Toy Soldiers (video game)
Encyclopedia
Toy Soldiers is an action
-strategy video game
by Signal Studios released on Xbox Live Arcade
on March 3, 2010.
model diorama
with wooden and plastic landscapes. The diorama is set in various locations, such as a child's bedroom, library and lounge, and objects such as dressers and reading lamps are at times visible in the background. The game features 50 different controllable units including machine guns, mortars and tanks, with the fixed emplacements being upgradable to more powerful versions.
Players can create and control numerous units from a strategic command perspective or one unit on the field from a third-person action perspective. They can also command fixed emplacements that they create such as howitzers, mortars and machine guns, or drive various vehicles such as tanks, biplanes and bombers. When the player takes control of a single unit, the other emplacements are automatically controlled by artificial intelligence
. When shot, the toy soldiers explode into plastic chunks but do not display blood, in order to keep the game family-friendly.
A tower defense
-style single-player campaign is available, which involves defending a base from British
or German
soldiers. The player receives money for destroying enemies, which can be used to equip greater defenses. The single-player game features British and German campaigns among 24 unique levels. Once a campaign is finished, the player unlocks Survival Mode
, which involves fighting continuous streams of enemies to last as long as possible. There are four difficulty settings. Multiplayer is also available, and can be played online over Xbox LIVE or locally with two-player split-screen. In multiplayer games, the player must focus on waging offensives as well as defending the base. Scores are tracked and compared in Xbox LIVE leaderboards.
anticipated Toy Soldiers would be one of the biggest Xbox Live Arcade releases of the year. Microsoft officials compared the game to the Battlefield game franchise and real-time strategy
games, but designed to be more easily accessible. A playable version of Toy Soldiers was spotlighted at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show
in Las Vegas
. The music acquired for Toy Soldiers includes Goodbye, Dolly Gray
and She May Have Seen Better Days, which play during the opening credits and main menu. Five other pieces were composed by Stan LePard for the game; two of these, The Sailor's Life for Me and There's a Candle Burning Bright, also play during the opening credits.
Toy Soldiers was released for the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade on March 3, 2010. On March 9, 2011, concurrent with their announce of Toy Soldiers: Cold War, Signal Studios announced their intent to release Toy Soldiers on the PC. The release date has yet to be confirmed. On February 12, Microsoft released a companion Facebook
game called Toy Soldiers: Match Defense, in which users and their friends match items to collectively win countries and conquer Europe
.
Invasion! is the second and final downloadable content pack for Toy Soldiers. The pack adds a new three level mini-campaign including the "RoboBob" boss, two new multiplayer maps, a new Survival Mode map and three achievements. The player will take control of the German Army to fight off new British secret weapons, including Spacemen, Fire Trucks, Space Tanks, Chivalrous Knights, Flying Saucers, and P51 Mustangs. The pack was released for purchase on September 29, 2010.
escalated
in the 1980's. Toy Soldiers: Cold War features a blend of third-person action and strategy similar to the original Toy Soldiers. It was released August 17, 2011 as part of Microsoft's 2011 Summer of Arcade promotion.
writer Mark Miller said, "My early glimpse of the game has me pretty stoked." Matt Casamassina of IGN
wrote, "Frankly, the title is a lot of fun, inventive and polished. [...] The style is great and the blend of fantasy with authenticity drives home the theme that despite all the carnage, these battles aren't real." GameZone
writer Dakota Grabowski gave the game an 8/10, saying "Toy Soldiers is a brilliant way to kick start Microsoft's concentration on Xbox Live Arcade titles for the month of March. Signal Studios deserve a pat on the back for creating a unique tower defense title that sets itself apart from the rest of the pack." The game received a Metacritic
score of 81 between 40 tracked critics. On February 11, 2011, Toy Soldiers was nominated for Strategy/Simulation Game Of The Year from The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences against Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty, Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising, Sid Meier's Civilization V and Supreme Commander 2
.
As of October 2010, Toy Soldiers has sold over 429,000 copies. As of year-end 2010, Toy Soldiers has moved more than 471,000 units, with its downloadable content selling in excess of 66,000 units collectively. Toy Soldiers was noted as the top selling Xbox LIVE Arcade game title of 2010.
Action game
Action game is a video game genre that emphasizes physical challenges, including hand–eye coordination and reaction-time. The genre includes diverse subgenres such as fighting games, shooter games, and platform games, which are widely considered the most important action games, though some...
-strategy video game
Strategy video game
Strategy video games is a video game genre that emphasizes skillful thinking and planning to achieve victory. They emphasize strategic, tactical, and sometimes logistical challenges. Many games also offer economic challenges and exploration...
by Signal Studios released on Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade
Xbox Live Arcade is a type of video game download distribution available primarily in a section of the Xbox Live Marketplace, Microsoft's digital distribution network for the Xbox 360, that focuses on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers...
on March 3, 2010.
Gameplay
Players control one of two armies of miniature toy soldiers on a World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
model diorama
Diorama
The word diorama can either refer to a nineteenth century mobile theatre device, or, in modern usage, a three-dimensional full-size or miniature model, sometimes enclosed in a glass showcase for a museum...
with wooden and plastic landscapes. The diorama is set in various locations, such as a child's bedroom, library and lounge, and objects such as dressers and reading lamps are at times visible in the background. The game features 50 different controllable units including machine guns, mortars and tanks, with the fixed emplacements being upgradable to more powerful versions.
Players can create and control numerous units from a strategic command perspective or one unit on the field from a third-person action perspective. They can also command fixed emplacements that they create such as howitzers, mortars and machine guns, or drive various vehicles such as tanks, biplanes and bombers. When the player takes control of a single unit, the other emplacements are automatically controlled by artificial intelligence
Game artificial intelligence
Game artificial intelligence refers to techniques used in computer and video games to produce the illusion of intelligence in the behavior of non-player characters . The techniques used typically draw upon existing methods from the field of artificial intelligence...
