Barricade Z · Buyer Guide

1 Overview and package contents

Barricade Z is a browser defence game about merging. Fabricate towers, merge identical levels and hold a five-position barricade against zombie waves across a 30-wave campaign.

The package includes 12 tower levels, three environments, three bosses, daily and endless modes, 14 interface languages, an English announcer, music and effects. Progress and records stay in the current browser.

This manual describes version 1.0.0. Open documentation/index.html by double-clicking it. This guide works without internet.

2 Quick installation by FTP

Installing takes a few minutes. It needs no build step, terminal, database or PHP.

1. Extract the purchased ZIP on your computer.
2. Open the game/ folder. Keep its files and subfolders together.
3. Upload only the contents of game/ by FTP or your hosting file manager to an empty folder, such as public_html/my-game/.
4. Open https://your-domain.example/my-game/ in a modern browser.
5. Press Play, merge two identical towers and confirm that sound starts after your first interaction.

public_html/my-game/
├── index.html
├── barricade-z.config.js
├── assets/
├── fonts/
├── lib/
├── THIRD-PARTY-LICENSES/
└── manifest.webmanifest

3 Requirements and hosting

• A current version of Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari on a computer, tablet or phone.
• Any static hosting over HTTP or HTTPS. HTTPS is recommended.
• No npm, terminal, database, PHP, account or build step. The game loads everything from your folder.
• Your host must serve .js as JavaScript, .css as CSS, .ttf as fonts and .mp3 as audio. File names are case-sensitive on many hosts.

The example above uses a subfolder. Keep all files together so the relative paths keep working.

4 Controls and how the game works

Most actions work with the mouse or touch, and many have keyboard shortcuts. Shortcuts are ignored while you type text or when the action is blocked.

The tutorial shows real drag endpoints with a hand. Settings → Replay tutorial shows it again.

5 How to play

Fabricate a tower in the reserve, drag one tower over an identical level to merge, and move the stronger tower into one of the five barricade positions. Two equal levels combine into the next level; the maximum is level 12.

• Towers shoot automatically. Tap a zombie to prioritize it for towers that can reach it. Automatic targeting returns when the target dies.
• Grenades unlock at wave 3 and Overdrive at wave 7. The Workshop upgrades damage, barricade strength and fabrication options.
• Bosses appear at waves 10, 20 and 30. The campaign uses three environments across 30 waves.
• Call the next wave early for the offered bonus. Supply drops can be collected by touch or click. Daily challenge and Endless mode unlock through progression, and the menu shows their status.

The gold fabrication button is available only when the action is possible and affordable.

6 Screens and controls explained

The captures below are real game screens from version 1.0.0, in English. Numbered marks point to the controls, and the legend under each capture explains them.

1 2 3 4

Marks on the screenshot

1. 1 Game logo.
2. 2 Play or continue your saved campaign.
3. 3 Codex: the towers and enemies you have discovered.
4. 4 Settings: language, sound and accessibility.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Marks on the screenshot

1. 1 Wave counter: the current wave out of 30, with the progress bar.
2. 2 Upcoming threat for the next wave.
3. 3 Coin balance, used to fabricate and upgrade.
4. 4 Barricade health.
5. 5 Merge hint: the next merge available and the level it creates.
6. 6 The five active defence positions of the barricade.
7. 7 Reserve positions, where towers wait to be merged.
8. 8 Build: fabricate a tower. The number is its cost in coins.
9. 9 Grenade: unlocks at wave 3.
10. 10 Overdrive: unlocks at wave 7.
11. 11 Workshop: upgrades for damage, barricade and fabrication.
12. 12 Speed: switch between 1× and 2×.
13. 13 Pause the game.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Marks on the screenshot

1. 1 Close the workshop.
2. 2 Build level: the tower level the Build button fabricates now. Higher levels stay locked until you reach them.
3. 3 Production line: lets you build level 2 towers directly.
4. 4 Hardened ammo: +12% damage for every tower.
5. 5 Reinforce barricade: +20% maximum barricade strength.
6. 6 Emergency repair: restores 40% of the barricade, once per wave.
7. 7 Your coins.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

Marks on the screenshot

1. 1 Language: the interface language, with 14 choices. The announcer stays in English.
2. 2 Music volume. The default is 85%.
3. 3 Sound effects volume. The default is 40%.
4. 4 Announcer voice volume. The default is 35%.
5. 5 Mute all: silences all sound at once.
6. 6 Reduced motion: fewer animations.
7. 7 Damage numbers: show or hide the damage figures.
8. 8 Replay tutorial: shows the hand guide again.
9. 9 Fullscreen: opens the game in fullscreen.

