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Bloons-td-5-switch-hero

Artwork from the Nintendo Switch version of BTD5

Bloons Tower Defense 5,[1] usually referred to as Bloons TD 5, Bloons TD5, or simply BTD5, is the fifth main installment in the Bloons TD series. It is the successor to Bloons TD 4 and its derived games, expanding on the series by introducing several new game mechanics, towers, upgrades, Bloon types, game modes, and unlockable features, as well as being the first game in the series with cooperative multiplayer.

Bloons TD 5 served as the basis for Bloons TD Battles and Bloons Monkey City, all three of which share most of the same game mechanics, towers, upgrades, and Bloon types. These games are often referred to collectively as the "Bloons TD 5 Generation" by fans.

Bloons TD 5 has multiple versions across different platforms, with significant differences between them. For more information, see this section.

Gameplay[]

Like its predecessors, BTD5 is a tower defense game where the objective is to stop the enemy Bloons from reaching the exit. Players spend cash to build towers to attack the Bloons or provide support, and can generate more cash by popping Bloons, clearing rounds, or using certain income-generating towers. As the player pops Bloons, they gain Experience Points to increase their Rank, Similar to BTD4. As the player ranks up, they unlock new towers, upgrades, game modes, and tracks. Completing games rewards the player with a new secondary currency called Monkey Money, which can be spent to unlock new features and consumable items.

A standard game is divided into rounds, a certain number of which must be cleared to win the game. Each round gradually increases in difficulty over the previous round, introducing new Bloon types and patterns as the player progresses. Unlike in previous games, rounds in BTD5 can have Bloons with any degree of spacing, allowing for both spread out Bloon waves and dense Bloon packs as seen on rounds such as Round 63. Certain game modes, once completed, allow the player to continue in Freeplay until they run out of lives; unlike in previous games, Freeplay in BTD5 is truly endless.

BTD5 introduces the Zeppelin Of Mighty Gargantuaness, a MOAB-Class Bloon that is of a higher rank than the BFB, having much more health and being immune to most attacks that can instantly pop other Bloons. Also new to the series are modifiers that can apply additional properties to any non-MOAB-Class Bloon: the new Regrowth Bloon allows Bloons to regenerate layers that have been popped, and the Camo Bloon, formerly a separate Bloon type, renders Bloons invisible and intangible to towers that lack camo detection.

TunnelsBloonsTD5

Tunnels, a track in BTD5 with sections that can shield Bloons from attacks

Tracks in BTD5 are wider than in earlier games, more closely resembling those in Bloons TD 4 Mobile. Some tracks utilize new game mechanics, such Monkey Lane and Tunnels, which have tunnels that render non-MOAB-Class Bloons intangible to most attacks, and Switch and Clock, which have paths that change depending on the round.

Towers[]

BTD5 has a larger roster of towers than previous games, introducing a few new tower types such as the Sniper Monkey and Ninja Monkey. Additionally, the Monkey Beacon from previous games has been converted to the Monkey Village. Later versions of the game introduced the Monkey Engineer, Bloonchipper, Monkey Sub, and Heli Pilot, for a total of 21 tower types.

Bomb Tower Max Upgrade

A Bomb Tower that has been upgraded to tier 2 on the first path and tier 4 on the second path, showing that the first path has been "closed"

Each tower type has two sets of upgrades, or "upgrade paths", each with four tiers of upgrades, for a total of eight upgrades per tower. However, each tower can only be upgraded above the second tier on one upgrade path at a time, with the higher tier upgrades on the opposite path becoming inaccessible if so. This upgrade system is a hybrid of the systems in BTD3 and BTD4, retaining the split upgrade paths from BTD3 and the four tiers of upgrades from BTD4.

Special Ability Icon

Icons of various Activated Abilities

New to BTD5 are Activated Abilities, which are powerful effects that towers can use and are activated manually by the player. Every tower type except the Banana Farm has at least one Activated Ability, which is usually granted by the fourth tier upgrade on the second upgrade path. Once used, Activated Abilities must undergo a cooldown period before they can be used again.

Unlike in previous games, all upgrades must be unlocked with tower XP before they can be used. Each tower type uses its own XP, which is gained by clearing rounds and scales with the amount of in-game cash currently invested in that tower type. Upgrades are unlocked in a linear order, beginning with the first tier upgrade on the first path, then the first tier upgrade on the second path, then the second tier upgrade on the first path, and so on. Tier 4 upgrades require both a certain player Rank, much like in BTD4, and enough tower XP.

Special Agents[]

Main articles: Special Agents, Special Agent Pros

Special Agents are a new class of tower introduced in BTD5. Unlike standard towers, Special Agents are purchased with Monkey Money instead of in-game cash. They do not have upgrade paths; instead, they are permanently upgraded to Special Agent Pros after the player has used them a certain number of times.

