The news just hit me that the wildly popular Desktop Tower Defense game, a free Flash affair in which you need to use wit and tactics, positioning your canons to stop the enemies from passing through the battlefield, has been updated to version 1.5. The new version features several new weapons (most of which seem quite useless), new modes and slightly altered graphics.

The game is so addictive that I’m actually scared of trying it out, concerned that I might still be awake 6 hours from now, thinking to myself “just one more try” while the sun slowly rises outside and birds happily chirp with the coming of a new day.

But, this didn’t stop me from checking out all the other similar games, some of which have also been updated since the last time I’ve seen them, and I was pleased to find some new, advanced versions. So, besides the most popular Desktop Tower Defense, here are 9 more:

Onslaught 2 - one of the best DTD-style games out there, with a variety of maps; it has recently been updated to version 2. Compared to DTD, it seems easy at first, but it gets much, much tougher later.

Vector Tower Defense - futuristic version of DTD; some may like the vector graphics, I’m not too fond of it.

VR Defender Y3K - you’ll have to endure slow loading time and shoddy graphics for this one, but it can be quite fun once you get the hang of it.

AntBuster - ignore the insanely annoying banner and click on “Play this game”. The main difference here is the fact that you’re killing ants (which move in chaotic patterns) instead of your run-of-the-mill robots.

Flash Element TD - Warcraft take on the genre (actually, some claim the genre is derived from a Warcraft map, while others hold the opinion that it comes from much older games), also introduces research which enables you to buy better weapons.

Master of defense - a desktop game with 3D graphics resembling Warcraft; unfortunately, the full version will set you back 20 bucks.

Starcraft Flash Action 3 - although I have to appreciate the effort put into this CPU intensive version, I like the simpler versions better. Starcraft fans will feel at home with this one, though.

Immortal Defense - a commercial desktop game (free demo is available) with a very unique look and feel. The vector graphics can feel quite odd until you get used to it.

Flash Circle TD - a medieval take on the genre actually feels very fresh. The choice of weaponry is limited, but the novelty is in the way the game is played; here, you’re not protecting the sides of the battlefield; you’re trying to kill as many mobs (some call them creeps; coming from a MUD background, I prefer to call mindless enemies mobs - short of mobiles) and prevent them from infesting your screen completely.

Tower Defence - a very simple take on a TD game; some may enjoy it precisely because it’s simple.

Turret Tyranny - futuristic TD-style game with very tiny graphics and complex maps.

Picnic Panic - a slightly weird (a fairy is present in the game, and the enemies look like dancing cockroaches) version of the game; playable, but it’s not my cup of tea.

Turret Defense - this one won’t win any prizes for an original name, but it has an (almost) cool intro and completely unnecessary mission debriefing. The concept is quite original: instead of killing non-descript mobs or bots, you’re destroying an (equally nondescript) enemy convoy.

Tower Defense - another desktop game with a very unoriginal name, but we can forgive the creators since this one has been around for at least a year. It features lots of versatile weaponry and graphics that really could be better.