|
I'll just start off by saying
that as far as strategy games go (this game being a strategy
game), I'm in general dislike of the turn based variety. I don't
know why, but real-time strategy games (RTS games) are just
infinitely more appealing to me. Maybe it's the feeling that
you're constantly doing something, constantly strategizing,
recruiting troops and building your base. Maybe it's the feeling
that you're never totally unable to do anything (like the when
it's your opponent's turn in a turn based strategy game). Then
again, maybe it's just that I'm a fast chess player =P
Anyway, whatever it is, despite my general distaste for turn
based strat games, Advance Wars is one of the few of them that I
really enjoyed (the two others being the Shining Force series
and Final Fantasy Tactics). It's probably because there are a
few elements in the game that are more commonly found in
real-time strategy games (but more on that later), but another
large part of the game's undeniable charm is Nintendo's
trademark style, very warm, easy to approach design, with great
gameplay to back it up.
Anyway, there's really not much to tell about the story (Really,
the game doesn't give any reason until the latter levels as to
why anybody is at war other than territory), so I'll just get
right into the specifics...
Graphics: Before I say anything else, I have to point out
that screen shots do not do this game justice, not in any sense
of the word. When I bought this game, it was only because I am a
general fan of strategy games, and one to play on the go seemed
appealing to me. However, upon popping the cart in, I was very
pleasantly surprised to find not only great strategy gameplay,
but also some of the Gameboy Advance's best graphics yet.
It's all about the animation here. When you look at screen
shots, the game probably looks very stagnant. This couldn't be
further from the truth. In actuality, every screen, every menu,
everything, is just so full of life, it really brings a smile to
your face as everything plays out. The actual map, where all of
your units are displayed as small icons, and you move and
command your fleet is much nicer than you would think for
something with such a small screen. The icons for your units are
animated very nicely, portraying their real life counter-parts
very nicely, but keeping with the very happy mood. When you move
a unit, you can see little dust trails appear, and when you
select a flying unit, you can even see its little shadow follow
it as it moves. The units all have excellent little idle
animations too, bobbing up and down as the do :)
The main thing about the animation here though isn't the game
map, it's the actual battle animations. Whenever you engage an
enemy you're treated to a beautiful little animation showing
each unit and what happened to them. For example, if you attack
a group of soldiers with some tanks, you see your tanks roll up,
treads smoking, and fire at the troops. Of course the tanks
experience classic cartoon backlash, tilting backward as they
fire, with smoke launching out of their cannons. Each unit in
the game has a similarly cool animation like this. What's even
cooler, is that each of the armys in the game has different
models for each unit, so whenever you face a new army it's fun
to see how all the opposing units look.
Also very lively, the menus in the game all look great. They've
all got some nice art scrolling in the background, with great
looking animated text and moving objects abound. This, along
with the recently released Mario Kart for GBA show just why
Nintendo is where they are today. These games really show so
much detail and love put into them, even cruising the menus is a
treat in games like these.
Sound: Equally as stunning as the graphics, the sound is
done extremely well. There are some REALLY catchy tunes in this
game. Almost every BGM in this game has that great ''hum along''
quality to it, while retaining a happy, war theme... As
incredibly strange as that sounds.
The sound effects are also done very very nicely. All the sounds
in the menus are great, but the unit sounds really steal the
show here. Each unit has it's own moving and attacking sound.
When you move a unit from one place to another, it's
complimented with a very nice effect that genuinely sounds like
the unit would sound if you heard it drive by (or fly/walk/float
by). Each unit's attack animation is also accompanied by some
great effect that sound very appropriate. I'm very impressed
with how Nintendo can make this tiny little piece of hardware
crank out such quality sound. Well then again, we are talking
about Nintendo here.
Gameplay: Now this is what you buy games for, and RTS
games more so than just about any genre. Really, all I was
expecting from this game was good gameplay (the great graphics
and sound were just very pleasant surprises), and the game
delivers yet again. Now ask any RTS fan what the most important
thing in a strategy game is and the answer will almost always be
''balance''. Let's face it, in a strategy game, if units are
unbalanced, then the strategy really goes down the crapper, so
to speak. So the first thing I looked for when popping in
Advance Wars was if it had a good balance between units, and I'm
happy to report that it does, very good balance I might
add.
I don't want to spoil everything and describe every unit in
detail, but I'll give you a small overview of how things work.
You can think of it somewhat like a game of rock/paper/scissors,
but there's a lot more to it then that. Just about every unit
has an advantage and disadvantage against other units. For
example, infantry units are best against other infantry and mech
infantry, but can't phase a tank. Where as tanks can take out
infantry and artillery, but are manhandled by medium tanks. That
is the basic (very basic mind you) hierarchy for ground units.
There are also separate hierarchies for sea and air units. Many
other things also influence each hierarchy, such as a battleship
or bomber shooting at a ground unit, or a ground unit taking on
an air unit, ect. Another thing to take into account is the type
of terrain your units are on. Each different type of terrain
offers the unit currently occupying it a certain amount of
defense, from one to five stars. For example, if you have an
infantry unit on mountain terrain and engage an enemy infantry
unit on grass, you will have a large advantage because the
mountain provides your infantry +4 defense, where as the grass
provides no defense. This is one of the many important
strategies you must learn to be successful in Advance Wars.
Luckily the game packs an extensive training campaign, which
makes everything very easy to pick up and understand.
Now, about the game modes. There is plenty to do in Advance Wars
to say the least. First of all, the main attraction -the
campaign mode. The campaign packs plenty of missions to play
through, with a simple, quirky story attached. During the
campaign you will gain coins based on how good you do after each
mission, which you can spend in the shop. The shop is where you
buy maps to play with in multi-player and War Room games. Next,
the War Room. This is where you play skirmishes using maps
purchased in the shop. You can also play as COs (enemy generals)
you've defeated and unlocked during campaign mode. When nobody's
around and you've beaten the campaign, the War Room is where
it's at. The next mode is very very cool, the Design Map mode.
This mode, as it sounds, lets you build you own custom maps.
Doing so is very easy, and it's quite fun making your own maps.
Definitely a great addition to an already awesome game. Finally,
the link mode. Having played my fair share of multi-player
Warlocked on Gameboy Color, I can say for certain Advance Wars
is an extremely good game as far as multi-player. Unfortunately
none of my friends listen to me as far as gaming goes, so it may
be a while before I can actually play it for myself =P Four
player linked games really sound extremely fun though, and I'm
sure they're just that.
Anyway, as you can probably tell, I'm very happy with the
gameplay in Advance Wars, very happy indeed. I must point out
something that has annoyed me to no end more than once though.
Once you get to the latter missions, this game can become
exceedingly frustrating. I mean pull your hair out frustrating.
This is coming from a guy who had no trouble beating Final
Fantasy Tactics. And that isn't even in Advance Campaign mode
(which is a good 10 times -yes, 10 times- harder than the normal
campaign. That's about all I can really find wrong with the
gameplay though, and you may argue that high difficulty is
actually a good thing.
Replay: Well as I said before, the campaign packs plenty
of missions, and there's no shortage of difficulty there. The
extensive War Room will also pack many hours of fun, and the
multi-player will definitely get you in trouble at school many a
time. Suffice to say, if you're a strategy fan, get the game
now. You'll thank me once you can pull yourself away from it.
Pros: Excellent animation, great balanced gameplay, very
catchy tunes, high replay
Cons: Sometimes TOO difficult
.:. Andy787 |
