Novelty is thy name
IRON HARVEST
Yes, it has indeed been three years since Iron Harvest’s first Alpha test stomped into town, and although a lot of things can change within three years, I’m happy to say that my overall stellar opinion of the game isn’t one of them.
Iron Harvest is a real-time strategy game that’s loosely based on the Soviet-Polish war of 19191920. Chronologically, the in-game conflict takes place just after that period within a fictional version of Europe, and it features regionally-inspired countries like Polania, Saxony and Rusviet. However, it isn’t merely a simple rehash of games like Company of Heroes - what sets it apart from the acclaimed RTS great, at least aesthetically is the introduction of mechs into the formula, though of course they aren’t as advanced as the ones you might see in Starcraft or Command & Conquer.
Nevertheless, this seemingly-awkward concoction of the 1920s with weaponised dieselpunk-inspired robots actually works in the game’s favour, providing a dash of novelty that makes it instantly distinguishable from your everyday historical RTS.
The overarching story of Iron Harvest is split into three different campaigns, with players stepping into the shoes of nine different protagonists along the way.
Of course,.there is always the option of purchasing the two available DLCs, Rusviet Revolution and Operation Eagle so you can enjoy “the full package”, though the latter is arguably more of a “sequel” than an expansion of the central narrative, and it even gives you access to the US-inspired faction of Usonia.
Much like other games in the RTS genre, each of the campaigns are further split into smaller, bite-sized sections, which players can hop into and out of at their leisure. Building on this point of flexibility, there’s actually a great deal of it even within the missions themselves, as players aren’t given preset routes to take to their various objectives. There’s usually more than one approach if you study the terrain carefully, and while your army marches towards the enemy, you should take a minute to admire the environment too, as the aesthetics are almost as impressive as the gameplay quirks.
Iron Harvest encourages players to be strategically versatile and really think
through their game plan for themselves, a point that is often glazed over in other titles in favour of flashy units or complex tech trees. I really enjoyed this above-average degree of strategic independence that players are given here.
One of the ways that the game deviates from the usual RTS point-and-click formula is when it comes to unit movement. For example, while available cover isn’t explicitly marked on-screen, the game allows you to “arrange” your units behind cover such that they make the best use of it.
Now, there are two sides to this manoeuvrability coin, and positioning is just as crucial for offense as it is for defense. In fact, I daresay the true beauty of Iron Harvest’s positioning system really shines through when you’re on the offensive. For instance, attacking the enemy’s mechs from specific directions (usually the rear) allows your units to deal more damage to them, and the reverse applies when you’re attacking them headon. It’s another facet of warfare that other games often don’t take into account.
Sadly, some matches can last immensely (and sometimes uncomfortably) long, and the reason for this is actually a fairly
STOMPING ENEMIES WITH DIESELPUNK WAR MACHINES WITH THE ODD SPARK OF TACTICAL INGENUITY.
simple one - many of the mechs move so darn slowly.
Although I won’t deny that constructing and using them are generally enjoyable, higher-tier mechs are sometimes impractical. In exchange for near-overwhelming power, these can be so sluggish and bulky that by the time they manage to make their way to the frontlines, all of the metaphorical cows would already be at home watching TV.
Speaking of, a couple of the more advanced mechs are quite simply too overpowered. Needless to say, this means that many late-game engagements usually end up reverting to the rock-paper-scissors format commonly seen in other RTS games, forcing players to default to conventional longterm strategies like “turtling”.
As such, given that the more “creative” strategies only tend to be viable in the early to mid-game.
Despite this otherwise paradoxical flaw in the gameplay structure, I think King Art Games has managed to nail down most of the important stuff. When the game “works”, it does so exceedingly and excitingly well, which means that a few quick tweaks and unit adjustments from the developers might just be what the doctor ordered.