IronFall Invasion channels the cover-based shooting of Gears of War on the New 3DS

By Jeffrey Van Camp January 15, 2015

I played a lot of games built to support Nintendo’s New 3DS XL handheld, but the most surprising was IronFall Invasion. Made by the three-person team at VDdev, the downloadable game is a full-fledged third-person shooter with dual-stick controls and six-player online play, plus a campaign mode. This is nothing amazing for a console game, but on the 3DS, it’s a fresh idea.

The extra ZL, ZR, and C-Stick on the New 3DS XL are all used to great effect.

The game mostly revolves around killing evil robots, but the cover system is particularly exciting. You can press B to hide behind objects. Sidling, jumping over, or shooting around corners or over cover is also possible — reminiscent of Gears of War.

Controls were tight in our first runthrough and you can customize the sensitivity of the C-Stick as well, if you’re not aiming as fast as you’d like.

IronFall Invasion doesn’t yet have a release date or price, but it should hit the eShop in “early 2015” and is best played on the New Nintendo 3DS XL. Check out our firsthand look.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Jeffrey Van Camp

Former Digital Trends Contributor

As DT's Deputy Editor, Jeff helps oversee editorial operations at Digital Trends. Previously, he ran the site's…

Gaming

Nintendo 2DS XL vs. Nintendo 3DS XL

new nintendo 2ds xl review 13703

Although the Nintendo Switch poses as a great portable console and reigns supreme in popularity, Nintendo isn't ready to let their handheld consoles fall to the side. Since the Switch's release, the 3DS has gotten a plethora of great games, including Metroid: Samus Returns, WarioWare Gold, Luigi's Mansion,Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions, and Hey! Pikmin.

It wasn't a total surprise when Nintendo announced a new 3DS to add to their family of portable consoles. The Nintendo 2DS XL was announced just months after the initial release of the Switch. Additionally, Nintendo continued to provide support for its 3DS platform. Those of us who are in love with the Nintendo handheld consoles have a chance to continue to pick up these systems and find new games to explore.

Gaming

The most common Nintendo 3DS problems, and how to fix them

common nintendo 3ds problems and how to fix them d72661797c228a53b550835a16f6ff6ed709e7e8

The 3DS is one of the best gaming consoles around, with a great library built up after nearly 10 years in circulation. But the system has also run into its fair share of technical hiccups over the years. There’s nothing worse than pulling out your favorite 3DS games, only to find the system doesn't work as expected, particularly when you aren't sure how to fix them.

Below, we’ve compiled a list of known technical issues 3DS owners have been dealing with, along with some steps you can take to fix or prevent them. Some of these only apply to a particular version of the system -- the original 3DS’ design is substantially different than the New 3DS XL, for instance -- while others are issues that occur across the entire 3DS family.
How to get in touch with Nintendo

Gaming

Nintendo’s 3DS discontinuation marks the end of an era for handheld gaming

Person holding Nintendo 3DS in hands

While yesterday’s PlayStation 5 launch announcement marked an exciting moment for the future of gaming, Nintendo quietly put an end to the era of dedicated, portable gaming devices. The company confirmed that it has discontinued production of the Nintendo 3DS family of handhelds.

On paper, the decision is a no-brainer. The Nintendo Switch is a massive success for the company, bringing the worlds of console and handheld gaming together. While Nintendo maintained its position that the Switch was not a replacement for the 3DS over the years — reiterating that point last year when the Switch Lite launched — it had become increasingly clear that the 3DS was outdated within Nintendo’s new strategy.