Toy Soldiers has earned a spot as one of the greatest LIVE Arcade titles in my personal library. Naturally, I’ve been looking forward to “Invasion!” since the day it was announced. Does the slight deviation from the typical WWI aspect fare well in this final DLC add-on? Keep reading…
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Chivalrous Knights, antique Bothell Fire Trucks, powerful Space Tanks, cunning Spacemen Infantry, and dodgy Flying Saucers! It’s an all new experience to see any of these new enemies in Toy Soldiers, but the concept remains the same. The “Invasion!” DLC includes three new single player levels featuring the new enemies, yet set in the original map style, and each of the maps range from the small to medium size which helps to keep in control of the battle. Following suit with the “Kaiser’s Battle” DLC, you’ll also have three new achievements to earn!
“When Toys Collide” is the smallest of the set, and it’s also the most basic setup. You’ve got the high ground advantage, and your toy box is situated behind you. Also, the map features nine tower placement points and the use of a P-51 Mustang fighter plane – a more than worthy arsenal to hold your ground. This map will heavily lean towards aerial battles so AA guns are a big part of the battle, cutting down on your work, but you’ll need to be in the skies to help out, notably on the tougher difficulty levels. Your plane has a short respawn time of 10 seconds, so even if you get shot down or crash, you’ll be in the sky again in no time at all. It’s a quick-paced intense battle, and one well worth fighting.
The next map, “Not of This Toy Box” is a slightly larger map featuring nine tower placement points, a sniper tower, and two methodically placed T-17 Space Tanks. Your toy box sits in a far corner which is actually helpful if you build your defenses in that small area. Towers can also be placed in the mid-sections of this map and act as a first line of defense to thin out enemy waves. You’ll primary battle ground-based enemies and this is reflected by the allowable tower spots. Your T-17 tanks are quite useful for destroying enemy tanks, though they’re quite slow and the respawn time is a lengthy 60 seconds – and during a war, that’s too long, so choose the best times to use them and place them well. Once again, it’s relatively basic map, though enemy forces can overwhelm you if you don’t set up your defenses in the proper order, so pay attention and you’ll survive this battle.
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Finally, we come to the final map to be seen in Toy Soldiers – “Revenge of Toyzilla”. Featuring ten tower placement possibilities, a sniper tower, plus a Gotha Bomber plane and the P-51 Mustang, this map is sure to be a challenge. Your toy box is placed directly in a corner, but most of your towers are also nearby, forcing you to let enemies close to their goal, and hoping you’re dug in well to survive their attacks. Two towers are initially occupied by enemy mortars, so you should take them out quickly as their locations are in a key area to inflict heavy damage on their forces. You’ll have to battle a mix of ground and aerial forces in this map and you’ll fight through a lengthy continuous rush which adds to the difficulty of this map.
The final challenge lies with “Toyzilla” also known as “RoboBob” who invades on the final wave of the map. One minor issue that I have – why is called “Toyzilla” when he’s not in the form of a lizard toy? That bothers me just a slight bit. On a more serious note, this boss won’t be an easy battle – he moves quickly, and you’ve got some quick changes to make with your tower setup. Long-range cannons are your best line of defense, but due to limited placement areas, you’ve likely got most occupied by anti-aircraft towers. You’ll need to make some quick sales and upgrades to bring yourself up to speed, and then take control of your bomber. “Toyzilla” can take a lot of damage, and you’ll get your hopes up when his health is low, but naturally it will auto-replenish and you’ll be fighting to stop him some destroying your toy box. We wish you the best of luck!
Well folks, that’s it! The story of Toy Soldiers is finally over…or is it? Whether we see a sequel or not, this DLC ends our experience on a positive note and it’s well worth checking out. The maps are pretty straightforward, the new enemies are entertaining, and as always, the gameplay is extremely fun. For the price of 400 :MSPoints: you can complete your Toy Soldiers collection, and Toy Soldiers’ “Invasion!” is a memorable experience!
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