There are two things in this world that greatly please me. Those two things are Tequila shots and looking back on the Cold War era and remembering only what I want to remember. Toy Soldiers: Cold War (Cold War) itches my Cold War scratch with a fantastically hilarious take on an equally–if not more–hilarious period in global politics. Set your orbital missile defense systems to “stunning,” because this tower defense game is M.A.D. (Much Awesomeness Detected).
Game: Toy Soldiers: Cold War
Publisher: Microsoft Game Studios
Developer: Signal Studios
Genre: Tower Defense
Price: $15.00 / 1200MSP
Pros: Gorgeous graphics, great music, and a surprisingly affecting story.
Cons: Overpowered units, camera getting stuck behind buildings
Verdict: A great twist on the tower defense formula with a fun theme.
Acquired via Developer
The original Toy Soldiers was one of those games that never got the attention it deserved. The tower defense market was swelling faster than Gorbechev’s waistline and the unique “micro control” wasn’t enough to hook people into mass hysteria. Maybe it was the World War I theme, and it is hard to find a good way to casually talk about mustard gas now days. At any rate, the game was more fun than beating the Commies to the Moon with the toy box art style and rock solid gameplay.
It did well enough, because (thankfully) a sequel was warranted. Developer Signal Studios jumped right into the 1980s with the next installment. Instead of making a bizarre time in American history accurate, Cold War opts to let players actually shoot bullets at the Soviets as they attack you in waves. This is much better than the alternative of watching nothing happening while you stockpile nuclear weapons in Iowa.
While it is great to see what made the original game so fun still intact, the new stuff compliments Cold War just as well.
The stars of the new features are the “hero” units. What better units to symbolize freedom and America than a Rambo-like character complete with Sylvester Stallone-esq ramblings. On the Soviet side, who better to represent the stone cold hatred of Capitalism, freedom, puppies, and apple pie than the Rocky II villain Ivan Drago lookalike with angry sounding Russian one-liners? This is what adds the much needed humor into the game. These units are special because they only are active when you are directly controlling them in a third-person over the shoulder shooter setup. They can quickly turn the tide in a losing battle because both of them are armed to the teeth.
Then there are the one-off vehicles that ridiculously over powered; not so much as the “hero” units, but they are way more common. The only restriction with these, for the most part, is running out of batteries. The other danger is a technical blunder; a game camera that will often get stuck behind a building that is harder to see through than the Iron Curtain.
Cold War throws in some leaderboards and multiplayer, and it completes the package nicely. There isn’t one thing in Cold War that crumbles like the Berlin Wall, but some of the design issues with overpowered units spoil some of the strategy of the tower defense genre. If you love Xbox and you love good games, Cold War is one of those experiences you have to try for yourself.
GrE Grade: B+
Popularity: 2% [?]
