Developer: Signal Studios | Publisher: Microsoft Studios | Genre: Action / Strategy
Xbox 360 | Windows PC | Windows Phone
Fusing together a blend of well-balanced gameplay with a high level of replayability makes Toy Soldiers: Cold War a pleasure to play.
Taking influences from the escalating differences between the USSR and the United States during the 1980's, Toy Soldiers: Cold War pits players in a brutal battle filled with plastic, batteries, and toy helicopters - not your run of the mill war by any means. There isn't really a narrative so to speak, but it doesn't matter at all - this game is pure fun and total destruction at its best. The whole idea is hilarious - a bunch of toy soldiers coming to life just so they can blow each other up with any means necessary, it's like a part of Toy Story that wasn't allowed to be in the final cut.
At its core, Cold War is a defense game featuring a combination of third-person gameplay as well as strategic thought and tactics. Each level has a base to defend (rather a toy box), which when fully depleted of health, will end the mission, resulting in failure - so it's your job to deploy various defenses around the map to ensure that doesn't happen. These include the likes of a very basic unit such as the machine gun turret which is handy when a group of opposing troops are headed towards your base, it can quickly and effectively dispose of them through rapid firing. However, more advanced units include an anti-aircraft gun, which is practically pointless against those pesky land enemies but can deal massive damage to incoming enemy aircraft. REVIEW1
Other notable weapons include the roman candle, which is essentially a firework that spins in all directions all whilst spewing out bursts of explosions - especially useful against a group of tanks. This weapon is the result of numerous upgrades though, you are able to upgrade every unit, often taking up a lot of cash, which is earned by defeating enemies. A simple machine gun can be upgraded so it fires more rapidly and is able to zoom in further, making it easy to kill off any incoming soldiers at a moments notice.
Each of the units can be controlled or you can let the game do the work for you, although its advised to actually take control for yourself so you can effectively direct bullets and explosions in a particular direction instead of hoping the game will do it for you - it also feels much better as you get a certain sense of satisfaction. You are also able to control a selection of vehicles both land and airborne - these vehicles will appear on a number of stages and are powered by batteries, reinforcing the idea that you are actually playing with toys. These include a tank and a helicopter, which when used can be extremely powerful and effective against the enemy - always a good idea to take advantage of these playable vehicles when a boss appears.
Cold War isn't a difficult game, you are able to see the next wave of enemies before they depart from their base, giving you the tactical edge as it leaves a lot of time to strategically think about which type of units you are going to place or how you should spend any money in order to upgrade particular weapons. However, there are some challenging aspects, particularly the numerous bosses you'll encounter throughout the short campaign - they typically have lots of health, which when attacked appropriately shouldn't take too long to deplete, but without the right preparations, you could be in a lot of trouble.
Something called a barrage plays an important role in terms of achieving victory, a barrage is a mix of powerful rewards including the bombing run, which spreads a number of rockets over a bunch of enemies - others include the commando, an obvious Rambo clone, who is invincible and able to destroy any enemy that gets in the way. Barrages are only available once a certain amount of combo score has been accumulated, this is done through defeating a high amount of enemies in quick succession.
If you are stuck for something to do after the campaign, there are a range of mini-games that include various challenges and scoreboards, giving you that sense of competitiveness as well as being able to have a lot of fun at the same time. These include 'Dolled Up' - a continuous onslaught of enemies make themselves known and it's your job to gun them down all whilst trying to maintain a large combo to attain the highest score possible. Another example is 'Thread the Needle', in which you must navigate a rocket through various obstacles without colliding with the rest of the environment.
Each level feels like you're inside a world where only toys exist, the environments look like set pieces from a packet of toy soldiers, whether it's the plastic trees and landscapes or the cardboard cut outs of various houses and other buildings. It has a nice visual appeal, one that would generally only work in a game such as this.
Toy Soldiers: Cold War is a fantastic little game that promotes a lot of fun and entertaining gameplay, and whilst it could be a little longer, there's enough content here to keep you going for a while, whether it's trying to finish the in-game challenges or beating your friends scores within the mini-games. A reminder that games can sometimes just be fun and nothing more.
9/10
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