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Batteries Not Included

Batteries Not Included is a multiplayer tower defense game where robot contestants work a chaotic factory assembly line to power their defenses and launch virus attacks against the opposing team's generators. Think Overcooked meets tower defense -- players physically carry materials between crafting stations, charge batteries, load cannons, and deploy offensive viruses, all while defending against incoming waves.

The game's title is its core design philosophy: nothing works without batteries, and no batteries are provided. Players must mine copper, craft empty batteries at work benches, charge them at charging stations, and then use the charged batteries to power zappers, magnets, and virus crafting. The battery supply chain is the beating heart of every match.

Gameplay Loop

  • Gather raw materials from storages

  • Craft ammo and empty batteries at work benches

  • Charge batteries at chargers — batteries power everything

  • Defend — load zappers with battery + ammo, aim and shoot incoming viruses

  • Attack — craft virus armor, deploy viruses down paths toward enemy generators

  • Collect scraps from kills using battery-powered magnets

  • Upgrade — spend scraps on faster stations, new buildings, stronger viruses

BNI 1.0 — Design Issues & Limitations

  • Zappers are mindless — just point and shoot. Any ammo works on any virus. No reading, no decision-making, no risk.

  • No counter-attacks exist. Defenders are never punished. Defense has zero risk.

  • Crafting has no choices. The route to victory is linear.

  • All viruses behave identically, even with melee and ranged variations. Offense is just "deploy more stuff." No composition strategy.

  • Communication is optional — teammates don't need to call out what's incoming because it doesn't matter. Load anything, shoot anything.

  • The upgrade tree is limited. Players only decide to upgrade faster crafting, more material stations, or more viruses deployed to the enemy’s generators.

BNI 2.0 - Elemental Escalation

Elemental Escalation introduced a full elemental virus system to BNI 2.0, adding a new layer of strategic depth to enemy encounters. Viruses now come in three elements — Heat, Ice, and Slime — each countering and being countered by another in a rock-paper-scissors dynamic. Matching the right elemental cannon against the right virus triggers powerful counter effects, from instant kills to healing and retaliation attacks, making every combat decision feel impactful.

Elemental System

  • Viruses now come in three elements — Heat, Ice, and Slime — forming a rock-paper-scissors counter dynamic

  • Each element has three variations: one basic and two advanced, each with unique stats and special abilities

  • Basic elemental viruses consume 1 battery and 1 elemental cannon; advanced variants consume 2 batteries

  • Heat — counters Ice, countered by Slime

    • Heat Trail: leaves a scorching trail that doubles the attack damage of all viruses on it

    • Melter: absorbs nearby viruses and scraps to grow stronger over time

    • Hit by Slime: killed immediately

    • Hit by Heat/Normal: loses 50% health and gains an attack speed buff

    • Hit by Ice: heals itself and hurls a fireball at the gate, causing continuous damage

  • Ice — counters Slime, countered by Heat

    • Ice Trail: leaves a freezing trail that boosts the walking speed of all viruses on it

    • Protector: periodically shields nearby viruses, allowing them to survive one hit

    • Hit by Heat: killed immediately

    • Hit by Ice/Normal: loses 50% health and gains a shield that survives one attack

    • Hit by Slime: heals itself and freezes the cannon that shot it for 5 seconds

  • Slime — counters Heat, countered by Ice

    • Slime Trail: leaves a trail that doubles the attack speed of all viruses on it

    • Divider: records nearby viruses and spawns additional waves of enemies at the generator

    • Hit by Ice: killed immediately

    • Hit by Slime/Normal: loses 50% health and disables a random crafting station for 5 seconds

    • Hit by Heat: heals itself and splits into two slimes at 50% health each

e.g. Heat Trail virus applying buff

e.g. Slime virus splitted

Design Principle

The Core Idea

Three elements (Heat, Cold, Slime) form a rock-paper-scissors triangle where the wrong answer is worse than no answer. This single rule transforms every system it touches.

Principle 1: Defense Is a Decision, Not a Reflex

Without elements, zappers are point-and-click. With elements, every shot requires reading the incoming virus type and verifying the loaded ammo. The zapper becomes the highest-skill, highest-stakes station on the floor.

Principle 2: Mistakes Cascade

Wrong ammo doesn't just waste a shot — it fully heals the enemy and launches a counter-attack that damages your own infrastructure (burning gates, frozen zappers, disabled crafting stations). One bad shot creates a chain reaction: a frozen zapper means the next wave goes uncontested, which means more gate damage, which means you're now losing. The punishment is proportional to the carelessness.

Principle 3: Offense Is Compositional

Elements give attackers a vocabulary for building virus waves with intent:

  • Mix elements to force defenders to swap ammo between shots

  • Lead with Trail viruses to buff the wave behind them

  • Add Specials (Melter, Protector, Divider) for synergy and disruption

  • Exploit the counter system — send the element the enemy is least prepared for

Deploying viruses shifts from "send as many as possible" to "send the right composition."

Principle 4: Communication Becomes Mandatory

Elemental viruses make team coordination the difference between winning and losing. Someone must call out incoming types. Someone must ensure the right ammo is loaded. Someone must pivot crafting when the enemy changes their virus mix. The element system is what turns a group of individuals into a team.

Principle 5: The Resource Pipeline Multiplies

Three elements triple the crafting tree — three ammo types, three basic viruses, three trails, three specials. Teams must decide what to stockpile, what to pre-craft, and when to pivot. The factory floor gets busier, the logistics get harder, and the Overcooked-style chaos intensifies. This is where depth and replayability live.

My art work: BNI trophy