Iron Curtain Call
Free demo
Field guide · eight Cold War games compared

Cold War games on PC: 1950s to 1980s shooters and action on Steam

By Ekin, a solo developer in Istanbul, the one person behind Whale Development Studios and Iron Curtain Call. Published 8 November 2026. Every date, price, platform and demo below was checked on the US Steam store and Wikipedia on 8 November 2026; the sources are listed at the end.

Iron Curtain Call in first person: Corporal Punishment fights tin robots beside a Cold War space race rocket in 1965
Iron Curtain Call, a real gameplay frame. A 1965 Space Race and Cold War gone hot, fought by wind up tin robots.
The short answer

Covert 1960s ops, Eastern Bloc concrete and the Cold War gone hot.

Cold War games on Steam split into two camps: historical covert operations set between Moscow, Havana and Vietnam in the 1960s, and alternate history shooters that ask what would have happened if the superpowers had pressed the button or built secret mechanical armies.

For 1960s covert operations, Call of Duty: Black Ops ($39.99) is the quintessential 1960s Cold War first person shooter from Cuba to the Soviet Union, and Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater ($19.99) is the 1964 Soviet jungle espionage classic. For Eastern Bloc atmosphere and alternate Cold War history, HROT ($19.99, free demo) is a retro boomer shooter set in 1986 Socialist Czechoslovakia, Atomic Heart ($59.99, free demo) imagines a 1950s Soviet robotics utopia gone wrong, Wolfenstein: The New Order ($19.99) rewrites the 1960s Space Race under an occupying regime, Iron Storm ($2.99) imagines a 1964 Russo Mongolian war, and Cuban Missile Crisis ($4.99) turns the 1962 standoff into a 1960s nuclear war strategy game.

For Cold War satire, my game Iron Curtain Call (full release 11 March 2027, free demo on Steam now) turns 1965 into a 1930s rubber hose cartoon comedy where humanity ran out of soldiers and handed World War III to a customer service AI and its wind up tin robots. Three of the eight games below had a free demo on Steam on 8 November 2026: Iron Curtain Call, Atomic Heart and HROT.

At a glance

Eight Cold War games on Steam, by year and angle.

Checked on the US Steam store and Wikipedia on 8 November 2026. Prices are US list prices before any sale. My game first, then the covert 1960s classics, then the alternate history and Eastern Bloc shooters.
GameCold War year and settingHow it playsFree demo on SteamUS priceOut
Iron Curtain CallMy gameAn alternate 1965 where the Iron Curtain went hot and World War III is fought by wind up tin robotsFast single player 1930s cartoon noir FPS with dash, grapple, parry and melee healing; free demo on SteamYes, free: Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutesNot priced yet11 March 2027Free demo since 28 October 2026
Call of Duty: Black OpsWikipedia: 1961 to 1968 across Cuba, Vorkuta, Baikonur, Vietnam and Laos during the historical Cold WarSingle player cinematic FPS campaign plus multiplayer and ZombiesNo$39.999 November 2010
Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake EaterWikipedia: 1964 in the Soviet jungle of Tselinoyarsk during the Nikita Khrushchev and Leonid Brezhnev transitionSingle player stealth action adventure with camouflage, CQC and boss duels (first released in 2004)No$19.9924 October 2023First released in 2004
Atomic HeartSteam and Wikipedia: an alternate 1955 Soviet Union scientific complex where service and military robots rebelSingle player FPS with firearms, melee blades and a Polymer power glove; free demo on SteamYes, free$59.9920 February 2023
Wolfenstein: The New OrderWikipedia: an alternate 1960s Europe and lunar base where stolen super weapons replaced the Cold War superpowersSingle player story driven FPS with dual wielded rifles, stealth and mechanical enemiesNo$19.9919 May 2014
HROTSteam: 1986 in Socialist Czechoslovakia after a sudden catastrophe near PragueSingle player retro boomer shooter in brown low poly 1990s visuals; free demo on SteamYes, free$19.9916 May 2023
Iron StormSteam and Wikipedia: an alternate 1964 where a Russo Mongolian empire fights a fifty year trench warSingle player first and third person military shooter (first released in 2002)No$2.998 May 2014First released in 2002
Cuban Missile CrisisSteam: an alternate 1962 right after the Cuban standoff escalates into a global nuclear exchangeReal time tactics and turn based strategy across a radioactive 1960s world mapNo$4.9925 March 2015
The games

One by one, which side of the Cold War each game covers.

Every entry below notes the exact Cold War decade, whether the setting is historical or alternate history, and whether a free Steam demo is available. All facts were checked on the US Steam store on 8 November 2026.

Iron Curtain Call

My game

Play it if you want the 1960s Cold War and Space Race turned into a fast 1930s cartoon FPS comedy, and you want a free demo first.

Iron Curtain Call is my game: a single player cartoon noir first person shooter set in an alternate 1965, year three of World War III. Even the title is a play on the Cold War’s Iron Curtain and a theatre curtain call. Humanity ran out of soldiers, so the war is fought by wind up tin robots commanded by the Supreme Chancellor, a customer service machine that treats global conflict like a support ticket.

