Off the AppStore: On the frontline of the Redline - Idle Front

• Defend the frontline actively or on the side
• Power, upgrade, and boost your turret and fortifications
• The shapes are coming, keep the shot coming right back!

Welcome to Off The AppStore, a weekly feature with a twist. Namely, that while these - as with all the games we cover here - are games that you can play on your phone, they're ones that operate outside of the realms of the big two ways to play: The Google Play Store and the Apple AppStore.

That means that there might be a bit of work required in downloading alternative AppStores or APKs, or that the games can simply be played in your phone browser. We'll make sure to detail that for each game though. Anyway, read on to find a new game or experience to play Off The AppStore.

You could throw a sock into a landfill of bargain bins filled with games, and you have a high chance of hitting one that puts you on the frontline of some conflict you've never heard about. There's a rule of thumb that some designers apply to their approach, which states, "The less you know about the details of a conflict, the easier it is to throw yourself into it." You don't need to know who you're fighting or why they're attacking you; you need to fight and stay alive. That's what Beorgames is challenging you to do by accepting your post in Redline - Idle Front.

Congratulations! You're the new totally-qualified operator of the Big Gun, which is more of a big turret, but that's semantics. As the controller of this weapon, you are the main line of defence against the enemy forces. Who are these enemies? Shapes. Viscious, vicious shapes. Typically, this wouldn't be cause for concern, but shapes are solid and edgy, and they waged a campaign of destruction in Geometry Wars, so they don't mess around. The turret is set to auto-fire on the nearest target first, but you've got to pump up the cannons to increase the rate of fire as more shapes charge into the mix.

The gun is big, but numbers will always overwhelm the biggest of guns, which is why you must invest. The more shapes you take down, the more you can spend on your defences. You can invest in shaping money to build up your walls, making them harder to break down and causing problems for those who get too close. And of course, you can upgrade the Big Gun to be more powerful, faster, and shoot shots that will have even the biggest enemies shaping down rather than up.

This is an idle game, but one that won't let you rest too much. You'll need to take an active role in powering up the gun, upgrading it, maintaining the wall, and preparing for the appearance of new shapes. The monochromatic colour scheme makes it easier to distinguish between elements and highlights the more significant and rapid threats, allowing you to identify where to focus your attention. The Redline turret needs you, so you'd better get in shape!

Redline - Idle Front is available to play from its itch.io page!