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Intro
DreamCatcher looks to enter the highly competitive genre of first-person
shooters with its alternate reality entry, Iron Storm. The game is set
in the 1960's, with the First World War still raging on; Russia, Japan and the
rest of Asia all join forces to fight the United States and the rest of Western
Europe. You're thrown into the fray as Lt. Anderson, whose mission is to infiltrate
the enemy lines in a last ditch effort to put an end to the war. Though the game
provides a fun and interesting experience, it also becomes a bit stale, which
is a problem plaguing quite a few titles in the genre.
Gameplay: 6.5/10
The challenge
for any developer trying to make it big in the FPS arena is to come up with something
original, something that sets their product apart from the myriad of the other
Quake clones out there. Whereas with the Jedi Knight series of games,
players were given the use of force powers, and in Rainbow Six, players
had to use patience and well- planned strategies; Iron Storm has very little
in it that isn't borrowed from one game or another. This isn't to say that Iron
Storm isn't an enjoyable game; on the other hand, I found it to be a nice
change of pace, but it fails to break that barrier that truly sets it apart from
all the other run-and-gun shooters on the market.
The
game is an interesting mix of different play styles, perhaps you might need to
use a little stealth and sneak past some heavily armed guards or maybe the only
way out is to go in with guns blazing, there always seems to be a variety of ways
to approach any given situation. Player curiosity is also rewarded as solving
simple puzzles may lead to previously inaccessible spots that has some health
stashed away or a prime position to snipe from. It's important to not throw caution
to the wind when exploring; the game is very challenging and enemy troops seem
to be around every corner. As far as
the enemies are concerned, they're inconsistent in their actions. Sometimes they
will act intelligent and run back for help or wait in a better spot to set up
an ambush, but other times they will get caught on walls and fire wildly. Fortunately,
enemy snipers have had their strength toned down some since the beta, but they
are still as frustratingly good. Harder enemies are actually a pleasure to face
since they force you to employ a wide variety of weapons and tactics to defeat
them. For example: trapped in a sewer with a rocket wielding maniac, my only way
to stop him was to throw poison gas grenades at one end of the tunnel, then circle
round back and box him in with more explosives. Helicopters in the air and tanks
on the ground also kept me on my toes as they constantly patrolled the area, looking
for signs of trouble. There were some
problems though; battling was challenging and fun, so long as the game played
as it should. Many times I edged up a hill or crawled around a corner and unloaded
a clip, only to have my hits not register. This was most evident in the bunkers
and led to many quick saves and restarts.
To its credit, Iron Storm has a solid story that is told through a variety
of in-game TV news reports and small cutscenes. 4X Studios really made an effort
to try and immerse the player into the world they've created with shells exploding
all around and support at base coming through on the headset. Even the small things,
like those mentioned, do a great job in making the world seem alive and believable.
However, the story is where Iron Storm really shines, it doesn't settle
for a lack luster "the planet's been invaded by aliens, kill 'em all and
show 'em who's boss, ace!" approach, but instead, it works at it and the
quality shows in the final product.
Graphics: 7/10
The graphics are good at displaying the mood of the
game, varying from the murky trenches, to the overcast bombed out cities; it all
helps to set the tone of the game. It doesn't hurt that the environments are both
well designed and textured, giving it a unique war feeling. While not ground breaking,
the graphics are good enough that they enhance the experience of the game, making
it a highlight rather than just another aspect of the game. One
gripe regarding the graphics though is the detail of the various models in the
game. The characters could use some more polygons to make them more detailed;
also, all the enemies wear a standard tan uniform which becomes very dull after
the first 20 of them. Your allies aren't much better as they look the same, but
sport a blue uniform. The weapon models could've used some polishing up as well,
although the shotgun did look snazzy.
Sound:
4/10
Iron Storm, with its great atmosphere and interesting story,
completely fails in the sound department. Its complete lack of music surprised
me and the only reason it scored as high as was due to the good voice-acting and
the high quality of the weapons' sound effects. For a game which tries to immerse
the player into a war-stricken world, it's odd they chose to not utilize any kind
of emotional music to add to the dramatic effect. Relying solely on the graphics
and story to set the tone was a mistake as what is present is good, especially
the environmental noises, like the lightning. One nice addition was the sound
of faint explosions in the distance - thank you for including sub titles - and
small touches like that went a long way.
Control: 7/10
The control is as much as one can expect from a first-person
shooter. Though, it does suffer from some annoying tendencies, like getting stuck
on walls and easily slide off of beams. Jumping at times can be a difficulty,
but not much more so than other games. The menus are also easy to follow, albeit
a bit on the bland side.
Overall:
7/10
Basically, it all boils down to this game being a good solid effort
from 4X Studios and DreamCatcher. It has an interesting story, and a nice variety
of weapons and features, but the small things come back to haunt it in the end.
As it stands, the game is a good buy for any FPS fan looking to widen his (or
her) library, but for those looking for anything new and exciting, they might
want to look elsewhere. [
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