The core gameplay is that of a tower defense game, with a number of characters as towers. Melee operators can be placed on ground tiles and ranged operators on elevated tiles. Melee operators physically block enemies from advancing, and ranged operators deal ranged damage or heal melee operators. Specialist operators can be deployed on any playable tiles. Players must place operators on the correct tiles to prevent the enemy from infiltrating the player's base. As the player progresses through the game, they unlock more game modes, operators and resources, and are also introduced to new types of enemies and gameplay mechanics. Levels that have been cleared with a three-star rating can be auto-completed without player input, as the game records the player's actions and replicates them. The game also has a base-building side to it, which allows players to construct facilities and assign operators to them. This enables players to increase their resources in the manner of an incremental game. It features the usual array of free-to-play, gacha game mechanics, such as randomized character acquisition through virtual currency which can be obtained by playing the game, through social features, daily login rewards or optional in-app purchases using real currency.
Plot
The game is set in the dystopian, post-apocalyptic future setting of the planet Terra, where magic exists, and the humans of Terra exhibit features of animals or mythological races. Natural disasters leave behind a valuable mineral, originium, which infects people with a progressive disease, oripathy. Due to the disease's 100% mortality rate, and its high infectivity at the time of death, hostility towards the infected became widespread, leading to their mass quarantine and expulsion by governments worldwide and tensions between the infected and non-infected. The player takes the role of the masked and amnesiac "Doctor", who had very recently recovered from cryonic sleep. The Doctor commands a team of "operators" belonging to Rhodes Island Pharmaceuticals, a medical and self-defense organization. As oripathy spreads, the team must search for a cure while defending themselves against the Reunion Movement, an Infected anarchist military force bent on overthrowing the governments of Terra in revenge for persecuting oripathy victims.
Reception
Arknights is very popular in China, where it was first released. Pocket Gamer highlighted the game's extensive lore and high production values.
