Launching Into the Solo Dexterity Genre with Iron Forest
Flick and launch mechs in a clever dexterity match featuring the Animal Clans and Iron Force across the missions of Iron Forest.
I tend to steer clear of any solo games that involve dexterity, but when Iron Forest arrived, I had a fantastic time trying it out with my husband! And surprisingly, it included a solo mode in the back of the rulebook. So everything was quickly transported over to my solo table so I could see what this might entail… And if I had any skills whatsoever. Ha ha!
Game Overview
Game Name: Iron Forest
Publication Year: 2024
Designer: Brian Gomez
Artist: Reinis Pētersons
Publisher: Brain Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Different missions offer parameters and objectives as mech teams battle each other. Flicking them through doors or at opposing mechs provides lots of fun! However, this is a two-story play area… Launching mechs creates exciting chaos in this silly and fun dexterity game!
First Play
January 1, 2025
Complexity
2
Latest Play
January 2, 2025
Expansions
2
Setup Time
10 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
4
Play Time
20 Minutes
High Score
N/A
Game Area
44" x 32"
Low Score
N/A
Two-Story Play Space
Whoa! This one certainly has a unique table presence. Setting this up actually wasn’t as bad as I expected, and it’s quite sturdy. Nothing collapsed or detached itself!
And that was even when I carried the whole thing from one room to another. The cardboard will still likely wear over time, but the quality is better than expected.
So fun! The idea is simple, and I started off with the easiest mission of all to simply pick up objective markers.
My mechs had to travel through marked doors or holes before the end of 2 rounds in order to win. Wait… Holes?!
The Best Component
A flicking mechanic is at the forefront of this experience, which simply involves hitting or bopping a mech from one place to another. But then there’s this awesome launcher!
In order to reach the top level, mechs in the outer boxes of the bottom tier can fly through the air. And what fun!
The best part is that the second story includes holes to move back down. In some very silly moments, a mech might fly up to the top, only to fall right back down again.
Did I launch a mech outside of the play area once? Whoops! This thing takes a little skill to operate. Ha ha!
Simple Solo Mode
I honestly didn’t think there would be a solo mode with the way this plays out as a very active battle. Yet I found a short section that made it pretty easy to operate.
And it worked amazingly well! For this mission, the opposing mechs basically guarded or moved to boxes with objective markers. Which actually was strategic…
I could keep them distracted while I picked up the other objective markers, then risk getting attacked.
No flicking was done for the opposing team, and although their attacks were probable, they weren’t guaranteed hits.
Fantastic Artwork
I had my pick of the Animal Clans or Iron Force. All of the mechs were excellent, but I fell in love with Bubo! Such a great assortment of artwork across the characters.
Turns are simple: A card is drawn to show which mech to either flick or launch. Then, this is repeated before the solo opponent does the same thing. Very easy to do!
Yet there are power-up cards to provide unique one-time abilities, and it isn’t just about going wherever.
Since this was the first mission, my goal was to mostly get the hang of the dexterity elements. No skills over here!
Trying Out the Unexpected Sort of Solo Game
My previous experience with anything related to dexterity has often been mired in frustration and annoyance, courtesy of my lack of skills. Ha! So I went into this one expecting some low-stakes fun, and that’s what I found. I gave myself a few free re-activations when I failed spectacularly, which still felt like it was in the spirit of the game: Silly fun!
Although I always say that I learn more and more about my preferences, it’s still nice to go outside of my comfort zone now and then. This one didn’t suddenly switch me over to loving dexterity games. I don’t plan to expand into any others, but I can still appreciate what’s going on with the genre. And now I have very low-level flicking skills. Ha ha!
A Perfect Attack
Collecting the objective markers was my main goal here, as that was how I would achieve victory. But hitting an opposing mech twice gave me another power-up card.
And so it was that BBIT flew up to the top level to roll through a doorway and land in a perfect hit. No question this was a successful attack! Expert launcher aim!
Actually, a lot of my launches were just up to chance, which was quite fun. I loved seeing what happened.
Yet flicking mechs through the lower level was also pretty great… I even rolled through multiple boxes once!
Celebrating Victory
As much as I thought I knew what I was doing, I still lost during my first outing. Time ran out and I still had an objective marker on the board. Immediate loss!
So I reset everything. When the play area is constructed, setup takes a couple of minutes and is very quick. Easy enough to get back into trying out this mission again.
It was the very last activation, and I thought I lost. But with the best move, BUBO fell through a hole and won!
There was a celebration and I was quite pleased with myself, and the game. Tons of silly fun with this one!
Session Overview
Play Number: 1 & 2
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Establishing a Network Mission
Outcome: 1 Win & 1 Loss
It was a power-up card that helped me out. SPIKE launched into the upper area, and I thought it was over… But a short range message was all I needed to activate BUBO in the same box! The solo mode worked quite well, and I have a bunch of other missions to attempt. I don’t know if this is one I would pick up just to play solo, yet it brought me a lot of joy. So glad I gave it a… Launch? Ha!
%
1 Play
Affordability
Price & Value
6
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
8
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
8
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
6
+ Pros (Positives)
- Each turn presents an opportunity for a good deal of silly fun with the unexpected way mechs roll or land.
- Although it’s a very lightweight game, there are still some important and thoughtful decisions to make.
- The solo mode is simple to run, and it makes sense in a way that allows for additional strategic planning.
- Supports help create a very sturdy play area, and the quality is pretty excellent considering what the game entails.
- Power-up cards provide exciting opportunities to take advantage of situations and plan ahead for future turns.
- Mechs can be knocked out and removed from play, yet they respawn and activate so they’re not gone for long.
– Cons (Negatives)
- Flicking mechs takes some skill that can be frustrating to develop, as there can be a lot of whiffs or wall crashes.
- Some of the power-up cards aren’t suited to solo, and they can prove to be disappointing to draw unless removed.
- Although space is saved by going vertical, the rest of the components spread out a bit and require a large table.
- Reaching some of the boxes to get the right angle is tricky, and may require constantly rotating the entire board.
Victory Conditions
Complete the Objective
- Overall Goal Progress 100%
Goals and Milestones
Complete the Data Mine mission.
Complete the Establishing a Network mission.
Complete the Seismic Activity mission.
Continue the Conversation
What do you think of Iron Forest? Are there any other dexterity or flicking solo games you enjoy? I don’t think the genre is one that I would normally lean towards, but this was a wonderful experience! The play area is still set up, and I do believe I’ll be attempting some more missions before I pack things up. Just love these silly bits of fun sometimes!
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