Iron Soldier

Cover art
Developer(s)	Eclipse Software
Publisher(s)	Atari Corporation
Series	Iron Soldier
Platform(s)	Atari Jaguar
Release date(s)	NA: 1994
Genre(s)	Simulation
Mode(s)	Single-player

Iron Soldier is a first-person mech video game developed by Eclipse Software for the Atari Jaguar system and released in 1994. It was followed by two sequels: Iron Soldier 2 (1997), and Iron Soldier 3 (2000).

Gameplay

The player controls a robot spanning 42 feet or 13 metres in a series of 16 missions consisting of destroying certain enemies and buildings. Some missions require the player to obtain new weapons from an enemy base or destroy other robots.

The player has a wide variety of weapons like rocket launchers, a chainsaw, gatling gun, shield, and self-controlled rockets, which can be equipped on any part of the robot.

The gaming media reported that Iron Soldier would support two-player gaming via the Jaguar's dial-up internet link;^[1] however, the Jaguar internet link was never completed or released, so Iron Soldier was released as a single-player game only.

Reception

Iron Soldier received generally positive reviews. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave the game a 7.4/10 average. They commented that the controls are difficult to get used to, but praised the polygon graphics and the ability to choose which stage to play.^[2] GamePro, while acknowledging that the game's controls are complicated, maintained that they don't take long to master. They also praised the polygon graphics and most especially the simple yet intense gameplay.^[3]

Iron Soldier 2

Iron Soldier 2, the sequel to Iron Soldier, was a first person shooter video game made for the Jaguar CD system.^[4] In the game, players pilot giant mecha robots.^[5] The CD version was released by Telegames in April 1997. A cartridge version was subsequently released.

Iron Soldier 3

Iron Soldier 3
Developer(s)	Eclipse Software Design
Publisher(s)	Vatical Entertainment / Telegames
Designer(s)	Marc Rosocha
Platform(s)	PlayStation, Nuon
Release date(s)	NA: June 20, 2000
Genre(s)	FPS
Mode(s)	Single player 2 player

Iron Soldier 3 is an action game developed by Eclipse Software Design for the PlayStation console and Nuon DVD players that was released in 2000. The player controls a 42-foot-tall (13 m) robot to defend the United Republic, one of the last free countries left in this futuristic world, from PENTA Industries, one of the many huge corporations that became more powerful with the rapid industrialization of the world. Iron Soldier 3 is a sequel to the Atari Jaguar games Iron Soldier and Iron Soldier 2.

At the player's disposal, the player will have a large array of weapons which the player can attach to their Iron Soldier unit. There are machine guns, missiles, grenades, a flame thrower, and more. In addition to the standard Iron Soldier, the player can pilot a smaller, faster chicken-walker type robot and a new slower, more heavily armed walker.

There are new game modes added since the Iron Soldier 2. There is still a single player mode, with 25 missions to complete. Now there is also an arcade mode, where the objective is to level every building in the area in the fastest time possible. Finally, for the first time there is a two player mode.

References