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dtonys's Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS)
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| [March 5, 2008 11:31:10 PM]
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ADVANCE WARS: DAYS OF RUIN
SESSION #2
GAMEPLAY: Once introduced to all your resources, the challenge of the game ramps up. You will fight battles in the fog of war, which is basically a black shroud that prevents your from seeing (or attacking) units which are hidden. One must make use of flares and recon vehicles in order to clear the fog to see what enemy units lie ahead. The AI of the enemies, while far from being as good as a human, does rather well. If you build bomber planes, it will build anti-aircraft guns. If you build submarines, it will build cruisers (which counter them). When you have stationed ranged units like rockets or missiles protecting your units, the computer will often retreat and regroup instead of mindlessly charging. One quirk of the AI is that it will always attack your infantry when you are capturing its cities. This is one of the few advantages that the player must use to overcome the enemy. In later stages, your enemies will have superior firepower and numbers, and you will be forced to exploit the AI's priorities.
Late in the game, you are introduced to the CO (Commanding Officer) zone, and the CO powers. Unlike previous advance wars games. Simply destroying or losing troops anywhere on the map will not raise up your power meter. COs are able to board vehicles, and a certain radius will form around that vehicle. Only troops destroyed inside this radius will boost the power, and the power gauge will empty the if the unit holding the CO is destroyed. This element rarely helps your battle significantly, but does add a bit of depth to the game.
DESIGN ELEMENTS: While I have not tried the multiplayer, I can honestly say that I will enjoy Days of Ruin much more than previous advance wars games. In Advance Wars: Dual Strikes, there is an insane amount of extra fluff and features that took the emphasis over pure strategy. Certain character's powers were broken and overpowered, such as units being bought for a cheaper price, or a power that drains fuel from vehicles. The power meters filled at a much fast rate, and so the tactics of the game strayed from tactical unit placement to using and abusing the CO powers. I welcome the new CO power system, as well as the "back to the basics" combat.
The combat of advance wars is quite balanced, even with the addition of many new unit types. Anti-tank artillery provides extra defense against ground units, while expensive aircraft carriers are able to build and launch devastating seaplanes. Dusters provide a cheap air unit that can take on Bombers and Jet Planes. One of the most radical changes is that the rig, which supplies units with fuel and ammo, can now build "temp" airport or seaports which can house and repair air or sea units. With a unlockable maps and online multiplayer, you can be assured that this advance wars is the best one yet.
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| [March 5, 2008 10:46:50 PM]
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ADVANCE WARS: DAYS OF RUIN
SESSION #1
SUMMARY: In Days of Ruin, the latest game in the advance wars series, you control and army of post-apocalyptic survivors, struggling to bring peace to the world. In contrast to the happy go lucky antics of the previous advance wars games, this handheld turn based strategy has a serious and dire tone, which conveys a more realistic image of war. In a world ravaged by meteors, you goal is to bring peace and order back to the land by protecting civilians and overthrowing tyrants.
Gameplay: Days of Ruin's basic gameplay is essentially no different from previous Advance Wars games. Fans of previous advance wars (such as I) will be delighted to know that the deep, strategic, turn based combat system remains intact and as good as ever. Some, however, will be displeased with the brand new story, which abandons bright colored world of the previous three advance wars games. When you begin the game, you arrive on an earth devastated by apocalyptic meteor showers. Almost all of humanity has been wiped out by such disasters, and the remaining population struggles to stay alive. You play the role of Will, a student in the Rubinelle military academy. Rescued by Brenner's 12th battalion, you set out looking for stranded survivors.
The game starts out very easy, giving you tutorials along the way while beating bandits. One of the things that I really like about Days of Ruin is the realism that it displays in its story, as it takes death seriously. The commander warns you that you may not live long if you stay with him, and he even stresses that you should avoid troop casualties. Hunger, weaponry, supplies, and troop moral is all in short supply, and thus you must often protect civilians from being raided by bloodthirsty bandits. What I really like is how the game shows off the ugly side of human nature. After protecting the civilian encampment, the civilian mayor thanklessly demands that you leave their home, refusing to share supplies with your soldiers. Even the factories, which produce units, are justified in a way that is realistically believable.
Gameplay wise, the beginning battles are a snap. Even a new player should have no problem getting an A rank in these early fights. Each unit comes with a short yet complete description of its purpose, has a specified cost, vision range, movement range, attack range, and ammo capacity. Direct attack units like tanks, infantry, and recon vehicles must move adjacent to a enemy to attack. Indirect units like rockets can fire ranged attacks, and they can either move or fire for their turn. Infantry are the only ones who can capture buildings, which provide you with money, protection, and unit production. Throughout the beginning campaign, you are introduces to factories, airports, and then seaports, which can produce land, air, and sea units respectively.
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dtonys's Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (DS)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Wednesday 5 March, 2008
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