Elematter
Elematter is a tower defense game where picking the right element matters as much as picking the right spot. Both your towers and the creatures on the road belong to Earth, Water, Air or Fire. Every tower hits one of those types for an extra 50 percent.
Your job is to clear twenty waves along a long, winding path while losing as few of your thirteen lives as you can. Jack Rugile built it for the 2014 js13kGames contest, which capped each entry at 13 kilobytes.
How to play Elematter
Click an empty gray square beside the path to open the build menu. Prices run from 200 fragments for Earth to 250 for Fire or Air and 300 for Water. You begin with 500 fragments. Hover over a choice to see its damage, range and rate before you buy.
Press Play to start. The counters are simple: Earth hits Air hard, Air beats Water, Water beats Fire, and Fire beats Earth. Each tower can be upgraded twice, and a white marker shows when you can afford the next level. Reclaiming a tower returns 75 percent of what you put into it.
Every enemy that slips through costs one life. Waves 5, 10, 15 and 20 bring big, slow bosses with huge health. Finish wave 20 to win. Your score is the fragments you have left plus 100 points per remaining life.
Controls
| Action | Keyboard | Mouse | Touch |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open the build menu | — | Click an empty square by the path | Tap an empty square |
| Build a tower | — | Click Earth, Water, Air or Fire | Tap an element |
| Upgrade or reclaim | — | Click a tower, then the button | Tap a tower, then the button |
| Start or pause | — | Click Play | Tap Play |
| Game speed | — | Click x1, x2 or x3 | Tap x1, x2 or x3 |
| Send the next wave early | — | Click Send Next | Tap Send Next |
Tips
- Glance at the Next counter in the bottom bar before you build. Counter whichever element makes up most of the coming wave.
- The opening waves are heavy on Earth enemies, so Fire towers are a strong first purchase.
- Bosses arrive as Earth, then Water, then Air, then Fire. Have an upgraded counter tower in place a wave or two ahead of each one.
- Water slows the enemies it hits and spreads its shots around, so it works well covering a long straight section.
- Send Next pays a bonus that shrinks over time. If your defense is comfortable, press it right as the previous wave begins.
If you like Elematter, try these
Canvas Tower DefenseNeon tower defense where four turret types face waves that keep coming, so placement matters the whole time.
Hex FormationWave defense on hexagons, with a winding path, three tower kinds and only ten lives to spare.
Questions
Can I play Elematter on a tablet or phone?
Taps work for building, upgrading and all buttons. Tower stats appear on hover, though, and the board is small on a phone, so a mouse is easier.
What happens if I lose all my lives?
The game resets and you start again from the first wave with fresh fragments.
How do I earn more fragments in Elematter?
Destroying enemies pays fragments, with later waves paying a bit more and bosses paying triple. Sending a wave early adds an extra bonus.
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