Trenched
Encyclopedia
Iron Brigade, formerly titled Trenched, is a video game developed by Double Fine Productions
and published by Microsoft Studios as a downloadable Xbox Live Arcade
title on the Xbox 360
. Announced at the 2011 Game Developers Conference
by Tim Schafer
, Trenched is a hybrid tower defense
and third person shooter game, set after World War I
in an alternate reality
, where the player controls units from "The Mobile Trench Brigade" to fight off robotic species called the Monovision. The player will control giant mecha
-style robots with weapon and armor customization through a variety of missions set across the world. The game was released on the Xbox Live service on June 22, 2011, with a delayed release in certain European areas due to trademark issues with the title, ultimately with its release scheduled for November 30, 2011 but was ultimately released on December 1, 2011 under the alternate name Iron Brigade. The name of the title will be updated worldwide to Iron Brigade alongside the European release.
, a strange radio communication known as "the Broadcast" is sent across the world and caused many people who listened to it to die. Two war veterans, Frank Woodruff and Vladimir Farnsworth, survive the attack and gain super-intelligence and a knowledge of advanced technology. Frank, having previously lost his legs in the war, uses his knowledge to design and build mechanical walking platforms called "mobile trenches," giving other disabled soldiers the ability to move again. Vladimir on the other hand creates the Monovision
, allowing people to experience the world from the comfort and isolation of their homes. Vladimir is driven insane by his own invention; bent on global conquest, he constructs Monovision-based robotic creatures, derogatorily called "Tubes", and lays Monovision cables across the world. As Vladimir's forces spread, Frank's "Mobile Trench Brigade" leads the counterattack. After the "Mobile Trench Brigade" has defeated Vladmir's forces, it's revealed that the Monovision's influence on Vladimir has rendered his body like that of a newborn baby while maintaining his head and intellect. While no one is sure where the Monovisions came from or when they'll strike again, Frank remarks that the "Mobile Trench Brigade" will be there to fight the menace should it ever rise up again.
games with third-person shooter
s and incorporating role-playing game elements. Players control a "trench", a giant war machine that can move about the battlefield as needed. The player's goal is to protect their base, the ship U.S.S. McKinley from increasingly difficult waves of Monovisions. Though a player's trench may be disabled by enemy attacks, the player can spend time to repair the machine and continue on; the game is only lost when the base is overrun by the Monovisions. During the attacks, the player has the ability to ground its trench at a fixed spot, or move about the field to fire on foes.
Before combat, the player customizes their equipment on their trench at the base. The choice of the hull for the trench will affect the number and types of weapons that can be loaded onto it. The player can also select which Emplacements they will carry, eventually targeting a location on the battlefield to place them. Emplacement provide both offensive capabilities well as defensive ones such as repulsing enemies back. As the player defeats the Monovisions, they will drop scrap pieces that can be used to repair, upgrade, and call in more Emplacements. After successfully winning a battle, the player gains rewards including new weapons and parts for their trench, and decorative hats similar to Team Fortress 2
. The player will gain experience point
s towards both personal goals and "Regiment" goals, reflecting progress among the last several Xbox Live players that the player cooperated with. In a manner similar to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
, new weapons and other customization options become available as the player gains level this way. Trenched will allow for up to four player co-operative gameplay.
, Stacking
, and Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
) to result from a period called "Amnesia Fortnight" during the 2009-2010 period where Double Fine's last disc-based release, Brütal Legend
, had no publisher. To bolster morale, Tim Schafer
divided the team into four groups, challenging to develop a game prototype within two weeks for review by the rest of the company. Each of the four ideas were found to be successful bases for future games. When Brutal Legend was completed and Double Fine was told to discontinue work on a sequel, Schafer turned to these four games and sought publishers for them as smaller, downloadable titles.
The game's art style is inspired by mens magazines of the 1940s and '50s, which illustrated "the sense of adventure, bravery, camaraderie, drinking, and good old-fashioned face-punching violence," according to project lead Brad Muir. With their development assisted by Microsoft Studios, Muir and his art team were able to tap into Microsoft's own art department to create some of these images.
