Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
Review
Advance Wars finally "advances"!
by Bulerias
reviewed on NDS
Wage war online!
Another complaint is the lack of 'beefiness'. Gone is the War Room, Hatchi's Store (which housed one of the best Advance Wars songs in franchise history), Survival Mode, Combat Mode, among many other things. What could possibly make up for such deplorable changes? Online play, of course. Fans have dreamt of taking on warmongers all over the world.
The game sports more than 100 maps and offers all sorts of customization options. Granted, the custom options aren't available in 'Random Mode' (non-friends), which is a disappointment, but after trading Friend Codes with your buds, you will be in for one hell of a ride. Those who feel let down by the game's occasionally sub-par AI will feel right at home playing against real people. Another feature of the online multiplayer is voice-chat. Don't get too excited just yet. In the various tests I conducted, your opponents are barely comprehendable.
One feature that has become a main-stay is back, and better than ever. The Map Maker is a powerful tool that can be used to create custom maps. With sizes ranging from 5x5 to 30x30, the possibilities near infinity. To top it off, gamers can trade maps via local wireless connections and online Wi-Fi. In addition to this, you may also upload and download maps from Nintendo's servers. After beating a downloaded map, you can even give it a rating. I am inclined to say that Days of Ruin is Nintendo's deepest foray into online gaming yet. It is still not up to speed with the stuff you see on Xbox Live, but as we all know... slow and steady wins the race!
Tactical perfection
All bickering aside, Days of Ruin is still one of the best DS games on the market. The online play will be reason alone to pick up the game. The lengthy and difficult singleplayer campaign isn't something to scoff at either. The writing may be a little worse than what you have come to expect from NOA's localization group but it does the job well. The replay value in Days of Ruin is through the roof. I can easily see myself clocking in over 100 hours into this baby! The game is oddly addicting, reaching to "I can't stop playing this!" height.
Just one note, though; This game is not for casual gamers, not in any way, shape, or form. It lacks an in-depth manual that one would expect to come with a game this deep. Instead, one-page 'tutorials' explain each gameplay feature that work well for those familiar with the franchise, but for those new to the Advance Wars world, things will get confusing very quickly. Dual Strike is a much better entry point. If you have played any of the past games in the series, you will know what to expect and will most certainly enjoy one of the best tactical strategy games available on the DS.
8.0
fun score
No Pros and Cons at this time
