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Days of Ruin = Days of Fun

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: February 11, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This is my first Advance Wars game. That being said I must confess I had no idea what Advance Wars was really about or how to play the games. However, I kept hearing all this hype about how great they were and how addictive they were. I decided to take a leap of faith and try this out. Boy am I glad I did. Days of Ruin is by far one of the most fun handheld games I've played. It's very easy to pick up and learn. I didn't even look at the instruction booklet. I just popped it in and let the on screen tutorial introduce me to the game play. I've only made it through the first 4 missions, but I know I'll be playing for many hours to come.

Solid Game Carrying On a Good Tradition

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: February 16, 2008
Author: Amazon User

A departure from the standard Advance Wars games, "Days of Ruin" is a more serious-toned game than its cartoonish predecessors.

Days of Ruin takes place after a cataclysmic meteor strike that devastated the entire planet. Covered by soot and dust, the survivors of the impact must stay alive amidst the warring factions that seek control of the chaos. To sum it up: imagine if "Advance Wars" met "Mad Max". That's this game. The game follows Will, a survivor of the Rubinelle armed forces, as he teams up with other survivors from his army to protect the citizens against bandits and hostile forces.

The basic rules of Advance Wars still apply, and all the units from previous games (minus some of the setting-specific units like the Neotank) are present. There are a couple things that have been changed, gameplay-wise. New units have been added; these include the light recon Bike, the fog-of-war-destroying Flare launcher, the specifically designed Anti-Tank Cannon, the missile-launching Gunboat, the carrier-built Seaplane, and the anti-air/anti-ground plane, the Duster. The most distinct new unit is the Rig, which can build certain temporary structures like makeshift airfields, ports, and radar stations. Also, more conventional units from previous games are available - tanks, infantry, artillery, and so on. Another change is the scarcity of supplies. In previous games, there were counters for fuel and ammunition that would deplete after use (moving depletes fuel, shooting depletes ammunition). In AW:DR, these empty much more quickly to indicate the status of the destroyed world. There is also the added bonus of veterancy for units, granting bonuses in attack and defense for each kill the unit gives. This doesn't carry over between missions, but it goes up fairly quickly. Finally, the use of Commanding Officers (or COs) has changed - to confer their unique bonus on their units, they must be leading them. A unit can have a CO attached to it to make a zone of effect around it where the CO's bonus applies. Defeating enemies with units in the CO zone fills the CO's power bar and allows them to use a special technique that can change the tide of a battle. If the unit is defeated, the CO simply returns to headquarters.

Online gameplay is now available as well. The pre-made maps can be used, or design maps can be traded. There is also an option to add friends and make a friends list. The system is simple, but it works pretty well.

The graphics have been changed to reflect the more serious nature of the game. The cartoonish, bright, mis-proportioned characters of the previous games have been replaced with a more washed-out, somber color tone and realistic character proportions. As a whole, they are pretty good, though the use of colors like red, blue, and yellow for the uniforms is still sort of disorienting. The sound is pretty good, having been changed to an overall more rock-based sound than previous AW games.

As a whole, this is a pretty neat turn for the Advance Wars series to take. I like that it's more serious, though it seems kind of odd to jump straight to "post-apocalyptic scenario" with the new graphics instead of doing a regular wargame first. Either way, "Days of Ruin" is a solid game that carries on a good tradition.

9/10.

A fun, but short, entry in the series

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: February 18, 2008
Author: Amazon User

Overall a Fun new advance wars, however the campaign mode is fairly short and you do not get to use the new CO system until the game is more than half over. There are a large number of free play and trial maps at least, but the game is obviously set up to be more focused on Wifi play this time around with story mode essentially acting as a tutorial.

The story line is fun and there are quite a few cutscenes in the game (semi-hidden in the info menu)that add to the character development.

Great game

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 15, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I've only had the opportunity to play some of the original Advance Wars on GBA and as far as I can tell Days of Ruin sticks to the well-working formula. Like the other game (and from what I hear of the others in the series) this game gets HARD. Definitely good for those looking for some strategic challenge. The graphics and sound quality are great for the DS and the story has a nice dark overtone to it that doesn't take away from the game. Recommended for any SRPG fan.

Excellent Game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: March 17, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This is an excellent, yet very frustrating, game. Every level seems to be designed around one or two of the many, many different types of units in the game. Once you have beaten a level and mastered the use of a unit, using the same strategy in the next level usually doesn't work. You are constantly exploring the best unit use in different situations, and because there are dozens of combinations in the game and a wide variety of situations, this will be challenging and time consuming.

