Review - Iron Meat

Developer: Ivan Valeryevich Suvorov

Publisher: Retroware

Available on: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch and PC

Reviewed on: PlayStation 5

The run-and-gun shooter has been around for decades. Games like Rush'n'Attack and Contra cemented the genre into the annals of game history. These titles, along with beat 'em ups, are known for their instant action satisfaction, as well as their presentation. From Cybernator to Contra: Operation Galuga, there are a plethora of similar games that have spanned decades.

Making a game isn’t easy, and sometimes, to make something very special you need to take the time and patience to make it. I remember seeing Iron Meat years ago at Toomanygames when it was a simple demo with two small levels. Now, after many years in the pipe, Retroware games and Ivan Valeryevich Suvorov introduce Iron Meat to the world. The result is an excellent run-and-gun action shooter and the best run-and-gun since Contra. 

Moon’s haunted

On a secretive base on the moon, an experiment takes place. An interdimensional being of great power merges with a human scientist. The creature infects anything and everything. People, cars, trucks, trains, all become biological monstrosities upon contact. The infection spreads to Earth, and now it’s up to a lone soldier, or a pair, to defeat this vile enemy and send it back to where it came from. 

Iron meat is visceral, filled with punch and attitude. Mutant monsters are everywhere. Helicopters fall to the ground and explode in the woods. Carnage and death are everywhere. Whatever hasn’t been turned into a monster awaits the inevitable. It’s a losing battle and the battlefield is a growing bio-mass of pulsating red flesh. It seems victory is foolish, but for one soldier, the fight ain’t done until it's done. Charging into the madness with a heavy metal soundtrack, Iron Meat almost literally kicks you in the butt to get out there and go get some!

Get that Meat

Already, Iron Meat is an achievement. Give the player power, size them up, and then unleash them on those bleeping enemies. It's remarkable feedback that is the sign of a great action game. Players need to feel they have great power but are facing a tremendous enemy that cannot be beaten. It’s a euphoric sensation, doubled by the fact that Iron Meat can be played with another player. 

Iron Meat is a run-and-gun shooter, and anyone who has ever played Contra or the more recent Contra; Operation Galuga, will feel right at home with the game and the setting. Players run for their lives, shooting literally everything across their paths. The occasional weapon pick-up will drop from small drones or enemies. Players carry two weapons at a time and they can be upgradeable if they choose the same pickup twice. Additionally, Iron Meat is all about bragging rights and high scores. Those who are careful but aggressive can rack up those points easily.

Beat the alien meat 

There are many games like Contra and Iron Meat, but Iron Meat does a few things differently that make it special. For starters, the enemy, while alien, is extremely deadly and unique. Where most games feature aliens or some rival army, this bio menace is everywhere and infects absolutely everything. This makes for some truly imaginative boss fights that will not be easy to take down. Mutant monster tanks, monster trains, and monster utility vehicles are just a sampling of the horrors players encounter in the game. 

Even the regular enemies are going to put up a challenge. Some mindlessly run toward the player but many others put up a challenge. Some enemies are hard to shoot, being they are skull-faced tentacles. Others are worms crawling out of ducts and armed mutant humans that can take good aim at players. In terms of difficulty, Iron Meat won’t break your back and crush your spirits like Contra III: The Alien Wars but this is certainly no pushover. The enemy fights and fights hard. 

Compete with the meat

An exciting aspect of Iron Meat is how it refines difficulty. Normal difficulty gives players 15 lives. When Game Over hits, and it will happen often, the game does put players at the beginning of the level instead of back to the beginning of the game. While it may be a bit crushing to make it to the end just to die, it does give players the opportunity to go through the level and get better. I found myself feeling achievement in Level 4 in particular. I died mere steps from the ending boss but I found myself learning and avoiding mistakes to get there. 

Shooting in Iron Meat is euphoric and exciting. Each weapon hits with a hard, meaty punch like I had big meaty claws. Destroying enemies and cleaning up the filth never gets old. With something like biomass, everything is an enemy, which makes clearing out levels a blast! MAchine lasers, triple plasma cannons, and even cannonball shells make up the arsenal in Iron Meat. There are a few breaks in the gameplay as well, such as using a flying vehicle to get by and take down some truly gnarly enemies. 

Medium Well

There is a lot to like here, but even Iron Meat is a bit undercooked in some spots. Iron Meat consists of 8 levels. Regrettably, there aren’t any vehicle-focused levels, like using a bike or mech. Another Contra-like, Blazing Chrome, featured vehicles and perspective shifts in its gameplay. Seeing this in Iron Meat would have been even more exciting. There could have been more weapon variety also. 

Additionally, I can’t help but feel that more levels could have been added. There is such a creative amount of ideas that could be further implemented into Iron Meat. I could imagine monster 747s and monster satellite dishes. There is a reason to keep replaying, which is to unlock all the different skins players can use in the game.

Iron Meat is Iron Awesome

It’s a labor of love and it’s shown across the screen. Ivan really enjoyed playing Contra and other games in this genre growing up, and when the time came to make a game, he went for it. Every pixel and effect and every single monster in Iron Meat is a love letter to the genre, to games, and to the experiences he was fortunate to have. That kind of enthusiasm and dedication is something that is both seen and felt with Iron Meat. 

Iron Meat is a superb run-and-gun. A pulping, disgusting enemy is met with gameplay with combines ferocious firepower and an excellent soundtrack. While it may be a bit short on content, the feeling it creates is immeasurable and I am sure many players will feel the same when they dig into the meat of Iron Meat.

IRON MEAT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

A review code for Iron Meat was provided for the purposes of this review thanks to Retroware.