The game was originally announced and released in North America as Trenched. Though scheduled to be released near the same time as the North American version, the European versions of the game were delayed indefinitely. It was discovered that an earlier registered trademark on a war-themed Portuguese board game "Trench," owned by Rui Alípio Monteiro, conflicted with Trencheds name. Rui Alípio Monteiro has stated they wish to make "Trench" into an electronic game, further complicating Trencheds release. A similar challenge may occur in the United States, where Rui Alípio Monteiro has also previously filed for the "Trench" trademark. According to Muir, Microsoft worked to resolve the trademark issue to assure release of the game in Europe. Ultimately, at the Gamescom 2011 conference, Microsoft announced that Trenched would be retitled as Iron Brigade in Europe, with a release set for November 2011. It was later announced that the name of the game would be updated through a patch in late 2011 to bring the other releases of the game to meet the new Iron Brigade name, along with the addition of new game modes, weapons, and extras with the game. The renamed version and European release were originally scheduled for September 2011, but Muir explained that much of the changes had to proceed through various divisions of the Xbox Live Arcade game certification process, delaying the updates until November.
Along with the rename, the game will gain new game modes, weapons, and extras for no additional cost, as a means of a make-off offering for the delay and rename. The new modes will include a new campaign, titled "Rise of the Martian Bear", and a "Survival" mode similar to the multi-wave Horde mode of Gears of War
where the players must defend as long as possible against an infinite number of waves of enemies.
score of 87. Joystiq
gave it a very favourable review by scoring it a 4.5/5 rating, calling it a well polished game with lots of personality. The reviewer noted that it had become one of his favourite multiplayer experiences on Xbox Live
and is his favourite tower defence game to date. IGN
gave the title a 9 out of 10 rating. Anthony Gallegos called it the best downloadable title he's played all year long, stating that its combination of skillful writing, fun shooting, and tactical tower defense makes for hours of replayable gameplay. The Official Xbox Magazine
gave it a 9 out of 10 rating, praising explosions, balance of action and strategy, and replayability. Destructoid
gave it a 8.5 out of 10 rating, calling it a hell of a fun game that has just a few minor blemishes.
GameSpot
gave it a 8 out of 10 rating, praising the combination of tower defense and action gameplay, varied missions with replay value, fun solo and co-op modes, and customization but criticizing the chore of collecting scrap. 1up
gave it a B rating, criticizing that the game doesn't include a local co-op option but stating that if you have a friend to play with, it can be a blast. Gamepro
gave the title a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising its addictive, loot-rewarding gameplay, strategic and easy-to-jump-into multiplayer, and fun customization options but criticizing the occasionally wonky enemy indicator and the missing option of a strategic view of the entire map. GameZone
states that "In an era when plenty of games are struggling to do too many things at once, Trenched focuses on doing just a few, and doing them fantastically well."
Double Fine Productions
Double Fine Productions is an American video game developer founded in July 2000 by Tim Schafer after his departure from LucasArts. He started Double Fine with Programmers David Dixon and Jonathan Menzies in what was once a clog shop in San Francisco...
and published by Microsoft Studios as a downloadable 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...
title on the Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
. Announced at the 2011 Game Developers Conference
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
by Tim Schafer
Tim Schafer
Timothy Schafer is an American computer game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in January 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts...
, Trenched is a hybrid 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...
and third person shooter game, set after World War I
World 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...
in an alternate reality
Alternate reality
Alternate reality is usually a synonym for a Parallel universe.It may also refer to:*Alternative universe , fiction by fan authors that deliberately alters facts of the canonical universe they're writing about....
, where the player controls units from "The Mobile Trench Brigade" to fight off robotic species called the Monovision. The player will control giant mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
-style robots with weapon and armor customization through a variety of missions set across the world. The game was released on the Xbox Live service on June 22, 2011, with a delayed release in certain European areas due to trademark issues with the title, ultimately with its release scheduled for November 30, 2011 but was ultimately released on December 1, 2011 under the alternate name Iron Brigade. The name of the title will be updated worldwide to Iron Brigade alongside the European release.
Plot
Set in an alternate history shortly after the end of 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...
