Battalion Wars — Impressions
If you didn't already know, Battalion Wars is a Nintendo GameCube game based on the franchise, Advanced Wars, for the GameBoy Advance, and more recently the Nintendo DS. Unlike the Advanced Wars games which are turn-based strategy games, Battalion Wars is an real-time strategy played out from a third-person perspective.
Being in and amongst the battles within a RTS is a pretty sweet experience. Bullets, shrapnel, missiles, explosions — it's all very intense and exciting. You have full control of one unit whilst issuing commands to the others. You can change to any unit at any time. Unfortunately controlling the game from this perspective with a controller instead of a keyboard & mouse can prove frustrating at times. This isn't a fault with the game, but a constraint of using a controller.
In one of the first missions, where you have to manage multiple different units, you are required to take out 8 tanks spread over the map. Of course, there are infantry and Gunships that get in your way. And one of the things about Battalion Wars / Advanced Wars is that different troops and vehicles have different strengths and weaknesses. Missile infantry are great against air vehicles but don't stand a chance against ground vehicles and other infantry. In this mission, if you lost a particular class of unit early you didn't have a hope of winning. My inexperience with the controls had me fail the missing multiple times before I decided to take extreme baby steps to ensure protection of my troops. I imagine that particular mission took me 30 minutes longer than it should have.
But it's not all bad. You get used to the controls and soon learn to manage your units better. When you have a large army under your command you don't have to be as concerned with micro-managing. Though it helps a lot if you take command of the right unit at the right times. You can't expect an anti-air vehicle to take out a gunship fast enough on it's own — take control and shower it with missiles. Having to jump between units is half the fun of this game. Sitting in a mini-gun nest is fun but having to get out and get your hands bloody adds more to the experience.
Unlike most games where vehicles steer the way you expect them to, the vehicles in Battalion Wars steer uniquely. You control them from a third-person perspective, and instead of actually steering the vehicle, the vehicles seem to follow your crosshair. It's strange at first but helps by allowing you to quickly target a unit without having to wait for your vehicle to turn. Although with this system you won't be doing any precision driving.
Of course, all this great gameplay isn't going to be as exciting without the visuals and sounds to immerse you into the world.
The visuals in the game are cartoony, which fits perfectly with the franchise. In fact, being a huge fan of Advanced Wars, it was a real treat to see the vehicles realised in full 3D. The vehicles have a kind-of exaggerated, cartoony physics. They float through the air when you go over a jump (Dukes of Hazzard style), and bounce like a ball when they land. Both the vehicles and troops are animated beautifully. The maps are large and have varied terrains with snow, mountains, deserts, forests and more. And the battles are coloured with explosions and streams of glowing bullets.
I don't think hot lead rapidly blistering the side of an armored tank has ever sounded so good. At times I've just wanted to stop and listen, but returning the favor with dual-cannon shells is equally pleasing. There are whizzing's and whooshing's and cries from from your men. And I'm happy to say that the game supports Dolby Pro logic Surround Sound. Although, to be honest, I haven't noticed it too much coming from the rears — probably because I'm too focused on the battle in front of me. There are also nice touches, including comments from your units like, "It's quiet. Too quiet".
I really haven't played for long so far, but am having a great time. The controls are involved but the battles are rewarding. I think anyone who has played Advanced Wars will enjoy the nostalgia. Everyone will enjoy the character of the game. But, perhaps only gamers will enjoy the gameplay.
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