St. Olaf Student Wows With Symphonic Tower Defense, An Online Game

The Internet is full of distractions: blogs, videos, photos.

None, however, seem to consume as much time as the online games that keep players promising they'll only play one more level.

Yet Jon Sandness, a sophomore, knows that a far greater amount of focus and time goes into the creation of these games. Sandness, with the help of co-creator and artist Matt Ackerman, recently released a new game titled Symphonic Tower Defense that has exploded on the Internet with rave reviews and countless plays.

Joystiq, an online news site about the video gaming industry, noted in its review (including a link to the game) that "Symphonic Tower Defense is the number one game on Newgrounds right now. [The game] is so wonderfully addictive, we can't stop putting our fermatas in formation today."

The instant success took Sandness by surprise. "The reviews absolutely floored me," he says. "When you work on a game for a year or so and only show it to 20–30 people for testing purposes, then release it to the world and realize that everyone loves it, that's a really good feeling."

For the rest of this story, visit St. Olaf College News.