Defense Grid: The Awakening

Price: $9.99

Where to get it:  Steam

With the seemingly unlimited landscape of tower defense games, it’s unusual for a title to garner attention, deserved or not.  Defense Grid earns the attention by bringing tower defense to a 3D isometric perspective.  Not only does the game look great, but the abundant ways to strategize are all there.  A variety of towers, the ability to upgrade, and a handful of different enemy types complement the graphics to produce an enjoyable game.

Kingdom of Loathing

Price:  Free

Where to get it:  Kingdomofloathing.com

Kingdom of Loathing is a browser-based role-playing game that has unexpected layers of complexity.  The sales pitch is simple – take a ton of pop culture references and work them into creative puzzles that advance you through the game.  The humor gets you started and the handful of dungeons, multitude of new game+-like replay options, and constant rollout of new content will keep you coming for more.