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jp's Advance Wars: Dual Strike (DS)
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| [August 28, 2006 10:09:13 PM]
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I feel like I'm cheating because I recently met my goals for Advance Wars...and I'm still playing. Sneaky me...
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| [August 19, 2006 05:30:30 PM]
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I just realized I haven't written about this game (or any other, in fact) for a while. I'm still playing it!
Here's some stats:
Total play time: 40 hrs 8 mins.
Medals: 92/300
Player Rank: Steel
Awards: 2/5
You would think I haven't been playing this at all.. 92 medals out of 300?!?!
Given that I really want to start a new game and I'm still really enjoying this game (there are a lot of new, interesting and clever maps) I've decided to set some intermediate goals. When I meet them, I move on.
So, here is what I decided..
Finish hard campaign.
Get a CO to level 10 (done)
Get more than 100 medals.
Now, what I really want to do is unlock the mega-bad-dude-super-boss you fight against at the very end.
Problem is, I don't know what it takes to unlock him!
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| [August 7, 2006 11:43:57 PM]
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I'm about halfway through the hard campaign and I have to admit that it's a well-earned title. Some of the maps are HARD. I don't mean "hard to get an S-rank"...I mean hard to win regardless. Still good, though!
I've learned the following:
1) There is a very minor help system. When you lose a battle, one of the COs gives you a little encouraging message along with some advice. Interestingly, it's strategic advice..and, it is usually spot on the money! I know that the advice it offers is the same regardless of what you actually do, but it's good advice that highlights the strategic elements of the game. For example, you might get a message like "Try to protect the base as long as possible and then overwhelm the enemy in the south end".
I liked the feedback! It made me feel like I was talking to another player and discussing strategy, which is usually quite rare.
Nice to know this game can still surprise after so many hours, right? :-)
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| [August 7, 2006 11:43:43 PM]
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I'm about halfway through the hard campaign and I have to admit that it's a well-earned title. Some of the maps are HARD. I don't mean "hard to get an S-rank"...I mean hard to win regardless. Still good, though!
I've learned the following:
1) There is a very minor help system. When you lose a battle, one of the COs gives you a little encouraging message along with some advice. Interestingly, it's strategic advice..and, it is usually spot on the money! I know that the advice it offers is the same regardless of what you actually do, but it's good advice that highlights the strategic elements of the game. For example, you might get a message like "Try to protect the base as long as possible and then overwhelm the enemy in the south end".
I liked the feedback! It made me feel like I was talking to another player and discussing strategy, which is usually quite rare.
Nice to know this game can still surprise after so many hours, right? :-)
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| [August 2, 2006 11:26:56 PM]
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Wooohooo!
In a little over 20 hrs of gameplay (this would include a few warroom maps as well) I've finished the campaign! With an "S" rating! Hey!
I've now started the hard campaign...hehehe.
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| [July 28, 2006 06:24:28 PM]
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I'm, once again, pleasantly surprised.
I thought I had finished the campaign...and NO! There is more! Not only that, but the missions I'm playing now are harder and more interesting (strategically speaking). Good stuff!
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| [July 25, 2006 06:00:07 PM]
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I've had some time to play a few maps in the war room. I can now safely confirm that if you haven't played any other version of Advance Wars, you can safely skip them and just play this one. I'm pretty sure that all the maps are the same.
Actually, they're not. I've noticed that some of the maps have minor changes in them. Not so much in the geography, but mainly in the types of buildings. I've noticed that some of the maps have buildings (cities) that have been turned into factories. I'm not entirely sure since there is a good chance that my frazzled brain is playing tricks..but still.
I think this is all really great! I've noticed that adding extra (unit-producing) factories helps speed up many of the maps by proving you a chance to get into a fight much faster. In other words, having more factories means that you spend less time moving units to the frontline than before, thus...battles end faster, which is a good thing.
There are a few other neat things which I'll mention later, but for now...I'm still loving this game!
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| [July 23, 2006 12:52:57 PM]
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I think I must have played more than 20 missions...and I feel that each mission introduces some new element. So, I've felt like I still haven't got out of "tutorial" missions, when in fact I have! I just started the last mission of the campaign! Wow... I sure got there quickly!
Is this a good thing?
I think it depends a lot on the game. In this case, I think it is a good game.
If we consider that "tutorials" are meant to teach you about the game you're playing. Then you'd expect to "finish" them and then get on to the real game. For example, if the game was an RTS..well, over the course of a few missions I would expect to be slowly introduced to all the different units (in particular, the ones that are new to a particular sequel). After a few missions of that, you'd expect to have to put your knowledge to the test and then you finish the game.
Well, that's not really the case here. After all, I'm pretty sure that I've been introduced to new stuff all the way to the end! So, why the difference? I guess that campaign mode is really just an introduction to the entire game. I would (wild guess!) say that 20% of the game is the campaign while the other 80% is in the war room (more maps..).
So the proportion is just about right, it's just that this game is HUGE!
:-)
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| [July 18, 2006 10:58:39 PM]
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They've added a lot of little things...some are better than others but they definitely add up to a more complex game, if you want to make it that way.
Basically, COs can now learn skills that give them little bonuses for different things (you can pick the skills, when they've earned enough experience) and there are some new units as well. The most interesting thing for me is that I can keep playing the game the same way as always...in other words, the new stuff doesn't really matter all that much. For me. Maybe if I was some uber-Advance-Wars-player I'd be all worried about maximizing my stats for the game and so on and so forth. However, it is thankfully not necesarry.
The coolest, yet also most "dangerous" addition is the tag-team system. You play with two COs which you can alternate. Once you've filled up both their power meters you can "tag" them which basically means you'll get to play with both of them...in a row. (in effect it's like taking two turns in a row). This ability is REALLY devastating...both when used by you as well as against you. I really like it as a player (when I get to use it) but I hate it when it is done against me. I feel so...vulnerable. Anyways, the tag power takes away a lot of the strategy away from the game...which is a bad thing. But, it's still a great game!
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| [July 12, 2006 10:50:43 PM]
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Like riding a bicycle.
That's how it feels to come back to a game I've adored. I approach it with a mix of trepidation. I know it's basically the same game, and I don't mind that. Yet I wonder if something new and magical has been added. Will the two screens be used in an interesting way? Will the add things that make it more complex and innaccesible? Will I have to go through all the "tutorial" levels again (yes).
Aaaaah.
I've also noticed that I really prefer to play it without the stylus. The keypad training and practice with this game is just a lot faster and more comfortable...seriously!
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jp's Advance Wars: Dual Strike (DS)
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Current Status: Finished playing
GameLog started on: Wednesday 12 July, 2006
GameLog closed on: Monday 11 September, 2006 |
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This is the only GameLog for Advance Wars: Dual Strike. |
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