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Iron Soldier is a video game developed by Eclipse Software Design for the Atari Jaguar. It was released by Atari Corporation in North America on December 22, 1994, Europe in January 1995, and Japan by Mumin Corporation on March 24, 1995. It is the first entry in the Iron Soldier series. Set in the future on an industrialized Earth, the player takes on the role of a resistance member piloting a robot to overthrow the military dictatorship of the Iron Fist Corporation. The player is tasked with various objectives while fighting enemies in multiple missions.

Iron Soldier received generally favorable reception from critics, with praise for the polygonal visuals, audio department, destructible environment, and gameplay, but most had mixed opinions regarding the controls. Some reviewers also criticized the lack of texture mapping and additional mission variety, as well as the slow movement. By 1995, the game had sold 21,240 copies. It was followed by Iron Soldier 2 (1997). Retrospective commentary in the years following its release have hailed it as one of the best titles for the Jaguar.

Gameplay
Iron Soldier

Development
Iron Soldier was developed by Eclipse Software Design, a Halle-based game developer founded by former Thalion Software staff member Marc Rosocha. In 1992, Atari Corporation laid out its plans for a video game console that would later become the Atari Jaguar and wanted Eclipse Software to make games for it. Rosocha and his team were given an early Jaguar prototype and quickly became familiar with it due to their previous experience with the Atari Falcon. Rosocha proposed a 3D shooter in the style of Starblade as he was a fan of fast-paced arcade games, however the game was rejected because it was on rails, which upset him and almost cut ties with Atari. Eclipse spent a year creating its own tools for Jaguar and discussing concepts with Atari, but had nothing finalized regarding a game.

Rosocha asked for a suggestion to get started and met with Atari producer Sean Patten, who told him to make a mech game based on a script he wrote due to his fascination with mechs and Godzilla. It became the basis for Iron Soldier, as Rosocha agreed as long as they could "blow everything up", to which Patten readily agreed and the project entered development in November 1993. The game was produced by Patten, with Rosocha as lead designer. Michael Bittner, also formerly of Thalion Software, was responsible for the game's programming. Artwork for the game was done by freelancer Bleick Bleicken, Christian Reismüller and Oliver Lindau. The in-game soundtrack was scored by Joachim Gierveld and Mario Knezović, while the title music was composed by Nathan "Nate" Brenholdt of Atari.

Patten explained that his fandom for modern ground combat inspired many of the weapons and ground enemies in Iron Soldier, as the tactics and style of urban combat appealed to him. The game uses a 3D engine created by Bittner, originally for a 3D space game planned for the Falcon but rewritten for the Jaguar. Buildings and enemy vehicles such as robots consist of 20 and 200 polygons respectively, while object detail is disabled when the player moves beyond a certain distance to keep the frame rate at 30 frames per second. Rosocha found the Jaguar hardware to be complicated but enjoyable because it had no real operating system, allowing direct control with it. Production of the game lasted ten months and development was completed in under a year.

Release
Iron Soldier was first showcased at the 1994 Summer Consumer Electronics Show. It was planned to feature online multiplayer via Phylon, Inc.'s Jaguar Voice/Data Communicator. However, the modem was delayed and later canceled in 1995, thus the game was released without online support. Atari Corporation first published it for Atari Jaguar in North America on December 22, 1994. To promote the game, Atari produced a television commercial that aired throughout 1995. A European release followed in January 1995 and it was distributed in France by Accord. Mumin Corporation published the game in Japan on March 24, 1995. In 1996, the game's trademark was abandoned. In 2006, AtariAge user "Gusbucket13" released an early prototype under the name Iron Soldier Beta.

Reception
Iron Soldier received generally favorable reception from critics. GamePro's Manny LaMancha, while acknowledging that the game's controls are complicated, maintained that they do not take long to master. He also praised the polygonal graphics and its simple but intense gameplay. GameFan's Dave Halverson and Nicholas Dean Des Barres, while criticizing the lack of texture mapping, said the polygonal visuals have considerable impact. They applauded the gameplay for its variety, challenge, and addictiveness. Later in 1995, GameFan awarded it "Best Simulation Game" on the Atari Jaguar and "Simulation Game of the Year" in their third Megawards edition. ST Format named it one of the ten best games for the Jaguar.

GamesMaster's Les Ellis lauded the game's detailed polygon graphics, soundscapes, near-perfect gameplay, and fully destructible environment. Atari Gaming Headquarters' Keita Iida said that the game's sense of realism was quite refreshing and commended Eclipse Software Design for prioritizing action and smooth frame rate over graphical detail. Electronic Games' John Wesley Hardin thought the game was very fun, highlighting the destructible environment as one of its graphical strengths and audio department. Game Zero Magazine's Bryan Carter labelled it the best mech simulator for a home console and praised its play controls, story, and smooth graphics, but noted the lack of texture mapping.

Ultimate Future Games called Iron Soldier a minor masterpiece, citing its engaging gameplay and impressive graphics, but found it slow at times. Game Players considered it one of the best Jaguar games, praising its audiovisual department but criticizing the lack of texture mapping and mission variety. Atari World's Iain Laskey praised the game's visuals for its sense of three-dimensionality, soundscapes, and fun gameplay, but criticized the lack of additional missions. Edge commented positively on the game's variety of missions and enemies, as well as the Amiga-style gameplay and visuals.

Computer and Video Games' Gary Lord and Mark Patterson found it passable but unimpressive compared to Metal Head (1994) in terms of gameplay and visuals. They remarked that the control method is far from intuitive, movement is unresponsive at times, and missions are often unclear as to how the objective should be completed. Games World gave positive remarks to the polygonal graphics, challenging missions and free-roaming environment, but ultimately felt the game was too limited. Electronic Gaming Monthly's Mike Weigand said that the controls are difficult to get used to, but praised the polygon visuals and the ability to choose which stage to play. VideoGames' Jim Loftus initially found the game irritating due to the controls, but noted that changing the settings made it enjoyable and commended its audiovisual presentation. Next Generation's brief review assessed it as "just plain, good old-fashioned destruction". According to internal documentation from Atari Corporation, the game had sold 21,240 copies by April 1, 1995.

Retrospective coverage
Retrospective commentary for Iron Soldier has been equally favorable, being celebrated as one of the best Jaguar games. The Atari Times' Gregory D. George praised the game's colorful graphics, smooth frame rate, soundscapes, and addictive gameplay. However, he criticized the lack of texture mapping and noted that the controls can be complicated but easy to get used to. AllGame's Kyle Knight lauded the game for having some of the best visuals on the Jaguar. He also commended its intense gameplay, complex yet intuitive control scheme, and replay value, but expressed disappointment regarding the audio design. Retro Gamer felt that the game showed off the Jaguar's capabilities, while PCMag proclaimed that "Few Jaguar games pull off polygonal 3D graphics as well as Iron Soldier".

Legacy
Following the release of Iron Soldier, Atari Corporation requested a sequel on Atari Jaguar CD and was announced by Eclipse Software Design in 1995. However, between 1995 and 1996, Atari laid off key staff, which included the departure of Sean Patten, and stopped releasing Atari Jaguar titles. Iron Soldier 2 was completed and sub-licensed by Atari to Telegames, and was released in 1997 after the Jaguar was discontinued. A third entry, Iron Soldier 3, was developed in parallel and released for PlayStation and Nuon. In 2009, former Eclipse staff member Dan Hericks showed off a puzzle game project based on the Iron Soldier series for Atari Lynx at E-JagFest, an event dedicated to the Jaguar scene.