''Iron Brigade'', formerly titled ''Trenched'', is a 2011 video game, developed by
Double Fine Productions
Double Fine Productions, Inc. is an American video game developer based in San Francisco, California. It is a first-party developer of Xbox Game Studios. Founded in July 2000 by Tim Schafer shortly after his departure from LucasArts, Double F ...
, published by
Microsoft Studios
Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...
as a downloadable
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade (or XBLA) was a video game Digital distribution in video games, digital distribution service that was available for the Xbox (console), Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles. It focused on smaller downloadable games from both major publisher ...
title on the
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the Xbox (console), original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox#Consoles, Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detail ...
, and released for
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...
in 2012. ''Iron Brigade'' is a hybrid
tower defense
Tower defense (TD) is a Video game genre, subgenre of Strategy video game, strategy games where the goal is to defend a player's territories or possessions by obstructing the enemy attackers or by stopping enemies from reaching the exits, usual ...
and
third-person shooter
Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot 'em ...
game, set after
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
in an
alternate reality, where the player controls units from the Mobile Trench Brigade to fight off robotic species called the Monovision. The player controls giant
mecha
In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines, typically depicted as piloted, humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese (language), Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japan ...
-style robots with weapon and armor customization through a variety of missions set across the world. The game was released on the Xbox Live service on June 22, 2011, with a delayed release in certain European areas due to trademark issues with the title, with its release scheduled for November 30, 2011 but was ultimately released on December 1, 2011 under the alternate name ''Iron Brigade''.
The name of the title was updated worldwide to ''Iron Brigade'' alongside the European release.
Gameplay
''Iron Brigade'' is considered to be a hybrid game, mixing the gameplay of
tower defense
Tower defense (TD) is a Video game genre, subgenre of Strategy video game, strategy games where the goal is to defend a player's territories or possessions by obstructing the enemy attackers or by stopping enemies from reaching the exits, usual ...
games with
third-person shooter
Third-person shooter (TPS) is a subgenre of 3D shooter games in which the gameplay consists primarily of shooting. It is closely related to first-person shooters, but with the player character visible on-screen during play. While 2D shoot 'em ...
s and incorporating
role-playing video game
Role-playing video games, also known as CRPG (computer/console role-playing games), comprise a broad video game genre generally defined by a detailed story and character advancement (often through increasing characters' levels or other skills) ...
elements.
Players control a "trench", a giant war machine that can move about the battlefield as needed. The player's goal is to protect their ship base, the USS ''McKinley'', from increasingly difficult waves of Monovisions. Though a player's trench may be disabled by enemy attacks, the player can spend time to repair the machine and continue on; the game is only lost when the base is overrun by the Monovisions (although there are exceptions with some levels, where the objective is to destroy a given object rather than defend one).
During the attacks, the player has the ability to ground its trench at a fixed spot, or move about the field to fire on foes.
Before combat, the player customizes their equipment on their trench at the base. The choice of the hull for the trench will affect the number and types of weapons that can be loaded onto it.
The player can also select which Emplacements they will carry, eventually targeting a location on the battlefield to place them.
Emplacements provide both offensive capabilities well as defensive ones such as repulsing enemies back.
As the player defeats the Monovisions, they will drop scrap pieces that can be used to repair, upgrade, and call in more Emplacements.
After winning a battle, the player gains rewards including new weapons and parts for their trench, and decorative hats similar to ''
Team Fortress 2
''Team Fortress 2'' (''TF2'') is a Multiplayer video game, multiplayer first-person shooter game developed and published by Valve Corporation in 2007. It is the sequel to the 1996 ''Team Fortress'' Mod (video gaming), mod for ''Quake (video g ...
''.
The player will gain
experience point
An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experien ...
s towards both personal goals and "Regiment" goals, reflecting progress among the last several Xbox Live players that the player cooperated with.
In a manner similar to ''
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'', new weapons and other customization options become available as the player gains level this way.
''Iron Brigade'' allows for up to four player co-operative gameplay.
Plot
Set in an alternate history shortly after the end of
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, a strange radio communication known as "the Broadcast" is sent across the world and caused many people who listened to it to die. Two war veterans, Frank Woodruff and Vladimir Farnsworth, survive the attack and gain super-intelligence and a knowledge of advanced technology. Frank, having previously lost his legs in the war, uses his knowledge to design and build mechanical walking platforms called "mobile trenches," giving other disabled soldiers the ability to move again. Vladimir on the other hand creates the
Monovision
Contact lenses, or simply contacts, are thin lenses placed directly on the surface of the eyes. Contact lenses are ocular prosthetic devices used by over 150 million people worldwide, and they can be worn to correct vision or for cosmetic ...