Across twelve chapters and twelve bosses, you fight from bombed out European squares and the 6:15 Express to a 1965 Space Race launchpad, armed with weapons named after Cold War bureaucracy and diplomacy (The Diplomat shotgun, The Party Line, The Care Package, The Telegram). Because every enemy is a tin robot, they burst into bolts, springs and scrap with no blood or gore.

The free demo on Steam is Mission 1, Welcome to Rubbleton (about 15 to 20 minutes, ending with Major Disaster), for Windows, macOS and Linux; or play 60 seconds in your browser. The full twelve chapter campaign arrives on 11 March 2027.

Developer and publisher
Whale Development Studios
Out
11 March 2027
Free demo out
28 October 2026
On Steam
Windows and macOS (demo on Windows, macOS and Linux)
US list price
Not priced yet
Demo
Yes, free
Gameplay trailer · 1:00 · Twelve chapters in sixty seconds. YouTube · Video page

Play the free demoPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download

Iron Curtain Call in first person: Corporal Punishment fights tin robots beside a Cold War space race rocket in 1965
Iron Curtain Call, a real gameplay frame. Cold War rockets and wind up tin soldiers in 1965.

Call of Duty: Black Ops

Play it if you want the benchmark historical 1960s Cold War FPS campaign.

Treyarch’s Call of Duty: Black Ops (released 9 November 2010) puts CIA operative Alex Mason in an interrogation chair and flashes back through covert Cold War missions between 1961 and 1968, per Wikipedia: the Bay of Pigs in Cuba, a breakout from the Vorkuta gulag, a Soviet rocket launch at Baikonur and river raids in Vietnam and Laos.

For straight 1960s espionage paranoia, number stations and Cold War weaponry in first person, it remains the most direct blockbuster campaign on Steam.

On Steam at $39.99, for Windows, with no demo on 8 November 2026.

Developer
Treyarch
Publisher
Activision
Released
9 November 2010
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$39.99
Demo
None on Steam

Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater

Play it if you want the greatest 1964 Cold War espionage story in games, and do not mind third person stealth.

KONAMI’s Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater (first released in 2004, Master Collection version on Steam since 24 October 2023) drops CIA operative Naked Snake into the Soviet jungle in 1964 to rescue rocket scientist Sokolov and destroy the nuclear armed Shagohod tank, per Wikipedia.

Its entire plot turns on the Cuban Missile Crisis, nuclear deterrence and superpower double agents.

On Steam at $19.99, for Windows, with no demo on 8 November 2026. Third person stealth rather than a first person shooter.

Developer and publisher
KONAMI
Released
24 October 2023
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

Atomic Heart

Play it if you want a 1950s Soviet retro future with giant machines and a free Steam demo.

Mundfish’s Atomic Heart (released 20 February 2023) imagines an alternate 1955 Soviet Union whose floating cities and research complexes run on neural networked robots until Facility 3826 goes dark, per Steam and Wikipedia.

It captures Soviet Cold War posters, architecture and radio music inside a modern single player shooter.

On Steam at $59.99, for Windows, with a free Windows demo on 8 November 2026. See also my Games Like Atomic Heart guide.

Developer
Mundfish
Publisher
Focus Entertainment, 4Divinity and Mundfish
Released
20 February 2023
On Steam
Windows (demo on Windows)
US list price
$59.99
Demo
Yes, free

Wolfenstein: The New Order

Play it if you want a 1960s superpower shooter with secret weapons, a moon base and heavy gunplay.

MachineGames’ Wolfenstein: The New Order (released 19 May 2014) replaces the historical 1960s Cold War with a world where the Nazis won World War II and built concrete megastructures, nuclear submarines and a lunar base by 1960, per Wikipedia.

Even though the regime is different, its 1960s espionage aesthetic, space race chapter and resistance safe houses scratch the same itch.

On Steam at $19.99, for Windows, with no demo on 8 November 2026. See also my Games Like Wolfenstein guide.

Developer
MachineGames
Publisher
Bethesda Softworks
Released
19 May 2014
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$19.99
Demo
None on Steam

HROT

Play it if you want an authentic 1980s Eastern Bloc boomer shooter that runs on almost any PC and has a free demo.

Spytihněv’s HROT (released 16 May 2023) is a single player retro FPS set in 1986 Socialist Czechoslovakia, per Steam. You start in a civil defense shelter beneath a Prague metro station armed with a vz. 52 pistol, a Škorpion submachine gun and a sickle, fighting through concrete Brutalist landmarks and flooded tunnels.

Its dry Eastern Bloc details and Quake inspired software rendering make it one of the most distinctive Cold War indie shooters on Steam.

On Steam at $19.99, for Windows, with a free Windows demo on 8 November 2026.

Developer and publisher
Spytihněv
Released
16 May 2023
On Steam
Windows (demo on Windows)
US list price
$19.99
Demo
Yes, free

Iron Storm

Play it if you want a cheap 2002 shooter about a 1964 East versus West war that never ended.