I've spent three or four days working on single levels. I'm about half-way through the game. You might need to put it down for a few days in between levels. The game is fun, but it can be tedious at times. When you start getting to the stages with huge maps and multiple AI opponents, the game takes a sadistic turn to destroy you any chance it gets.

If the AI is this hard, I'm scared to play against the geniuses who roam the game online.

100 Hours In, I'm Still Addicted

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 04, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I have played all the AW games, usually 300 hours per game. I do miss the War Room. I do miss the Hard Campaign. I do miss the old CO Powers. But this is still a five-star game for me. If you've never tried this video game, but like chess, or other strategy games, give Advance Wars a chance to hook you.

Best GameBoy game I have played so far.

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 11, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I have always enjoyed wargames from hex maps to computer based. This game is clearly the best of this genre that I have played on any version of the GameBoy. I am even considering buying a second DS just so my son and I can play head to head.

The fog of war is very well done. The amount of chance involved in battles does a good job of requiring good strategy but keeping outcomes from being completely deterministic. The relative strengths of the units keep the game well balanced and make good use of mixed forces a powerful advantage.

In short, this game has cost me too much sleep already and I love it!

A step back from Dual Strike, but still excellent

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 29, 2008
Author: Amazon User

This review is geared more toward people who have played previous incarnations of the Nintendo/Advance Wars series. If you haven't played any of the previous games, then start now! Even if you only have a middling interest in strategy games, you'll probably enjoy this game (as well as its predecessor: Advance Wars: Dual Strike). The Advance Wars series provides some of the most lasting games in the Nintendo portable library.

If you've played Advance Wars: Dual Strike, you'll feel like you're stepping back in time. Many of the features of the previous game are missing, but the core is still chock full of delicious turn-based strategy goodness.

Regarding COs: COs play a much more limited role in the game (and aren't even available until the second half of the single-player campaign), dual strikes are gone, CO selection is much more limited, and the CO powers themselves are not as balanced as in Dual Strike. That said, the new CO mechanic does add an interesting twist to the core gameplay. You can load a CO onto a unit at half of the unit's base price, which allows the CO to exert bonuses to selected units within a sphere of influence (it's a 2D grid game so the "sphere" is technically diamond-shaped, but whatever). The area of the CO's influence increases when units inside the sphere do damage. When the CO meter is full, you can use the CO's special power, which reduces the sphere of influence back to its base state. The loss of CO zone, combined with the fact that using the CO power wastes the CO unit's turn, often limits the utility of the CO power.

Regarding single-player replayability: There is no "hard campaign" option after beating the game. However, the plethora of trial maps, as well as the ability to download custom maps online, more than makes up for this shortcoming.

Regarding multi-player: Let's face it, I would probably buy this game even if it was single-player only. The Advance Wars game mechanics are just so addictive that I would continue buying map packs forever. However, the addition of Nintendo WFC multiplayer is what really makes this game shine. The ability to play with friends (or random people) online turns this game from maybe 30 hours of gameplay to 100+ hours of gameplay. Nintendo WFC is still a bit flaky, and disconnects are still somewhat common, but it's an acceptable price for playing with others across the world.

The best to date

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: April 29, 2008
Author: Amazon User

In my opinion this is the best Advance Wars to date. They changed how CO's work and their powers to add more balance to the game. This is also the first Advance Wars with a story that keeps you entertained. Definatly buy this if you enjoyed any of the past games or if you are interested in the series.

Great strategy game

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 0
Date: May 08, 2008
Author: Amazon User

I had the original Advance Wars game on the GBA. This game is very similar. There are areas where you can use your stylus, but I've use to use the feature, as I prefer doing everything with the buttons. Honestly, the dual screens aren't utilized very well in this game, but it was never a problem to begin with in the original GBA game, so I can't complain.
The battles are well-thought out, offering differing ways to complete the same mission. There are a TON of units, each offering their strengths and weaknesses.
The storyline is fine, but it's forgetful... it's neat that there are now different branches to the game, offering more replay value.
Gameplay is simple, but complicated, in that it's easy to move units and fire, but a strategy is required to do this efficiently.
The tutorial is well-done, but anyone familiar with a previous Advance Wars will have no problem jumping in.

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