Specialty Buildings[]

Main article: Specialty Buildings

Specialty Buildings are a new game mechanic introduced in BTD5, replacing the specialties system from Bloons TD 4 Expansion. Each Specialty Building provides significant buffs to a specific tower type, at the cost of increasing the base cost and upgrade costs of another tower type. Every tower type except the Monkey Village and Banana Farm has a corresponding Specialty Building. They are purchased with Monkey Money and can be upgraded to grant more buffs, with the higher tier upgrades providing more unique and powerful buffs. Only one Specialty Building may be used at a time.

Versions[]

Flash version[]

Main article: Bloons TD 5 Flash
Btd5 logo

Bloons TD 5, often referred to by official sources as Bloons TD 5 Web or "the Flash version" to distinguish it from other versions, is the original version of BTD5, released on December 15, 2011. It is a free-to-play version that runs on Adobe Flash and was playable via web browser on Ninja Kiwi's website, Kongregate, Miniclip, and Armor Games. While it has less content than later releases, it features some tracks not found in any other version of the game.

Bloons TD 5 regularly received updates with new content up until December 20, 2018, a few months after the release of Bloons TD 6. On July 9, 2020, the game was rereleased as part of the Ninja Kiwi Archive to preserve it past the Adobe Flash Player's end-of-life that same year, with the game being removed from Ninja Kiwi's website not long after. However, on April 30, 2022, most of the game's online features were disabled, rendering Daily Challenges, Special Missions, and co-op mode unplayable. On August 19, 2022, Ninja Kiwi account logins were disabled, effectively rendering any remaining online features inaccessible to those who are not still logged in to an account. Currently, the only remaining features that are accessible to all players are the main game modes, Special Agents, Specialty Buildings, and quests.

Bloons TD 5 Deluxe[]

Main article: Bloons TD 5 Deluxe
BT5 Deluxe logo

Bloons TD 5 Deluxe is a paid expanded version of BTD5 for Windows and Mac OS X, released on August 15, 2012. It is based on the Flash version, but is run in a desktop application instead of a web browser. It has many new features, including new towers, Special Agents, tracks, Special Missions, and music, and allows all Premium Upgrades to be bought with in-game currency (with the exception of Double Cash mode, which is instead unlocked by default and replaces Fast-Track mode). However, it has no online connectivity other than purchase validation, so the game has multiple save files instead of using an account system, and all the online features from the Flash version have either been adapted to an offline-only environment, as with Leaderboards, achievements, and Daily Challenges, or removed entirely in the case of co-op mode.

Bloons TD 5 Deluxe received similar updates to the Flash version up until December 16, 2013, after which it was discontinued, having effectively been replaced by the Steam version. As a result, it is less up-to-date than other versions. While some of its exclusive content was ported to other versions, including the new towers and new music, a significant amount of content remains exclusive to this version.

Mobile version[]

Main article: Bloons TD 5 Mobile
BTD5 10th icon

Bloons TD 5 Mobile is a paid expanded version of BTD5 for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone, released on November 15, 2012. It is a from-the-ground-up recreation of the Flash version's game mechanics in a new engine, with smoother gameplay and an updated art style. It has many new features, including new towers, Special Agents, tracks, game modes, Special Missions, and events. Some elements from BTD5 Deluxe have also been incorporated, including the new towers, music, and an offline compilation of Daily Challenges, as well as most Premium Upgrades being converted to unlockable features in the form of the newly-introduced Monkey Lab and tier 4 Specialty Buildings. However, this version still features some in-app purchases, with Bigger Beacons, Healthy Bananas, and Double Cash Mode remaining as paid Premium Upgrades.

Bloons TD 5 Mobile regularly receives updates that introduce new content. Previously, updates to this version would often correlate with updates to the Flash version, usually introducing new tracks to both versions at the same time, but as the Flash version no longer receives updates, this is no longer the case.

Steam version[]

Main article: Bloons TD 5 Steam
Bloons TD 5 Steam NK

Bloons TD 5 Steam is a paid version of BTD5 for Windows and Mac OS X, released on November 19, 2014 for Steam. It is based on the mobile version, sharing most of the same content and receiving the same updates, but it has several alterations to make it more similar to BTD5 Deluxe, including a complete removal of in-app purchases, increased Monkey Money rewards, and significant changes to the UI and control scheme.

A similar version, Bloons TD 5 Kartridge, was released on May 23, 2018, but for the gaming platform Kartridge instead of Steam. The only known difference besides the launcher, is the removal of skins as an in-app purchase, instead allowing players to buy all skins with Monkey Money.

Console version[]

Main article: Bloons TD 5 Console

Bloons TD 5 Console is a paid version of BTD5 for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch. It is based on the Steam version (and, in turn, the mobile version), but has even more alterations to adapt the game to a new control scheme. Unlike the mobile and Steam versions, this version does not receive updates with new content.

References[]

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