Review Fix Exclusive: Inside ‘Iron Tides’

Review Fix chats with Carina Kom, Co-founder and Executive Producer of Crash Wave Games, who discusses the creation of the nifty new Steam title, Iron Tides.


For More on the Game, Click Here. 

Review Fix: How was this game born?

Carina Kom: Iron Tides was born from an early prototype made from paper and dice. After building the prototype, we tested our initial game mechanics with help from board game fans at our local Magic the Gathering store.

Review Fix: What was development like?

Kom: It’s been exactly how we imagined it should be – tumultuous and rewarding. We are foremost committed to quality, having play tested our game from paper concept to launching onto Steam. We know there is room to improve, and therefore our process is to: create > examine > re-iterate.


Review Fix: What makes this game special?

Kom: We’re stretching the rules to get a uniquely satisfying experience that comes in a small package. Iron Tides is a quick turn-based game that feels tactile and rewarding. This is done by taking the pacing of a board game (like chess) and incrementally challenging the rule set with a special set of mechanics.


Review Fix: What games influenced this one the most?

Kom: Darkest Dungeon and FTL: Faster Than Light were huge influencing factors.

Review Fix: As an indie studio, what do you think you guys do differently than the big studios?

Kom: We work independently, and are friends who happen to be professionals. We have a flat structure which means everybody has an equal opinion. However, we expect every new concept to be challenged and tested so that we ensure tightly designed games.

Review Fix: Any fun stories or wild moments during development?

Kom: In order to get the best testers available to us, we’ve traveled to San Francisco, Texas and locally across Vancouver. This means we’ve had the chance to work with studios like Capcom, East Side Games and many more. Our wildest story takes place in San Francisco on a dance floor – but that’s a different story.

Review Fix: How does this game disrupt the video game landscape?

Kom: This game is where casual gamers meet a hardcore experience. Roguelike games are under scrutiny for RNG mechanics and permadeath, which is a tough nut to crack as casual gamers want an easy to play experience. With Iron Tides, we are breaking expectations in a game that is intuitive and simple to play, combining it with complexity and depth.


Review Fix: Who will enjoy this game the most?

Kom: Players of all ages are most likely to enjoy this game, however, we are specifically looking for mature gamers interested in strategy.


Review Fix: How do you want this game to be remembered?


Kom: We want Iron Tides to be remembered as: “A colourful strategy game with Vikings and permadeath.”

Review Fix: What are your goals for the game?

Kom: We want to expand on what we know and grow our team. We want to do this because we want to manage our community and produce a fully playable game + DLC with their input as our guidance.


Review Fix: What’s next?

Kom: We’re going to remain as Crash Wave Games until we produce our next game which may be a joint venture or an entirely new IP. We’d like to welcome new community members to our discussions board and continue making great games.