Iron Storm has one of the most insane stories of any video game ever. Per
Wikipedia:
The game is set in an alternate year of 1964, in which World War I never ended. The Baron Nikolai Alexsandrovich von Ugenberg seized Mongolia in 1921 in an uprising following the Russian Revolution, and later invaded Russia itself to crush the Bolsheviks. His plan was to establish a Russo-Mongolian Empire stretching from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic. With the help of the United States, the Allied nations of Europe were reformed as the United States of Western Europe, or the Alliance, in 1933 to counter Ugenberg’s plan.
Instead of the Great War ending in 1918, it was continued for almost half a century, with the battlelines drawn down Europe’s center in 1929 shifting little for either side for the next several decades. As the USWE could no longer independently contribute to the war, the Alliance army was introduced into the American stock market, allowing private investors to speculate on the lives of the soldiers who carried on the war. The outcome of the war now depended almost entirely on the economy of the Alliance’s member nations.
The player takes on the role as U.S. Army Lieutenant James Anderson, only 19 when he joined the Alliance in 1943, and now a legend among the soldiers in the field. Anderson is recruited for a possibly suicidal mission: to breach enemy defenses and stop the Russo-Mongolians from developing a deadly weapon that could devastate the world. Captain Cecile Newcastle of the Royal Highlands Regiment is Anderson’s immediate supervisor and is responsible for guiding him through his mission. Colonel Mitchell is the commander of the operation, but has an ulterior motive for wanting the mission to succeed.
In case you’re unfamiliar with
Roman von Ungern-Sternberg, he is truly one of the most horrific men in history – one of the few people who perhaps was as evil as Hitler. I had no idea any video game could be even
more dystopic than Fallout but Iron Storm manages this feat.
And let me tell you, this game makes you feel the horrors of war. It is a brutal, brutal game that’s pure nightmare fuel. You truly feel paranoia because at every angle, you can be killed – and very quickly. Don’t even bother playing this game on “Normal” mode – “Easy” is hard enough.
While the graphics look every bit of their age, there’s a few aspects about them that make me happy. For one thing, you can play this game easily at a high resolution, and with multiple aspect ratios too.
In terms of sound, there’s no music. There’s not really a point since you’re going to have to
hear everything that comes your way before you get killed. And you
will get killed. That said, the ambient affects are excellent.
You can play Iron Storm on a Steam Deck, and I have. However, if you want the best experience, you’ll need to play this with a keyboard and mouse on a large monitor. Believe me, you will need as much control as you can muster.
4X Studio developed Iron Storm. This was the only game they ever made, and they closed down soon after the release.
Not everyone likes this game, and I totally get it. This is an incredibly difficult FPS, and even dyed-in-the-wool FPS enthusiasts think it is hard. However, if you have the cojones to get good, you will discover one of the richest FPS experiences ever, one that really gets into your head.
Both Steam and
GOG.com sell Iron Storm for C$3.29. It often goes on sale too – often for less than a dollar. At that price, it is an easy recommend, especially for something as memorable as this game.
Download the best classic and new games on Windows, Mac & Linux. A vast selection of titles, DRM-free, with free goodies and 30-day money-back guarantee.
GOG.com