I friggin’ loved the first Toy Soldiers!
I remember downloading the trial and playing it to death, and then eventually unlocking the full game and again… playing it to death!
So I was in a fanboy frenzy when I heard that there was a sequel on the cards!!
And when Toy Soldiers Cold War finally dropped I was quick to download it so that I could… you know… play it to death!!!
I was happily on my mission, when I discovered one of the best new features introduced in Cold War… The Co-op!! Without delay I sent out the invite to my co-op buddy, Kemza, and we set about waging intense War via split-screen!!
And this is when we discovered the best bit of Toy Soldiers… The nostalgia…
Both Kemza and myself were born in the 80′s, so the “Cold War”references and humour which are jam-packed into Cold War really resonated! Add to that the stories about G.I. Joe and Micro Machines that we couldn’t help but regale each other with, and suddenly we were no longer 20-something gamers, but rather wide-eyed pre-teens, sans-squeaky voices thankfully!
Comic by Penny-Arcade… if you couldn’t tell 
It’s in this ability to magically transform you to your younger self that Toy Soldiers Cold War really shines!
Since playing Cold War, I have this overwhelming need to go dig through my old stuff in the hopes of finding my old army-men and G.I. Joes, and I defy anyone who has played Toy Soldiers not to do the same!
Game Info
GAME NAME: Toy Soldiers Cold War
DEVELOPER(S): Signal Studios
PUBLISHER(S): Microsoft Studios
PLATFORM(S): Xbox 360 – XBLA
GENRE(S): Tower Defense, Action/Strategy
RELEASE DATE(S): August 17, 2011
Want More?I understand that “Awesome Nostalgia” and “Magical Transformation Abilities” doesn’t really cut it as a review…
so if you want something more along the lines of a traditional review click on one of the tabs…
Gameplay Just like it’s predecessor, Toy Soldiers Cold War is a Tower Defense game set in a diorama. The core gameplay is your standard “build towers to repel waves of enemies” tower defense style, in this case it’s your toy box that you are defending.
But the gameplay is elevated to Tower Defense/action/strategy with the addition of unit control!
Your towers/turrets and even some of the toys, like the F-14 Tomcat and M1 Abrams, are controllable, and allow for some epic battles to take place!
Improvements There are tons of new additions and improvements in Cold War, most notable is the co-op that I spoke about earlier.
Basically, you are able to play the entire campaign co-op either via XBL or split-screen, but if that wasn’t enough for you, then there is also a survival mode that you can co-op as well!
on the subject of game modes…
Apart from co-op and Survival, there are also a bunch mini-games to keep you occupied, all with leaderboards for you to compete on!
A nice little twist to the mix is that the campaign and survival mode feature difficulty levels/modifiers to really make sure that your skills are tested!
Looks Toy Soldiers is one of the best looking games I have ever played! I’m not talking about graphics or clever tricks with the game mechanics… I’m talking about the art direction and the overall look.
The dioramas in which the battles take place are beautifully created, but they are not the best bit about the look of Toy Solders, it’s the small details that really blow you away!
Scattered around the battlefield are Rubix cubes; Jenga sets; and other random toys like dice, and if you happen to be flying outside of the diorama, you’ll notice desks; posters; lamps; and other real world props that really sell the “toy soldiers” vibe and atmosphere!!
And the units you control and fight against fit in perfectly with this awesomely detailed world!
Soldiers manning flame-throwers wear HAZMAT suits; infantry do ‘victory dances’ when they think they are going to infiltrate a toy box; and even random soldiers hanging out on the artillery have their own character!!
In a NutshellAll in all, Toy Soldiers Cold War is an awesome looking game that is super fun to play! It’s definitely worth the 1200 MS points to get it and will make a perfect addition to your collection.
As for the downside…
Unlike the original Toy Soldiers, Cold War’s missions aren’t as varied and challenging so you are going to have to play with the other modes and use the difficulty modifiers to get the full experience!
Toy Soldiers Cold War is definitely a title you need to take online as it won’t hold up to intense single player gaming, but a good bash of online or even split-screen versus will add to it’s longevity!
On the subject of online versus…
It can be a little tricky to find matches with good connections, so try to create private matches if you can. (You could always hit us up for a match if you can’t get any friends to play!)
