Toy Soldiers: Cold War

Toy Soldiers: Cold War is an action strategy video game, developed by Signal Studios. It is the sequel to Toy Soldiers. Toy Soldiers: Cold War features 1980s-era military technology, and is based around the idea of military aggression escalating between the USA and the USSR. Toy Soldiers: Cold War features a blend of third-person action and strategy, similar to the original Toy Soldiers, but with added features and gameplay mechanics.

Gameplay


Toy Soldiers: Cold War features similar gameplay to the original game, with players trying to repel a Soviet invasion across a diorama towards a toybox in a child's bedroom. Compared to the original game which featured generic World War I battlefields, diorama settings range from jungles and deserts to real world locations such as the streets of Paris and the Great Pyramids.

The game features boss levels with certain large enemies, such as the Antonov winged tank, the Typhoon-class submarine and the final boss, the Russian project R.I.S.E and a number of changes and additions to the gameplay. For example, while players are still able to control vehicles such as tanks or helicopter gunships on the battlefield, time using these vehicles is limited by a battery charge which can be replenished either by collecting floating battery icons or returning the vehicle to its recharge stand. In addition, killstreaks are rewarded with special one-time attacks called "Barrages", which include being given the ability to call an airstrike or control an invincible Rambo-inspired commando for a limited time.

Pre-release
The announcement of Toy Soldiers: Cold War was made on March 9, 2011, as a lead up to its first public showing at the 2011 PAX East convention in Boston, Massachusetts. Jordan Devore of Destructoid said, "Way to set the bar high, Signal Studios." and Stephen Totilo of Kotaku's reaction was that, "It looks like a fantastic upgrade."

Toy Soldiers: Cold War made another showing at the 2011 E3 Convention to a positive reception. Along with its inclusion into the Xbox Live 2011 Summer of Arcade promotion, Toy Soldiers: Cold War playable demos were hosted on the show floor. For the event, Signal Studios developed and released a new trailer for the game while also being featured in the Summer of Arcade promotional video. Talking about the barrage types, Arthur Gies of IGN said, "the show-stealer was The Commando. The Commando is, simply put, John Rambo, a John Rambo that carries a machine gun in one hand and a bazooka in the other, a John Rambo who screams things like "You wanted a war!"

Early reviews were generally positive ahead of release. Eurogamer said that while it was a definite improvement over its predecessor, "it can't survive more than a few days of intense play".

Post-release
Toy Soldiers: Cold War was released on Xbox Live on August 17, 2011, and received "favorable" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.

GamePro said, "If you buy just one tower defense game this year, well, knock yourself out. But if you want a really good action game with some tower defense, some great scoring challenges, some wonderful multiplayer support, some great graphics, and a wonderful sense of humor, you can't go wrong with Toy Soldiers: Cold War." Destructoid called it "a very well-rounded and big package of content that goes beyond what other games in this price-range tend to offer." GameRevolution said, "Even if you're not particularly a fan of tower defense games like me, simply controlling your units, getting combos, and using the special barrage weapons will win you over."

411Mania gave it a score of nine out of ten, saying, "Overall, Toy Soldiers Cold War is definitely worth your time. From hilarious one liners, to great music reminiscent of the 80's, Signal Studios hit one out of the park here. I can honestly say this game is the most fun I've had with an XBLA title in quite some time. Easily the best of what I have played from Microsoft's Summer of Arcade." The Escapist gave it four stars out of five, saying, "The game hits on a lot of levels; it's challenging, full of charm, and genuinely fun. I just wish it wasn't over quite so soon." The Digital Fix gave it eight out of ten, saying, "Toy Soldiers Cold War is a definite improvement on its predecessor and good value for your points on XBLA and whatever minor issues it has along the way are very easily overlooked. Boasting unique gameplay, an excellent premise and one cracking sense of humour it is definitely one of the highlights of this year's Summer of Arcade on XBL. Recommended."

"Toy Soldier[s]: Cold War immediately tapped into my inner child with its colorful and explosive action and is sure to dazzle real-time strategists, model makers and lovers of vintage weapons in the family." – The Washington Times

"Toy Soldiers: Cold War mixes just the right amount of humor, strategy and player control to prove fairly addictive." – Time

During the 15th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Toy Soldiers: Cold War for "Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year".

As of year-end 2011 sales of the Xbox 360 version exceeded 248,575 units.