, allowing people to experience the world from the comfort and isolation of their homes. Vladimir is driven insane by his own invention; bent on global conquest, he constructs Monovision-based robotic creatures, derogatorily called "Tubes", designed to spread the broadcast and lays Monovision cables across the world. As Vladimir's forces spread, Frank's "Mobile Trench Brigade" leads the counterattack.
After the "Mobile Trench Brigade" has defeated Vladimir's forces, it's revealed that the Monovision's influence on Vladimir has rendered his body like that of a newborn baby while maintaining his head and intellect. While it remains unclear where the Broadcast came from or when it will strike again, Frank remarks that the Mobile Trench Brigade will be there to fight the menace should it ever rise up again.
Development
''Iron Brigade'' is the fourth game (including ''
Costume Quest'', ''
Stacking'', and ''
Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster'') to result from a period called "Amnesia Fortnight" during the 2009-2010 period where Double Fine's last disc-based release, ''
Brütal Legend
''Brütal Legend'' is an action-adventure video game with real-time strategy game elements created by Double Fine and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America, ...
'', had no publisher.
It is also the first game directed by designer Brad Muir. To bolster morale,
Tim Schafer
Timothy John Schafer (born July 26, 1967) is an American video game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in July 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts. Schafer is best known as the designer of critically acclaimed games '' ...
divided the team into four groups, challenging to develop a game prototype within two weeks for review by the rest of the company. Each of the four ideas were found to be successful bases for future games. When ''Brutal Legend'' was completed and Double Fine was told to discontinue work on a sequel, Schafer turned to these four games and sought publishers for them as smaller, downloadable titles.
The game's art style is inspired by men's magazines of the 1940s and '50s, which illustrated "the sense of adventure, bravery, camaraderie, drinking, and good old-fashioned face-punching violence," according to project lead Brad Muir.
With their development assisted by
Microsoft Studios
Xbox Game Studios (previously known as Microsoft Studios, Microsoft Game Studios, and Microsoft Games) is an American video game publisher based in Redmond, Washington. It was established in March 2000, spun out from an internal Games Group, fo ...
, Muir and his art team were able to tap into Microsoft's own art department to create some of these images.
Announced at the 2011
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference (GDC) is an annual conference for video game developers. The event includes an expo, networking events, and awards shows like the Game Developers Choice Award for Game of the Year, Game Developers Choice Awards and ...
by
Tim Schafer
Timothy John Schafer (born July 26, 1967) is an American video game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in July 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts. Schafer is best known as the designer of critically acclaimed games '' ...
. The game was originally announced and released in North America as ''Trenched''. Though scheduled to be released near the same time as the North American version, the European versions of the game were delayed indefinitely. It was discovered that an earlier registered trademark on a war-themed Portuguese board game "Trench," owned by Rui Alípio Monteiro, conflicted with ''Trenched''s name. Rui Alípio Monteiro has stated they wish to make "Trench" into an electronic game, further complicating ''Trenched''s release. A similar challenge occurred in the United States, where Rui Alípio Monteiro had also previously filed for the "Trench" trademark. According to Muir, Microsoft worked to resolve the trademark issue to assure release of the game in Europe. Ultimately, at the Gamescom 2011 conference, Microsoft announced that ''Trenched'' would be retitled as ''Iron Brigade'' in Europe, with a release set for November 2011.
It was later announced that the name of the game would be updated through a patch in late 2011 to bring the other releases of the game to meet the new ''Iron Brigade'' name, along with the addition of new game modes, weapons, and extras with the game.
The renamed version and European release were originally scheduled for September 2011, but Muir explained that much of the changes had to proceed through various divisions of the Xbox Live Arcade game certification process, delaying the updates until November.
Along with the rename, the game gained a new game mode, weapons, and extras for no additional cost, as a means of a make-off offering for the delay and rename.
The release of ''Iron Brigade'' featured a "Survival" mode where the players must defend as long as possible against 100 waves of enemies.
The first downloadable content for the game, ''Rise of the Martian Bear'', was released on February 1, 2012, and introduces a new campaign, more items and survival mode maps.
