New Details Reveal Iron Nest's Deep Progression: 30 Shell Types and 20 Unlockable Abilities

Recent community findings have shed new light on the launch scope of Iron Nest: Heavy Turret Simulator. While players have already experienced the tactical tension of manual artillery operation in the Steam Next Fest demo, leaked details from a French community briefing outline exactly how much content the full release will pack when it launches on August 6.

From progressive unlockables to campaign structure, here is what is coming to the final game.

A Massive Progression System: 30 Shells and 20 Abilities

While the demo guide introduced basic tactical loops like manual loading and coordinates tracking, the full game promises a much deeper progression. According to community reports, players will be able to unlock up to 30 different ammunition types.

Having access to such a diverse arsenal suggests that target prioritization and strategic loading will be critical. Players will likely need to balance standard armor-piercing or high-explosive options—outlined in our current ammunition guide—with highly specialized rounds for changing weather, fortifications, or armored units.

In addition to ammunition, players can unlock 20 different abilities. Though not yet officially detailed by developers Nick Nieuwoudt and Dominik Latos, these abilities are expected to upgrade turret mechanics, speed up reload times, or improve how players handle the machine’s complex hydraulic systems under fire.

Campaign Structure Across a Fractured Spain

The campaign takes place in an alternate-history Spain during the late 1920s, centering on a royalist monarchy attempting to suppress a growing republican rebellion. The full game will feature 15 distinct regions, suggesting a long-haul campaign where players defend varying choke points, coastlines, and mountain passes.

Rather than relying purely on static scenarios, the campaign reportedly blends a hand-crafted narrative with procedurally generated objectives. This combination means that reading wind directions, adjusting the ballistic dials, and consulting your tactical map will remain unpredictable and highly replayable from one region to the next.

Tactile Maintenance and Community Comparisons

The heavy focus on mechanical immersion has caught the attention of simulator fans. On community platforms like Reddit, players are already comparing the feel of Iron Nest to games like Subnautica (specifically operating the Cyclops submarine) and U-boat.

While Iron Nest is a stationary turret simulator rather than a mobile vehicle game, the shared appeal lies in the tactile feedback of maintaining a large machine’s interior. Managing mechanical failures, adjusting manual valves, and loading heavy physical shells from brass racks create a tense, claustrophobic atmosphere. It remains to be seen how much freedom players will have to move around the wider interior of the 5,000-ton turret outside of their primary station, but the community is expecting a strong emphasis on physical maintenance.

For players looking to test their gunnery skills outside of the main campaign, the release will also include 8 distinct challenge modes paired with live online leaderboards.

To prepare your calculations before the launch, check out our breakdown of the game’s mechanics in everything we know.