can defend your tower and grow your mages to become a powerful army. In terms of gameplay, it’s pretty much your typical point-and-click micromanage game. The game’s version of mana is called “essence” and you need to use it wisely in order to create items and spells that can help craft other items, like rooms, food, weapons, and more. You can sell some of them to earn some coins that can help pay your mages and build better facilities. It does take a bit of math due to having limited resources, and a bit of time for you to remember the numerous items and room recipes in the game.

Artificer’s Tower does have some flaws, but it also gives you that feeling of wanting to try again. You can build a new tower, build from scratch, and plan everything so you can defend yourself better and grow a better magic school. It’s just a shame that the students don’t really fight or take their positions when the tower is under attack, because it would be a huge help when taking on the more difficult raids.