A Microsoft Windows version was announced for release on August 13, 2012; this version includes the Martian Bear DLC for free. In May 2015 Double Fine was able to fully acquire the rights to ''Iron Brigade'' from Microsoft, allowing them to remove
Games for Windows Live from the Windows version and replace it with
Steamworks
Steam is a digital distribution service and storefront developed by Valve. It was launched as a software client in September 2003 to provide video game updates automatically for Valve's games and expanded to distributing third-party titles in l ...
. Ironically Microsoft would regain the publishing rights to this game by acquiring Double Fine Productions in 2019.
''Rise of the Martian Bear''
On February 1, 2012, the ''Rise of the Martian Bear''
downloadable content
content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can be added for no extra cost or as a form of video game monetization, enabling the publisher to gain ad ...
was released. It picks up the story right after the ending of the original campaign. The player finds themselves once again having to confront Vladimir Farnsworth, as he has survived by transferring his consciousness into his pet bear, who bears a matching beard and moustache. He has a monovision fixed atop his head that displays the original visage of Farnsworth.
The premise is that Vlad has spread the Broadcast into space, so the player needs to launch their mobile base of operations—the USS ''McKinley''—into space to stop him. ''Rise of the Martian Bear'' contains five new campaign missions (4 defense missions and 1 boss mission) and two new survival missions, three new enemies, 80+ new pieces of loot, and an increased level cap.
Reception
The title has received mostly positive reviews, with a
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
score of 82.
Joystiq
''Joystiq'' was a video gaming blog which was part of the Weblogs, Inc. family later owned by AOL. It was active from 2004 to 2015, acting as the primary video game blog for the group, and operating alongside ''Engadget'' and sister blogs such ...
gave it a very favourable review by scoring it a 4.5/5 rating, calling it a well polished game with much personality. The reviewer noted that it had become one of his favourite multiplayer experiences on
Xbox Live
The Xbox network, formerly known and commonly referred to as Xbox Live, is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Gaming for the Xbox brand. It was first made available to the origina ...
and is his favourite tower defence game to date.
IGN
''IGN'' is an American video gaming and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa district and is headed by its former e ...
gave the title a 9 out of 10 rating. Anthony Gallegos called it the best downloadable title he's played all year long, stating that its combination of skillful writing, fun shooting, and tactical tower defense makes for hours of replayable gameplay. The
Official Xbox Magazine
''Official Xbox Magazine'' (''OXM'') was a British monthly video game magazine which started in November 2001 around the launch of the original Xbox. A preview issue was released at E3 2001, with another preview issue in November 2001. The maga ...
gave it a 9 out of 10 rating, praising explosions, balance of action and strategy, and replayability.
Destructoid
''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017 and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022.
Histor ...
gave it an 8.5 out of 10 rating, calling it a hell of a fun game that has just a few minor blemishes.
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady, and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
gave it an 8 out of 10 rating, praising the combination of tower defense and action gameplay, varied missions with replay value, fun solo and co-op modes, and customization but criticizing the chore of collecting scrap.
1up
In video games, a life is a play-turn that a player character has, defined as the period between start and end of play. Lives refer to a finite number of tries before the game ends with a game over. Sometimes the euphemisms chance, try, rest an ...
gave it a B rating, criticizing that the game doesn't include a local co-op option but stating that if you have a friend to play with, it can be a blast.
GamePro
''GamePro'' was an American multiplatform video game magazine media company that published online and print content covering the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software. The magazine featured content on various video ...
gave the title a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising its addictive, loot-rewarding gameplay, strategic and easy-to-jump-into multiplayer, and fun customization options but criticizing the occasionally wonky enemy indicator and the missing option of a strategic view of the entire map.
During the
15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the
Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is a non-profit organization of video game industry professionals. It organizes the annual Design Innovate Communicate Entertain Summit, better known as D.I.C.E., which includes the presentation ...
nominated ''Iron Brigade'' for "
Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year".
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iron Brigade
2011 video games
Alternate history video games
Double Fine games
Game jam video games
Games for Windows
Microsoft games
Science fiction video games
Third-person shooters
Tower defense video games
Video games developed in the United States
Video games featuring black protagonists
Xbox 360 Live Arcade games
Xbox 360 games
Windows games
Video games about mecha
Multiplayer and single-player video games
Third-person strategy video games