Iron Guard: Salvation Review – Strong Foundations But Needs Shoring Up

Actual-time technique video games are present process a resurgence within the VR house. Can Iron Guard: Salvation seize the magic of traditional RTS titles in a digital surroundings?

Iron Guard: Salvation is a follow-up to the earlier entry in 2021, which was merely titled ‘Iron Guard.’ It is a serviceable VR tower protection sport, although developer Xlab Digital clearly had greater plans for the sequel. It is drawn inspiration from traditional RTS video games akin to StarCraft and Command & Conquer to create what’s aimed to be a extra in-depth expertise.

That inspiration is obvious from the second you begin taking part in Salvation. Your briefing is equipped by a gruff-voiced Area Marine kind, and the voice that calls out warnings throughout a match is strikingly much like the computerized voice from StarCraft. The remainder of the sound design and music are tremendous, although sadly unmemorable.

Aesthetically, Salvation packs a retro-futuristic really feel. Since it’s set in house on planets and moons like Pluto and Europa, the buildings and ships use a type of 90s sci-fi fashion that at instances jogs my memory of Colony Wars on the PS1. That is on no account a foul factor.

Regardless of the trimmings of a sci-fi epic, there may be little story right here to talk of. What we’re given is a generic plot involving robots going loopy and attacking individuals. The participant – in fact – is charged with stopping them. It is not inspiring or authentic, which is disappointing. Particularly when in comparison with the sprawling house opera that’s StarCraft or the bonkers different historical past antics of the Command & Conquer video games.

You may strategy every map with a ‘god-view’ perspective, wanting down over the battlefield. Nevertheless, Iron Guard: Salvation additionally encourages you to get instantly concerned within the battle utilizing a drone that’s managed by your right-hand controller.

This drone not solely acts as your scout, but it surely additionally has weapons to instantly interact the enemy. It even incorporates all of the important data, such because the well being of the bottom, the variety of assets you will have, and the drone’s personal vitality stage. Right here we come to one among Iron Guard: Salvation’s main issues – to see any of this information, you both have to crane your head right down to look or convey your arm up at a clumsy angle. It isn’t snug.

Salvation’s gameplay owes a lot to traditional tower protection. You possibly can entry a number of kinds of turrets that allow you to gradual the enemy, hearth artillery for widespread harm, and use plasma turrets to take out particular person foes. These are mounted on platforms that may be conveniently moved mid-battle. This offers larger flexibility whereas preserving to the tower protection framework.

There’s welcome selection in these missions that avoids turning into repetitive survival duties, together with evacuation missions, mining challenges, and even boss encounters. Salvation’s RTS influences lie within the useful resource administration for constructing and upgrading models. That you must grasp the utilization of extra highly effective ‘Hero’ models.

Every of them – Graves, Irina, and Mitchell – all have particular, distinctive talents that require tactical use to attain victory in opposition to incoming waves of robotic enemies. From the orbital laser of Graves to the chemical warfare choices provided by Mitchell, these talents might be upgraded and modified utilizing a talent tree, which varieties a significant a part of sport development.

The developer is preserving the person interface as clear as potential, so there isn’t any actual HUD to talk of, leaving the drone as your solely solution to observe these necessary numbers. It additionally introduces the problem of perspective. Is the participant a godlike determine within the sky shifting turrets and autos round like toys, or are they instantly concerned within the struggle at floor stage? I can’t assist however really feel that Xlab Digital wants to choose a lane and both put the participant perspective at floor stage or use the ‘army sand desk’ strategy utilized by many different RTS titles.

Iron Guard: Salvation’s roots are in tower protection video games, regardless of the evident affect of RTS video games. This does have one thing of a limiting issue. Many tower protection video games are like puzzles; work out what defenses to place the place, and the extent is solved.

One space the place Salvation misses out in comparison with the RTS titles that impressed it’s the lack of multiplayer. Many RTS video games reside far previous their anticipated lifespan by advantage of neighborhood engagement. With out this multiplayer enter, it is laborious to think about returning to it again and again. As soon as the degrees are ‘solved,’ there may be little or no else to do. Multiplayer would offer additional life to this sport.

To verify I am not lacking one thing, I invited a good friend who’s a semi-professional StarCraft II participant and content material creator to have a look. He likewise believed the sport would profit from extra of a strategic focus, the place it’s simpler to adapt to issues going fallacious and provide you with distinctive methods. Presently, it feels extra like a puzzle sport than a real RTS expertise. By eradicating the emphasis on tower protection and leaning additional into the RTS mechanics, this might be improved.

Iron Guard: Salvation – Ultimate Verdict

Iron Guard: Salvation presents greater than a easy tower protection title in VR, but it surely’s not fairly sufficient to make it a totally fledged RTS. There are good foundations right here and welcome mission selection, however awkward design decisions from Xlab Digital and an absence of depth are holding it again. With none multiplayer choices both, this hinders the sport from dwelling as much as its full potential.

UploadVR makes use of a 5-Star ranking system for our sport opinions – you may learn a breakdown of every star ranking in our overview tips.