Parent's Guide: Iron Sky: Invasion - Age rating, mature content and difficulty

Iron Sky: Invasion is a space simulator in the vein of games like Wing Commander, X-Wing, Elite and iOS game Galaxy on Fire. Based on the cheesy film of the same name, the game tells the tale of a Nazi invasion from outer space, where a few remnants of the Third Reich went and camped out on the moon at the end of the second world war, choosing to bide their time, as they wait for the time to strike. Seemingly, that time is now, and it's up to you to repel their invasion almost single-handedly.

Putting you behind the controls of a number of country-themed ships, from the Australian Dundee to the British Spitfire, it's up to you to scuttle around the section of space between the Earth and the Moon as you try to stop any Nazis slipping past. And you've got quite the task on your hand. With dozens of groups of ships on a collision course with Earth, your child will have to make good use of their map, as they do their best to take out each group of ships before they reach the Earth - all whilst managing their mission objectives at the same time. Whether they're escorting a reformed Nazi to the moon, or reactivating Russian spy satellites, they'll need to keep one eye on the progress of the Nazi fleet, and one eye on their objectives, in something of a balancing act.

While it may be rather tongue in cheek, younger players may struggle to get to grips with Iron Sky Invasion initially, as there isn't all that much of a tutorial, and once you get going, there's a heck of a lot to take in. Balancing defending the Earth with completing your mission objectives is a challenging task, and with very little downtime in-between waves, keeping on top of everything a tall order. As you have a selection of ships to choose from, with each being more suited to taking down a certain variety of Nazi ship, you're expected to dock at a nearby space station to change, or upgrade your craft - but it's hard to find chance due to the unrelenting pace. While letting the odd Nazi slip by doesn't actually seem to affect things to much, with so much to think about and keep an eye on, it may all feel a bit overwhelming for younger players - although older ones should be fine, especially if they're a fan of other, similar games.

As a space sim, there's little in the way of true violence in Iron Sky Invasion - although you'll be blowing up Nazi spacecraft, you're never shown the people inside the ships, and there's no human on human violence, or any of the blood, guts, and gore that goes with it. References to sex are limited to a few flirtatious exchanges between the captain of your ship and a reformed Nazi who he strives to flatter, and never really venture beyond the innocent, while the only thing parents really need to know about is the mild swearing featured in the game. While it never goes beyond words like s***, the swearing is at least fairly regular, most of which comes from the lips of your character in the game as part of the story.

Age Ratings

Format Reviewed: Xbox 360