Toy Soldiers: War Chest
Overview -
The 'Toy Soldiers' franchise began in 2010 as a temporary Xbox 360 exclusive, and became one of the highest-selling games on the Arcade service. It was revisited the following year with 'Toy Soldiers: Cold War', with both games being published by Microsoft. Series developer Signal Studios has since sold publishing rights to Ubisoft, so 'Toy Soldiers: War Chest' sees the series go multi-platform.
Video Review
'War Chest' has made strides in the series' use of color, if not resolution. Specifically, the endless parade of browns and greens has been expanded, most significantly in Starbright’s army. Playing as Starbright is worth it for the giggles alone, as I peppered enemy formations with bubblegum, shooting stars, and moonbeams. Like a 'Lego' game, this is the kind of combat that doesn’t have any blood or guts - all of the toys break into plastic pieces when defeated. The textures aren't anything to write home about, and the hitboxes are very odd - hitting targets, even with a super high rate of fire minigun, is unreliable. Loading times are excessive, frequently adding up to more than a minute long, especially in multiplayer.
Audio Review
Background music fades away during most of the match, and even when it doesn’t, it’s covered by the endless grinding of the miniguns or the arcadey laserbeams of Phantom’s army. The voice acting is minimal, but adds to the cartoon factor.
Final Thoughts
They don’t make them like they used to, and in the case of 'Toy Soldiers: War Chest', the result is a bland, paid freemium game that falls short of the series' own benchmarks. It is an action/strategy title that doesn't have much of either and can be safely passed over by all but the most forgiving tower defense fans.
