Battalion Wars

"War has never been so much fun"

Battalion Wars is a really unique game for its time. It successfully integrates elements from the shooter and strategy genres to present a not-so-serious game of war with capital gameplay.

Battalion Wars' story begins with a shaky cease-fire between the Western Frontier and the Tundran Empire. When it crumbles away into another war, a third faction, the evil Xylvanians, seek to take advantage of their war-wearied enemies and rule the world in an iron grip. The Western Frontier and the Tundrans join forces to stop this global threat to fight for world peace.
Battalion Wars mixes elements from third-person shooters and real time strategy. As the field commander, you are free to directly control any single unit, while commanding the rest of your battalion to attack, guard, or follow. Whatever unit you control is, obviously, the most dangerous because of your human intelligence. But "going Rambo" will get you nowhere as the enemy will quickly counter or overwhelm you. Therefore, you must skillfully order the other units in your battalion to attack susceptible enemy units (as every unit is strong against some, but torn to pieces by others), guard important areas, and advance toward victory.

Accomplishing this takes some practice and trial and error, but it eventually comes together. From the start, commanding your units can be a bit cumbersome. You must lock on to your target, select the unit you want to command with C-stick then command it. This takes a bit getting used to, especially in the big fire fights when you must find and identify threats and then send the appropriate units after them. However, directly controlling a unit about the field is tight and easy. Also, unit AI is divided, in that infantry and most air units will follow all their commands relatively well, while mechanized units (tanks, jeeps etc.) have trouble keeping up with you, are generally bad at evading enemy fire and attack with half-asked tenacity. Therefore, it's always necessary to directly control them and not to send them off on their own.

The game's campaign spans 20 levels; rescuing POWs, capturing enemy bases and assisting your allies in combat are just some of the missions you'll be partaking in. Additionally, your performance in each level is ranked with a medal. By getting enough high-ranking medals, you can unlock up to four bonus missions. Unfortunately, when your finished the campaign, these four bonus missions are the only extra content the game offers, making Battalion Wars a short-lived affair.

Although it may be short, Battalion Wars looks good. Despite being a game of war, the graphics are cartoony in a way akin to the Advance Wars series (in fact, before release, Battalion Wars was known as Advance wars: Under Fire). But aside from its charm and style, the graphics are not too technically impressive.

The sound goes along with the unique style of Battalion Wars. The characters in the game are excellently voice cast and are a joy to hear. The militant style music is mostly subdued in the game to emphasize the sounds of war. Bullets ping off metal, tank engines rumble, and soldiers quip amongst themselves to create a realistic atmosphere.

Even though Battalion Wars is a short game, it's fun while it lasts. If you're a fan of strategy games, or are looking for a shooter that does something different, you won't go wrong with Battalion Wars.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/23/07