I've gotten hooked on Toy Soldiers, an xbox live arcade exclusive WWI trench defence game. I'm very surprised I liked it - I don't like tower defence games, don't care for the setting, and completely distrust any game which bases itself around toys thanks to 99% of such games being dreadful. By the end of the demo I knew I had to buy it.

Each level takes place inside one of those old fashioned toy boxes where you open up the lid to find a scale model of a battlefield to arrange your soldiers on, complete with buildings, trenches and sandbags. If you swing the camera to the right angle you can see the 1920's decorated room outside of the box. You need to prevent the enemy from reaching your base. Each level has a set variety of emplacements and they come in two flavours: large (can take anything) and small (machine guns, chemical, mortar only). You can also lay down barbed wire. The soldiers themselves are fairly detailed reproductions of period units. The attacks come in waves and you always have a vague idea of what type of enemy that wave will consist of; the indicator only shows the predominant unit type though, and most waves will contain a mix of cavalry, vehicles, planes, infantry and/or elite infantry. Each attack starts with a flare being launched, the siren going off and the enemy swarming out from their trenches or driving down a road onto the field. Every few levels the final wave contains a boss as the enemy gathers enough pocket money to throw something like a giant (clockwork powered, natch) tank or a zeppelin at you.

You can fly fighters and bombers and drive tanks on levels where they are available, and take personal control over any of the fixed emplacements at any time. Yes, that means you can hop in your Sopworth to take on the Red Baron, peer down the scope of a sniper rifle or man a machine gun as the hordes go over the top. Units can be upgraded on the fly and gain different abilities. A level 1 machine gun can put out a stream of lead and is the most effective against basic infantry. A level 2 needs to reload much more frequently but fires a larger calibre of bullet which is more effective against cavalry. A level 3 machine gun gains minor effectiveness against vehicles. Units can be repaired when damaged or sold if you want to use the emplacement for something else.

You initially play as the British during the fairly lengthy original campaign. Once that's completed you open up campaign+ where you play as the Germans. There's also a survival mode, and 4 difficulty levels. Levels can be replayed at any time once you have unlocked them, and you will be able to use any unit you have gained from the campaign so it's possible to take advanced gear into the earlier levels for a better score and some payback. There's local and internet multiplayer if you're into that. There's a bundle of pointless yet fun doodads to unlock by fulfilling bonus objectives in each mission.

It's a polished production oozing attention to detail. There's period songs, and wobbly old grainy movies with the classic silent movie style border and subtitles. All loading screens are designed to look like the box of classic toy solider sets. Historical quotes are scattered here and there. The visuals are excellent for a downloadable game.