Reviewed: November 16, 2002
Reviewed by: Mark Smith

Publisher
Wanadoo Edition
DreamCatcher Interactive

Developer
4x Studio

Released: October 21, 2002
Genre: FPS
Players: 16
ESRB: Mature

8
8
9
7
8.1

System Requirements

Iron Storm takes place in an alternate reality, parallel universe, or some other sci-fi excuse to twist established history into something totally original. The premise; what if the first World War had never ended? It’s as simple as that. Imagine the possibilities, because the designers certainly have. From the opening movie until I was finally able to tear myself away from it long enough to write this review, I was totally absorbed in one of the most excellent action war games I have played since Medal of Honor: Allied Assault.

You play Lt. James Anderson, stationed on the front lines in Western Germany in a War-torn Europe. It is 1964 and even though the war has been raging on for decades, technology and civilization has continued to evolve. Warfare is waged with weapons and technology that spans 50 years of progress. In our timeline this includes two World Wars and the Vietnam War giving us a huge variety of devastating weaponry.

Anderson is an obvious hero if for no other reason that the fact he has survived 40 years of intense service in this seemingly endless war. As the resident badass, when a mission develops that could potentially end this war he is the first one on the list. After a quick briefing and a quick explorative tour around the base to load up on weapons, you head into one of the most intense battlefields since Omaha Beach.

You will fight in trenches with barbed wire, mines, gas warfare, and snipers, but you will also experience more modern innovations such as automatic weapons, radar, tanks, flamethrowers, and helicopters. It’s a very unique experience to be crawling through trenches and environments totally themed to WWI then have a chopper zoom by overhead.

During the course of this game you will fight in a variety of stunning and realistic environments starting in the trenches on the Western front then moving deeper into enemy territory including many exciting levels in Russia and Germany. Each level is more stunning and challenging than the last and pulls you deeper into the story.

You are guided through the first part of the mission in a tutorial format. Once on the battlefield you take orders from other men on the field. Failure to follow orders generally results in your death. Frontline battles are a team effort and the lone wolf tends to die alone. Tactics are the name of the game in Iron Storm. If you stick your head out of the trench for more than a second it will probably get shot off. You must use any available cover, stick to the ground, and work with your team to survive.

You are briefed on missions via radio communication and you can also utilize command stations to read enemy briefings and reports. Scattered about the levels are TV’s and monitors that also show the current financial success of the war. Apparently armies are now rated on the stock exchange, and while this is a novel concept, I found it had no bearing on the way the game unfolded. Enemy and team AI is very advanced. You will see your men and the enemy move around and seek cover just like you would expect from real soldiers. I hid behind a wall and just watched the movement on the battlefield. Soldiers would run from trench to trench or hide behind trees or inside burned out structures. Enemy snipers conceal themselves very well and will pick you off with uncanny accuracy if you make yourself a target for more than a second. Soldiers also work in teams and will try to flank you or flush you out of hiding with dogs, grenades, or other tactics. It all makes for a very intense and realistic combat experience.

There is a reasonably good story but it serves only to tie the various missions together. At no time do you ever get personally involved with the plot or even feel that Anderson is involved. The designers try to establish a relationship with our hero and Cecile, the girl who gives him orders over the radio, but even this part of the story falls short. In the end you are left with a series of missions that require you only to kill or be kills, and admittedly, that is enough.

The realism really hits home with the severe damage system that can often kill you will a single shot. While it’s not as lethal as Rainbow Six’s one-shot kill model, you will often find yourself sneaking across and area, hear a “zing” of a bullet and find yourself dead on the ground. Additional realism is also found in the weapon system that allows you to only carry a certain number and type of weapons. You will grudgingly drop your machinegun when it comes time to pick-up that rocket launcher.

Level design and missions are pretty straightforward and admittedly a bit linear. Even when you are given multiple paths to take, one path will always lead to a dead end or join back up with the primary path soon enough. This means that you won’t get lost or find yourself backtracking great distances. The linear nature of these levels is concealed behind clever scripted events like a cave-in or impassable gun-turret that forces you to seek an alternate route.

There are a few instances (about three that I found) where it is possible to get yourself into trouble by jumping ahead of the level design and scripting. This can often trigger events that can make the level un-winnable, so it is a good idea to save and keep a game file for each mission just in case.

The level of detail in the characters is simply stunning. Each weapon you pick-up is shown on the character model, either attached to his belt or slung over his shoulder. In one of the earlier missions you are infiltrating a prison camp and are instructed to remove all obvious weapons. In third-person view you can see which weapons a guard is likely to see and drop them before proceeding.

There are plenty of visual effects tossed in to bring the horrors of war to your computer screen. Scripted events also liven up the battlefield. On my first dash through the trenches one of my escorts stepped on a mine and blew into bits – yes, I literally saw his hand lying on the ground – the only part of him that was still identifiable. A few yards ahead a grenade blast sends a tree crashing into the trench forcing me to crawl under the branches. There are explosions and dust and debris raining down all around you at all times.

What surprised me the most was I was able to experience this game at 1600x1200x32 and it played as smooth as glass, even in the heat of battle with tons of onscreen action going on around me.

All of the sounds are also enhanced or altered based on your locations. If you are inside a bunker you will hear the distant thumps of explosions and the hollow echoes of gunfire and aircraft. One of the most impressive sounds is the opening and closing of the large metal vault-like doors that seal off the bunker from the outside world. When they close it is with a resounding thud that inspires fear of what lies beyond.

If you have an EAX sound card you are in for a real treat. The use of 3D spatial sound effects will blow you away. The battlefield levels are overwhelming with gunfire, bombs, and grenades exploding all around you. Choppers zoom overhead and the sound of dirt clods raining all around you will keep you facedown in the trenches. Combined with the shouts and cries of your men, it all makes for a very realistic experience.

In a bold move by the designers, Iron Storm features no music whatsoever, and I was surprised at how much better the game must be without it. In fact, I am tempted to go back and play some of my old favorites with the music turned off to see if their realism improves as well. By omitting a score, even during the movies, you are left to hear every subtle sound, and concentrate on every word of dialog. Music is often used to artificially induce a desired emotional response from the gamer, but no such trickery is needed here; truly a testament to the quality gameplay and the stunning visual and audio presentation.

Online gamers will be pleased to know that Iron Storm supports up to 16 players via LAN or Internet in a variety of games such as Deathmatch mode, Team Deathmatch, and Capture the Flag. With full support from GameSpy, finding somebody to play online is never a problem.

If you enjoy those “what if” parallel universe stories or just want to play a highly challenging combat game, Iron Storm offers you a dark and brooding journey into the horrors of war while remaining fun and accessible to a variety of gamers of all skill levels.