VD-Dev shares first details for its Gears of War-styled 3DS shooter, IronFall

IronFall is an ambitious third-person shooter from developer VD-Dev – the same team behind C.O.P. The Recruit (fully open world on the DS) and the V-Rally Game Boy titles. Even though the studio has shared just one off-screen image thus far, comparisons have already been made to a well-known Xbox franchise.

The 3DS eShop title “will offer gameplay like a Gears of War game, so if you like Gears of War, IronFall is a game for you,” VD-Dev co-founder Fernando Velez says. But in order to keep things fresh, mini-games and other elements will be included.

VD-Dev is keeping quiet on most of IronFall’s specific gameplay features for now. However, Velez did confirm that you’ll need to “take cover in several ways if you want to stay alive.” He adds, “We will also be using the bottom screen of the 3DS… DS means dual screen, so sometimes the action will also take place on both screens”.

As far as the story is concerned, IronFall is set in some sort of near future. In outer space, where trouble is stirring about, players will fight against currently-unknown invaders.

Those who are concerned about controlling a shooter on the 3DS have nothing to fear. Several options will be included in IronFall, including one method that takes advantage of the touchscreen. VD-Dev has also confirmed support for the Circle Pad Pro.

IronFall is made possible thanks to the studio’s “Big Bang Engine”. According to Velez, the tech was “programmed from scratch and is optimized for the Nintendo 3DS.” Several months were required in order to complete the engine.

What’s particularly impressive about IronFall is how VD-Dev is managing to pull everything off with an incredibly small team. When development began two years ago, just two staffers were working on the project. Watch_Dogs technical lead Frederic Zimmer joined the team only recently.

IronFall does sound like the quintessential 3DS shooter at this point. With a dearth of similar titles on Nintendo’s handheld, the game will fill the empty genre quite well. Although mutliplayer won’t be supported (at least not initially, this may change if the title is a success), it should definitely be on your radar – especially given VD-Dev’s technical pedigree.

So when can you get your hands on IronFall? There’s no set date just yet, but it’s tentatively scheduled to launch in spring 2014.

Check back this weekend for a full interview with VD-Dev about IronFall. Also, be on the lookout for the game’s debut trailer later this month.