I first played Iron Storm around when it had launched in 2002. At the time, I was about 10 years old and newly introduced to the shooter genre with titles such as Call of Duty, Soldier of Fortune, WII: Normandy, and Conflict: Vietnam. Having been a history buff from a young age, I remember being quite intrigued by the game's setting: an alternate history where WWI never ended in 1918, but actually surpassed the timeline of WWII, persisting into the story's "present" year of 1964. As you progress, the reason why these events came to pass steadily becomes clear, as it is rooted in a reality disconcertingly similar to the military industrial complex of the real world. In terms of gameplay, having revisited Iron Storm 18 years later (thanks to one of GoG's wonderful sales), I can corroborate now the assertion I had when I was 10: This game is brutal, but not impossible, especially with the allowance of quick saves. The weapon loadouts are pretty standard archetypes, though the aesthetic for each is a delightful marriage between turn-of-the-century and post-war industrial manufacturing. For both the player and the enemy, snipers and explosive weaponry are instant killers, which, in my opinion, isn't entirely out of left field. Regardless, if you're cautious and approach this game tactically, you can survive without scumming saves. The devs also built in (many) ways of rewarding players who explore. Often times, when there is a massive group of enemies ready to unleash hell, there will be a path to outflank and catch them off guard. Although, I will admit that some levels can be a little counter-intuitive to figure out, but I've seen far worse from modern titles. With my character limit approaching, I'll just close by saying that this is a neat little game with lots of detail despite its age and budget and certainly well-worth picking up for this price. Also, as was my conviction when I was young, blowing fools up in Iron Storm never gets old.
