Steel Diver: Sub Wars

Genre: First-Person Shooter

Players: 8 Team Competitive (Local Wireless, Online)

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Review:

Steel Diver: Sub Wars, released on Nintendo 3DS in 2014, is a free-to-play sequel to the launch title Steel Diver, though it plays very differently. Where Steel Diver was a 2D Side-Scrolling Action game with a First-Person Shooting Gallery minigame, Sub Wars expands on that First-Person mode to become a fully-fledged submarine-piloting First-Person Shooter where players operate their submarine in 3D areas hunting down enemies. This game is technically free-to-play, though players will have to spend $10 for the “Premium Version” to unlock all of the game’s single-player levels and features.

The presentation here is overall good, but not spectacular. The 3D sea you’ll be exploring isn’t much to look at, but there are some nice touches like occasional fish swimming around and water dripping off your top screen whenever you surface. This game also reuses the silly voice clips from the original game, and backs everything with a fitting (but forgettable) militaristic soundtrack. It all works well enough, but won’t leave anyone impressed.

Despite the shift in genres, Sub Wars feels like a game that took to heart a lot of the issues I had with the original game. Of course now that you can freely move your submarine in three dimensions, this feels far less shallow than the minigame Sub Wars acts as an expanded version of. The sub’s movements are still fittingly sluggish, but they are no longer so slow that it feels like excruciating seconds pass every time you try to move your sub.

What’s more, this time around the game thankfully gives players the freedom to use more traditional gamepad controls, though players who preferred touchscreen controls still have that option here, and some game functions still require the touchscreen use. However, players who prefer a more traditional (and frankly better) control scheme will find that the only necessary touchscreen elements here do not detract from the gameplay.

As for that gameplay, Steel Diver: Sub Wars is still a somewhat slow-paced and methodical First-Person Shooter, although not without its charms. Navigating your submarine around enemy fire or using your cloaking feature and sonar to play cat-and-mouse with enemies can be a really rewarding experience.

Unfortunately, this game is stifled by a few issues. Firstly, this game is designed as a multiplayer-focused experience, with both local and online multiplayer modes. In theory, this is wonderful providing a truly unique online battleground… except by the time I write this review in 2022, the online lobbies are completely deserted. I suppose if you gather together a group of friends with Nintendo 3DS game systems you can have some fun with this game’s meatiest mode… but that would require a group of friends with Nintendo 3DS systems.

For the majority of the game’s single-player content, you’ll need to spring for the $10 Premium version of the game, and even then you’ll likely find that what’s here won’t keep you occupied for very long. However, this is somewhat forgivable considering $10 isn’t a terribly steep price to pay for some unique and fun gameplay, if a bit niche due to its slow pacing.

In retrospect, I think Steel Diver: Sub Wars is the game that the original Steel Diver should have been. Its gameplay is more in line with what I think players would want out of a submarine game, that gameplay feels more responsive and gives players better control options, its $10 price tag (for the premium version) is more reasonable for the short length than the full-priced original game, and the multiplayer functionality is wonderful… or at least it could have been if it were available to everyone at launch. If a submarine game on Nintendo 3DS sounds appealing to you, then Steel Diver: Sub Wars will not disappoint… well, other than the abandoned online lobbies.

tl;dr – Steel Diver: Sub Wars is a First-Person Shooter where players control a submarine in slow-paced and methodical cat-and mouse fights with enemies. This is the game the original Steel Diver should have been, although even then its slow pace is not going to be for everyone. Also, being a multiplayer-focused game with empty online lobbies really limits its appeal. Still, at $10 for the full version, this game largely succeeds at what it’s trying to do, and it’s still worth a look for anyone who finds the game’s premise appealing.

Grade: B-

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