Advance Wars: Days of Ruin impressions

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin is the latest installment in the acclaimed turn-based strategy franchise that started way back on the NES. Since then, AW has undergone some relatively major gameplay overhauls, but the plot has always been up-beat and cheery. A trait many people found unsettling as the game revolved around war. Days of Ruin changes that. In this entry, the game takes place in a post-apocalyptic world. Most of the earth's denizens have been wiped out by meteors and diseases, and only a handful of military-trained soldiers survive. Players will encounter a good amount of twists and turns, so the plot isn't completely linear. At the same time, it doesn't begin to approach the depth of tales weaved by Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy. Hardcore fans may dislike the darker and more 'epic' plot, while others will love it. Then you may fall into the middle like me. I am quite a fan of the previous game's bright and cheery story, but I do appreciate the new approach that Days of Ruin takes.

Days of Ruin doesn't really change from its predecessors outside of story. The gameplay is much the same with a few minor tweaks. For one, units will now level up in a 'sorta-kinda' way. Every time a unit scores a kill, it will gain a level and its power and defense will go up. Units can only gain three levels before they stop gaining levels, however. So do not fret--the strategy is still as prominent as ever. There are also several new units. In my play sessions so far, I have encountered Bikers, glorified infantry units with a larger movement range, and War Tanks, enormous tanks that rip apart almost all ground units. However, there are more as videos and screenshots have shown. The added units add more strategy and offer some unfamiliarity to hardcore fans.

I have yet to test online (well duh, the game isn't out yet), but I will have a chance tomorrow as I received a letter with details of a journalist tourney of sorts. Various game journalists will all hop online at the same time and we will test our mettle against each other. The online looks very promising as you can voice chat with anyone you battle online and there's a robust map creator with which you can make maps and put them up online for anyone to download.

From my short (so far) playtime with the game, Days of Ruin is fantastic. It isn't the best game for the DS, but it may very well be the best Advance Wars. If you asked me for my score right now, I'd give it an 8.7. It really is a great game.