. When shot, the toy soldiers explode into plastic chunks but do not display blood, in order to keep the game family-friendly.
A tower defense
Tower defense
Tower defense is a subgenre of real-time strategy computer games.The goal of tower defense games is to try to stop enemies from crossing a map by building towers which shoot at them as they pass. Enemies and towers usually have varied abilities, costs, and ability costs...
-style single-player campaign is available, which involves defending a base from British
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
or German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
soldiers. The player receives money for destroying enemies, which can be used to equip greater defenses. The single-player game features British and German campaigns among 24 unique levels. Once a campaign is finished, the player unlocks Survival Mode
Survival mode
Survival mode is a video game mode in which the player must survive by keeping their character alive or preventing the enemy from reaching a certain location for as long as possible, while the game sends waves of enemies to the player that become stronger with each subsequent wave. Another variant...
, which involves fighting continuous streams of enemies to last as long as possible. There are four difficulty settings. Multiplayer is also available, and can be played online over Xbox LIVE or locally with two-player split-screen. In multiplayer games, the player must focus on waging offensives as well as defending the base. Scores are tracked and compared in Xbox LIVE leaderboards.
Development
MicrosoftMicrosoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
anticipated Toy Soldiers would be one of the biggest Xbox Live Arcade releases of the year. Microsoft officials compared the game to the Battlefield game franchise and real-time strategy
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
games, but designed to be more easily accessible. A playable version of Toy Soldiers was spotlighted at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
in Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
. The music acquired for Toy Soldiers includes Goodbye, Dolly Gray
Goodbye, Dolly Gray
"Goodbye, Dolly Gray" is a music hall song by Will D. Cobb and Paul Barnes . Popularised as a Boer War anthem, it was written during the earlier Spanish-American War....
and She May Have Seen Better Days, which play during the opening credits and main menu. Five other pieces were composed by Stan LePard for the game; two of these, The Sailor's Life for Me and There's a Candle Burning Bright, also play during the opening credits.
Toy Soldiers was released for the Xbox 360 via Xbox Live Arcade on March 3, 2010. On March 9, 2011, concurrent with their announce of Toy Soldiers: Cold War, Signal Studios announced their intent to release Toy Soldiers on the PC. The release date has yet to be confirmed. On February 12, Microsoft released a companion Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
game called Toy Soldiers: Match Defense, in which users and their friends match items to collectively win countries and conquer Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
Downloadable Content
The Kaiser's Battle is the first downloadable content pack for Toy Soldiers. The pack adds several new features: French Army skins for all units, two new units exclusive to the French Army, a French mini-campaign featuring three single-player levels and the "German K-Wagen" boss, two new multiplayer maps, a new Survival Mode map and three achievements. The pack was released for purchase on June 30, 2010.Invasion! is the second and final downloadable content pack for Toy Soldiers. The pack adds a new three level mini-campaign including the "RoboBob" boss, two new multiplayer maps, a new Survival Mode map and three achievements. The player will take control of the German Army to fight off new British secret weapons, including Spacemen, Fire Trucks, Space Tanks, Chivalrous Knights, Flying Saucers, and P51 Mustangs. The pack was released for purchase on September 29, 2010.
Sequel
Toy Soldiers: Cold War was announced by Signal Studios on March 9, 2011 as the follow-up sequel to Toy Soldiers. The game takes an interpretive look into what might have happened had military aggressionCold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
escalated
World War III
World War III denotes a successor to World War II that would be on a global scale, with common speculation that it would be likely nuclear and devastating in nature....
in the 1980's. Toy Soldiers: Cold War features a blend of third-person action and strategy similar to the original Toy Soldiers. It was released August 17, 2011 as part of Microsoft's 2011 Summer of Arcade promotion.
Reception and sales
Early reports of Toy Soldiers have been generally positive. Game InformerGame Informer
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
writer Mark Miller said, "My early glimpse of the game has me pretty stoked." Matt Casamassina of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
wrote, "Frankly, the title is a lot of fun, inventive and polished. [...] The style is great and the blend of fantasy with authenticity drives home the theme that despite all the carnage, these battles aren't real." GameZone
GameZone
GameZone is an American multiplatform video game website. GameZone's daily coverage includes reviews, previews, news, hints & cheats, and editorials. Additionally, GameZone offers downloads, a child-targeted website and in association with GameStop, hosts GZGameShop, an online retailer...
writer Dakota Grabowski gave the game an 8/10, saying "Toy Soldiers is a brilliant way to kick start Microsoft's concentration on Xbox Live Arcade titles for the month of March. Signal Studios deserve a pat on the back for creating a unique tower defense title that sets itself apart from the rest of the pack." The game received a Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
score of 81 between 40 tracked critics. On February 11, 2011, Toy Soldiers was nominated for Strategy/Simulation Game Of The Year from The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences against Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty, Dawn of War II: Chaos Rising, Sid Meier's Civilization V and Supreme Commander 2
Supreme Commander 2
Supreme Commander 2 is a real-time strategy video game developed by Gas Powered Games and published by Square Enix. It is a sequel to Supreme Commander...
.
As of October 2010, Toy Soldiers has sold over 429,000 copies. As of year-end 2010, Toy Soldiers has moved more than 471,000 units, with its downloadable content selling in excess of 66,000 units collectively. Toy Soldiers was noted as the top selling Xbox LIVE Arcade game title of 2010.
External links
- Toy Soldiers at xbox.com
- Developer website