7 Map of the files

This table names the real files. Change only what the Customize section allows, unless you use the optional source edition.

8 Settings available

Open Settings from the main menu or during a battle. Settings are saved in this browser.

• Language: the 14 interface languages. The announcer stays in English.
• Music, Sound effects and Announcer voice: three volume sliders. The defaults are 85%, 40% and 35%.
• Mute all: silences all three at once.
• Reduced motion and Damage numbers: fewer animations, and damage figures on or off.
• Replay tutorial and Fullscreen: shows the hand guide again, and opens the game in fullscreen.

9 Customize your copy

Open game/barricade-z.config.js in a plain-text editor, change one or both values, save the file and reload the game. No rebuild is needed.

window.BARRICADE_Z_CONFIG = {
  title: "My Defense Game",
  storagePrefix: "my-defense-v1",
};

To change the illustrated title, icons, artwork, rules or text, edit the optional source edition and rebuild. Keep the existing proportions when replacing visuals. Do not edit hashed build file names without updating their references.

10 Languages, sound and accessibility

The interface is available in 14 languages: English, Português, Español, Français, Deutsch, Italiano, Nederlands, Polski, Türkçe, Русский, Bahasa Indonesia, 日本語, 한국어 and 简体中文. The language setting changes the interface text only.

The announcer's recordings are in English. The other languages have no narration.

11 Saved progress and privacy

The campaign and checkpoint data are stored in barricadez.save. Language, sound, tutorial status, unlocks and personal records are stored in barricadez.settings. These are the default keys for the default storagePrefix.

• There is no account and no cloud sync. Records stay on this device.
• A reload restarts the current wave from its checkpoint, not from every enemy's position.
• Private mode, storage restrictions, clearing site data or changing the address can remove access to saved progress. The game keeps running without saving.
• Changing only a subfolder does not isolate saves. Use storagePrefix for separate copies on the same domain.

12 Optional development

This section is only for changing the source. The game/ folder already contains the playable build, so hosting needs no Node.js.

Install Node.js 20.19 or newer, then run the commands below inside source/. The tested tool versions are pinned in package-lock.json.

cd source
npm ci
npm run typecheck
npm test
npm run build

The build output goes to source/dist/. Upload its contents to replace the hosted game, the same way as game/.

• npm run dev starts a local development server.
• npm run preview serves a build for checking.
• npm run balance runs a headless campaign simulation. These commands are optional.

13 Updating the game

1. Back up your current game/ folder and your edited barricade-z.config.js.
2. Upload the new contents of game/ over the old files, keeping the names and folders.
3. Keep storagePrefix unchanged, so that existing saves are found.
4. Reload the game. If the old version still appears, clear the cache as described below.

Clearing the cache without losing progress

Progress is stored in this browser, not on the server. Clearing cached images and files, or doing a hard reload, keeps your progress.

Computer: press Ctrl+F5 on Windows and Linux, or Cmd+Shift+R on macOS. Phone: in the browser settings, choose the option to clear cached images and files.

Do not choose cookies and site data, or clear site data, for the game's address. That deletes the local save.

14 Dependencies and licenses

• Phaser 3.90 engine: MIT License, in the THIRD-PARTY-LICENSES/ folder.
• Bungee and Barlow Condensed fonts: SIL Open Font License.
• Keep the THIRD-PARTY-LICENSES/ folder with your hosted game.

The game uses no advertising SDK, analytics, payment provider or remote leaderboard. Your purchase licence follows the terms of the marketplace where you bought this package.

15 Common problems

• Blank page: make sure you uploaded the contents of game/, opened the HTTP(S) address and checked the browser console for scripts that failed to load. The source/ folder is not the playable website.
• Works on the computer but not on the server: the game does not run from a file on your computer (file://). Use a static web host or any static local server.
• No music at first: press Play or another game control first. Check the three volume sliders, Mute all and your device volume.
• Missing textures or sound: confirm the complete upload and the file name case, and that .mp3, .js, .css and font files are served with correct types.
• No hand guide: open Settings and select Replay tutorial. The hand needs an available identical pair to show a merge.

16 Frequently asked questions

17 Support and version history

Support and customization: willian@polargames.com.br. Include your purchase or licence reference. This guide does not promise response times or a schedule of future updates.

Support request

When you write to support, include the browser and device, the game version, the page address, the steps that caused the problem, a screenshot and the first error shown in the browser console. Never send passwords, payment details or secret keys.