You make the plan.
Build between waves. Compare range, place defenses, and choose what your budget can do.
DEFEND · EXPERIMENT · DISCOVER
Little commanders.
Big ideas.
A curious planet. A lab to protect.
A thousand “what ifs” waiting to happen.
A tower-defense adventure where kids make the plan, watch it work, and discover how to make it better.
Explore the adventureThink like a commander.Experiment like a scientist.Learn by playing.
WELCOME TO YOUR OUTPOST
The best defense?
A better idea.
Friendly creatures are approaching your research lab. Pick your defenses, find the right spots, and make a plan with the credits you have. Then launch the wave and see what happens.
Let your idea run.
Your towers follow the plan. Pause, inspect, or speed up the action while you watch.
Find your next “aha!”
Review what got through and what each tower did. Move, rethink, and try the wave again.
REAL THINKING. REAL PLAY.
More than stopping
the next wave.
Each new tool gives kids a new way to think. Learning grows out of choices and consequences, with a robot sidekick to help them notice what happened.
“What if I move it
inside the bend?”
The same blaster can see more of the path from a different site. Kids compare coverage and discover why location changes firing time.
“More towers, or
one different tool?”
Limited credits make choices matter. A slow beam can give another defense more time; a laser can reach where a blaster cannot.
“That creature
behaves differently.”
Runners move faster. Shellbacks resist small hits. Kids compare traits and use their observations to choose a response.
“What does this
machine depend on?”
Later, generators and relays bring power into play. Kids connect a network and reason about what it can reach and support.
SMALL RULES. SMARTER PLANS.
First they place.
Then they program.
Kids start by learning what their towers do. When faster creatures arrive, simple visual rules give them control over who a defense aims at.
Conditions, actions, and alternatives become useful tools for solving a problem they have already seen. Later, AND conditions and ordered rules add depth.
WHENA runner is in range
THENAim at the runner
ELSEAim at the nearest
An example of the kind of rule kids can build. No typing code required.
A LITTLE MISSION. A REAL DISCOVERY.
Give your tower a better plan.
Two defenses. Five creatures. Can you stop them all? Run the wave, inspect what happened, then write a rule for your Blaster.
A browser challenge inspired by the game’s shellback encounters. This field has a fixed layout and simplified balance.
The BendPLAN YOUR DEFENSE
Wave 1 of 1◇ Goal: no breaches0 / 5 stopped
×3×2
Ready, commander?
Shellbacks have hard shells. Walkers don’t. Let’s see how our defenses handle them.
0 stopped0 breaches0 bounced shots
“HOW DO YOU KNOW?”
A guess is a start.
Evidence is the next step.
In later missions, kids can predict what will happen when a defense meets a new creature. Afterwards, the result is compared with their idea. A checked prediction earns discovery credit even when the guess was wrong.
- Keep a record. The Journal fills with effects actually observed in play.
- Isolate an idea. The Test Chamber lets kids try creatures they have met against tools they own, without a breach limit.
- Read the result. Wave reviews show hits, bounces, stops, and where creatures escaped.
- Change the plan. Try again with one useful observation to guide the next decision.
MEET YOUR NEXT QUESTION
Small creatures.
Interesting problems.
Walker
A steady start.
Where can you cover its path?
Runner
Twice as fast.
Who should your tower aim at?
Shellback
A protective shell.
Which hits get through?
Bubbler
A different kind of shield.
What could pop that bubble?
FOR THE GROWN-UPS
Room to think.
Permission to try again.
Outpost Lab is being built around the curiosity of a nine-year-old: enough challenge to invite thought, with space to inspect, experiment, and improve.
What can kids practise?
Logic, planning, problem solving, reading evidence, and understanding connected systems. These are opportunities built into play, rather than claims of measured educational outcomes.
Is this a race against the clock?
Planning happens between waves, without a planning countdown. During combat kids can pause and inspect. Missions target short sessions of around 5–8 minutes, with time to think.
What happens when a plan fails?
Retry the same wave with the last launched layout and remaining funds. Earlier completed waves stay completed. Between waves, moving is free and selling gives a full refund, so another idea is affordable.
Does it need an internet connection?
Core missions and progress work offline. The current family prototype has no accounts, ads, or purchases. Public release plans and pricing are still undecided.
Can we download it yet?
Outpost Lab is in development for iOS, with landscape iPad as the primary experience. There is no public download or announced release date yet. Screenshots show the current development build; details may change.
THE ADVENTURE IS STILL TAKING SHAPE
Today, a better defense.
Tomorrow, a better question.
Outpost Lab · An adventure for curious minds.
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