Action · April 30, 2015
GemCraft – Chasing Shadows (2015)
The cult classic tower defense game beloved by millions comes to Steam with GemCraft - Chasing Shadows. Against swarms of vicious, demonic avatars, your only defenses are the gems you conjure that, when placed atop towers or into traps and amplifiers, become conduits for powerful magical and elemental attacks. GemCraft combines fast-paced real-time strategy as you deal with waves of incoming monsters, and cunning tactics that allow you to craft and combine magical gems. Create traps that poison or slow, discover powerful artifacts and unlock new abilities, and stand alone against The Forgotten, a seemingly unkillable archdemon whose endless armies threaten to swallow the world. GemCraft is packed with multiple levels of difficulty, hundreds of achievements, nearly two hundred levels, and much, much more, making it a rewarding, deep strategy game you'll come back to over and over again. Key Features: Conquer over 190 stages with unique challenges and conditions. Over two dozen passive skills to unlock and enhance as you level up and increase your power. More than 400 achievements that will reward you with more skill points as you earn them. Craft and combine nine gem types with different effects to suit your tactical needs. Combine and stack multiple tiers of difficulty and challenging battle traits for greater rewards, but also greater dangers. Socket fragments you find into your mystical talisman to impart new bonuses. Wield devastating spells to decimate your foes or enhance your gems. Control the speed of battle with fast-forward or pause to fit your play style. Want more monsters? Summon them with wave stones, but beware their greater power... Replay any stage you've completed for more experience points or with a new challenge. Hold out as long as you can after you win levels in Endurance mode for more rewards.
Action releases from 2015
146 Action titles launched in 2015 — top 6 by review volume.
Peer Action titles
Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.
Position in Action
| Metric | This title | Genre position |
|---|---|---|
| Review volume | 4.1k Steam reviews | Top 66% in Action |
| Positive rating | 95% positive | Genre average: 83% — this title sits in top 14% |
| Engagement hours | 27 h average | Top 17% for session depth among Action |
Community Tag Signals
Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.
- Tower Defense · 191
- Strategy · 123
- Indie · 78
- Singleplayer · 68
- Action · 46
- Top-Down · 39
- Fantasy · 34
- Tactical · 27
- 2D · 24
- Classic · 22
- Difficult · 22
- Great Soundtrack · 12
- Puzzle · 8
- Magic · 7
- Dark Fantasy · 5
Engagement Profile
All-time avg
27h
moderate (15–40 hours)
Median
5h
Typical completion time
2-week avg
9h
Current engagement
Achievements
419
Steam unlocks available
Release & Availability
| Release date | Apr 30, 2015 |
|---|---|
| Developer | Game in a Bottle |
| Publisher | Armor Games Studios |
| Base price | $1.99 -80% |
| Platforms | Windows |
| Estimated owners | 100k–1M |
| External links | Official site · [email protected] |
Features & Capabilities
Community
- Steam Achievements
- Steam Trading Cards
- Steam Cloud
Input & Comfort
- Full controller support
Other
- Single-player
- Family Sharing
Reception Metrics
Steam community
95%Overwhelmingly Positive · 4.1k reviews
3.9k positive · 207 negative
Curator recommendations
3.5k
Editions & Packages
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