, a strange radio communication known as "the Broadcast" is sent across the world and caused many people who listened to it to die. Two war veterans, Frank Woodruff and Vladimir Farnsworth, survive the attack and gain super-intelligence and a knowledge of advanced technology. Frank, having previously lost his legs in the war, uses his knowledge to design and build mechanical walking platforms called "mobile trenches," giving other disabled soldiers the ability to move again. Vladimir on the other hand creates the Monovision
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
, allowing people to experience the world from the comfort and isolation of their homes. Vladimir is driven insane by his own invention; bent on global conquest, he constructs Monovision-based robotic creatures, derogatorily called "Tubes", and lays Monovision cables across the world. As Vladimir's forces spread, Frank's "Mobile Trench Brigade" leads the counterattack. After the "Mobile Trench Brigade" has defeated Vladmir's forces, it's revealed that the Monovision's influence on Vladimir has rendered his body like that of a newborn baby while maintaining his head and intellect. While no one is sure where the Monovisions came from or when they'll strike again, Frank remarks that the "Mobile Trench Brigade" will be there to fight the menace should it ever rise up again.
Gameplay
Iron Brigade is considered to be a hybrid game, mixing the gameplay of tower defenseTower 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...
games with third-person shooter
Third-person shooter
Third-person shooter is a genre of 3D action games in which the player character is visible on-screen, and the gameplay consists primarily of shooting.-Definition:...
s and incorporating role-playing game elements. Players control a "trench", a giant war machine that can move about the battlefield as needed. The player's goal is to protect their base, the ship U.S.S. McKinley from increasingly difficult waves of Monovisions. Though a player's trench may be disabled by enemy attacks, the player can spend time to repair the machine and continue on; the game is only lost when the base is overrun by the Monovisions. During the attacks, the player has the ability to ground its trench at a fixed spot, or move about the field to fire on foes.
Before combat, the player customizes their equipment on their trench at the base. The choice of the hull for the trench will affect the number and types of weapons that can be loaded onto it. The player can also select which Emplacements they will carry, eventually targeting a location on the battlefield to place them. Emplacement provide both offensive capabilities well as defensive ones such as repulsing enemies back. As the player defeats the Monovisions, they will drop scrap pieces that can be used to repair, upgrade, and call in more Emplacements. After successfully winning a battle, the player gains rewards including new weapons and parts for their trench, and decorative hats similar to Team Fortress 2
Team Fortress 2
Team Fortress 2 is a free-to-play team-based first-person shooter multiplayer video game developed by Valve Corporation. A sequel to the original mod Team Fortress based on the Quake engine, it was first released as part of the video game compilation The Orange Box on October 10, 2007 for Windows...
. The player will gain experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s towards both personal goals and "Regiment" goals, reflecting progress among the last several Xbox Live players that the player cooperated with. In a manner similar to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare is a 2007 first-person shooter video game, developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii. A handheld game was made for the Nintendo DS. The game was released in North America, Australia, and...
, new weapons and other customization options become available as the player gains level this way. Trenched will allow for up to four player co-operative gameplay.
Development
Iron Brigade is the fourth game (including Costume QuestCostume Quest
Costume Quest is an adventure role-playing video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ. In the game, the player controls a child that is trick-or-treating with their twin on Halloween night when they encounter a monster that kidnaps the sibling...
, Stacking
Stacking (video game)
Stacking is an adventure/puzzle video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by THQ; like Double Fine's previous Costume Quest, it is a smaller title created during the development period of Brütal Legend, and was released in February 2011 for the Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation...
, and Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster
Sesame Street: Once Upon a Monster is a video game developed by Double Fine Productions and published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment in conjunction with Sesame Workshop...
) to result from a period called "Amnesia Fortnight" during the 2009-2010 period where Double Fine's last disc-based release, Brütal Legend
Brütal Legend
Brütal Legend is an action-adventure/real-time strategy game created by Double Fine Productions and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America and Europe...
, had no publisher. To bolster morale, Tim Schafer
Tim Schafer
Timothy Schafer is an American computer game designer. He founded Double Fine Productions in January 2000, after having spent over a decade at LucasArts...
divided the team into four groups, challenging to develop a game prototype within two weeks for review by the rest of the company. Each of the four ideas were found to be successful bases for future games. When Brutal Legend was completed and Double Fine was told to discontinue work on a sequel, Schafer turned to these four games and sought publishers for them as smaller, downloadable titles.
The game's art style is inspired by mens magazines of the 1940s and '50s, which illustrated "the sense of adventure, bravery, camaraderie, drinking, and good old-fashioned face-punching violence," according to project lead Brad Muir. With their development assisted by Microsoft Studios, Muir and his art team were able to tap into Microsoft's own art department to create some of these images.