Iron Storm (first released in 2002, on Steam since 8 May 2014) sets its campaign in 1964 inside a world where the First World War merged straight into a half century war against a Russo Mongolian empire.

It is an older budget title at $2.99 on Steam, built around trenches, bunkers and early 2000s PC shooter design.

On Steam at $2.99, for Windows, with no demo on 8 November 2026.

Developer and publisher
Microids
Released
8 May 2014
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$2.99
Demo
None on Steam

Cuban Missile Crisis

Play it if you want the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis gone hot, even in a strategy game rather than an FPS.

G5 Software’s Cuban Missile Crisis (on Steam since 25 March 2015) asks what would have happened if the October 1962 standoff between the United States and the Soviet Union had ended in nuclear strikes, per Steam.

It is a real time tactics game rather than a first person shooter, included here because so few games on Steam tackle the 1962 crisis directly.

On Steam at $4.99, for Windows, with no demo on 8 November 2026.

Developer
G5 Software
Publisher
Fulqrum Publishing
Released
25 March 2015
On Steam
Windows
US list price
$4.99
Demo
None on Steam
Explore the era

More 1960s and alternate history guides

If it is specifically the decade of the 1960s you want (including crime dramas and 1960s England), read my Video Games Set in the 1960s guide. If you prefer What If timelines across the whole twentieth century, see my Alternate History FPS Games guide.

Or jump straight into an alternate 1965: play 60 seconds of Iron Curtain Call in your browser, with no download.

Questions

Questions players ask

What are the best Cold War FPS games on Steam?

For a historical 1960s Cold War shooter campaign, Call of Duty: Black Ops ($39.99) is the classic pick. For an Eastern Bloc retro boomer shooter set in 1986 Czechoslovakia, HROT ($19.99) has a free demo on Steam. For alternate history Cold War shooters with robots, Atomic Heart ($59.99, 1955 Soviet Union, free demo) and Iron Curtain Call (my game, 1965 World War III cartoon comedy, free demo now, full game 11 March 2027) lead the list.

Which Cold War games on this list have a free demo on Steam?

On 8 November 2026 three games on this page had a free demo on Steam: Iron Curtain Call (Windows, macOS and Linux, plus a 60 second browser trial), Atomic Heart (Windows) and HROT (Windows).

Are there games about the Cold War gone hot (World War III in the 1960s)?

Yes: Iron Curtain Call sets World War III in 1965 and plays it as a 1930s rubber hose cartoon shooter where wind up tin robots fight the war, while Cuban Missile Crisis ($4.99) is a strategy game set after the 1962 standoff turns nuclear.

Which Cold War games on Steam run on a Mac?

On 8 November 2026 Iron Curtain Call was the only game on this list with macOS support on Steam (both its free Mission 1 demo and the full game due 11 March 2027); the other seven are Windows only on Steam.

What PC and indie games are coming out in 2027?

More than one page can hold: Steam shows a lot of PC and indie games with a 2027 date, and dates keep moving. What we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026 are the shooters and the Mac action games, in two dated lists: upcoming FPS games and upcoming Mac games. Iron Curtain Call, our own cartoon noir shooter, is due 11 March 2027 on Windows and macOS, and its free demo is on Steam now.

What games release on 11 March 2027?

Among the shooters we checked on Steam on 7 November 2026: Blood of Rations (11 March 2027) and Iron Curtain Call (My game, 11 March 2027). We only checked shooters, so this is not the full set for that day; Steam’s own Coming Soon page has the rest.

What is a good new single player FPS I can play for free right now?

Iron Curtain Call has a free demo on Steam (Mission 1, about 15 to 20 minutes) and a free 60 second browser trial with no download. It is a single player cartoon noir shooter, and it is our game, so weigh that. For other free shooters, our list of free FPS demos on Steam holds the best rated ones.

Sources

Every fact on this page comes from the US Steam store pages of the games and these Wikipedia articles, read on 8 November 2026. Prices and dates change; the store page always has the final word.

  1. Iron Curtain Call, Steam store page
  2. Call of Duty: Black Ops, Steam store page
  3. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Steam store page
  4. Atomic Heart, Steam store page
  5. Wolfenstein: The New Order, Steam store page
  6. HROT, Steam store page
  7. Iron Storm, Steam store page
  8. Cuban Missile Crisis, Steam store page
  9. Cold War, Wikipedia
  10. 1960s, Wikipedia
  11. Call of Duty: Black Ops, Wikipedia
  12. Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Wikipedia
  13. Atomic Heart, Wikipedia
  14. Wolfenstein: The New Order, Wikipedia
  15. Iron Storm (2002 video game), Wikipedia
  16. Alternate history, Wikipedia

1965, World War III, free to try.

Mission 1 of Iron Curtain Call is free on Steam right now, or play 60 seconds in your browser with no download. The full twelve chapter campaign arrives on 11 March 2027.

Play the free demoWishlist and Follow on SteamPlay 60 seconds in your browser, no download

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