The game was originally announced and released in North America as Trenched. Though scheduled to be released near the same time as the North American version, the European versions of the game were delayed indefinitely. It was discovered that an earlier registered trademark on a war-themed Portuguese board game "Trench," owned by Rui Alípio Monteiro, conflicted with Trencheds name. Rui Alípio Monteiro has stated they wish to make "Trench" into an electronic game, further complicating Trencheds release. A similar challenge may occur in the United States, where Rui Alípio Monteiro has also previously filed for the "Trench" trademark. According to Muir, Microsoft worked to resolve the trademark issue to assure release of the game in Europe. Ultimately, at the Gamescom 2011 conference, Microsoft announced that Trenched would be retitled as Iron Brigade in Europe, with a release set for November 2011. It was later announced that the name of the game would be updated through a patch in late 2011 to bring the other releases of the game to meet the new Iron Brigade name, along with the addition of new game modes, weapons, and extras with the game. The renamed version and European release were originally scheduled for September 2011, but Muir explained that much of the changes had to proceed through various divisions of the Xbox Live Arcade game certification process, delaying the updates until November.
Along with the rename, the game will gain new game modes, weapons, and extras for no additional cost, as a means of a make-off offering for the delay and rename. The new modes will include a new campaign, titled "Rise of the Martian Bear", and a "Survival" mode similar to the multi-wave Horde mode of Gears of War
Gears of War
Gears of War is a military science fiction third-person shooter video game developed by Epic Games and published by Microsoft Game Studios...
where the players must defend as long as possible against an infinite number of waves of enemies.
Reception
The title has received very positive reviews, with a MetacriticMetacritic
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 87. Joystiq
Joystiq
Joystiq is a video gaming blog founded in June 2004 that has since become one of the most successful sites within the Weblogs, Inc. family of weblogs. It is the centerpiece of WIN's own network of video gaming blogs, which also includes a blog dealing specifically with the popular MMORPG World of...
gave it a very favourable review by scoring it a 4.5/5 rating, calling it a well polished game with lots of personality. The reviewer noted that it had become one of his favourite multiplayer experiences on Xbox Live
Xbox Live
Xbox Live is an online multiplayer gaming and digital media delivery service created and operated by Microsoft Corporation. It is currently the only online gaming service on consoles that charges users a fee to play multiplayer gaming. It was first made available to the Xbox system in 2002...
and is his favourite tower defence game to date. 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...
gave the title a 9 out of 10 rating. Anthony Gallegos called it the best downloadable title he's played all year long, stating that its combination of skillful writing, fun shooting, and tactical tower defense makes for hours of replayable gameplay. The Official Xbox Magazine
Official Xbox Magazine
Official Xbox Magazine is a monthly video game magazine which started in November 2001 around the launch of the original Xbox. A preview issue was released for E3 2001, with another preview issue for November 2001. The magazine is bundled with a disc that includes game demos, preview videos and...
gave it a 9 out of 10 rating, praising explosions, balance of action and strategy, and replayability. Destructoid
Destructoid
Destructoid is an independent video game-focused blog based in San Francisco, California that was founded in March 2006. It has since grown into one of the most widely read video game sites on the Internet, reaching more than 3 million unique visitors per month...
gave it a 8.5 out of 10 rating, calling it a hell of a fun game that has just a few minor blemishes.
GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave it a 8 out of 10 rating, praising the combination of tower defense and action gameplay, varied missions with replay value, fun solo and co-op modes, and customization but criticizing the chore of collecting scrap. 1up
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
gave it a B rating, criticizing that the game doesn't include a local co-op option but stating that if you have a friend to play with, it can be a blast. Gamepro
GamePro
GamePro Media was a United States gaming media company publishing online and print content on the video game industry, video game hardware, and video game software developed for a video game console , a computer, and/or a mobile device . GamePro Media properties include GamePro magazine and...
gave the title a rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars, praising its addictive, loot-rewarding gameplay, strategic and easy-to-jump-into multiplayer, and fun customization options but criticizing the occasionally wonky enemy indicator and the missing option of a strategic view of the entire map. 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...
states that "In an era when plenty of games are struggling to do too many things at once, Trenched focuses on doing just a few, and doing them fantastically well."