"Advance Wars takes some hits, but maintains a good game"

Advance Wars: Days of Ruin has brought new light to the series that a lot of people enjoy, but I think it's a step in the wrong direction. The series gets torn in half with this one where the world is blown to pieces. Everything you knew about advance wars is gone now. All the COs from the previous games are gone. Some of the game modes have disappeared, namely the war room, which was one of the funnest things to complete with all 300 point S ranks (although the maximum points are now higher)

Gameplay- It's Advance Wars, the game is polished and this could be considered the most balanced in the series yet. The removal of the Neotank and Megatank are wonder, and the wartank addition keeps the game moving. The campaign story is a bit odd considering what games previously in the series were about, but then again this is a completely different game in terms of everything.

Graphics/Sounds- Advance Wars never had good graphics, but they improve with each version, I personally don't really care for such things so I could care less as long as they are polished a bit. Besides having to mute the sound on my DS anytime Isabella's music is played the sounds are nice with a mixture of rock and metal music. The tanks and guns make interesting enough noise.

Features- This Advance Wars killed the features. What happened to Combat? Survival? War Room? The Store? Although Wifi is finally included which is a huge plus, I fail to see why Infinity Ward would remove so many features that turned a great game into something more. Although some might argue that the secondary missions make up for the War Room, it's hardly a comparison considering the number of maps that are excluded. Although the free battle room consists of all the classic maps that have been in the game since the original Advance Wars, it fails to establish many new maps to go on with the new CO zone.

CO Changes- Some say they are a step in the right direction because they balance the game, but I find the new way a bit silly. First of all, you can't pick which CO you want to use during the campaign missions. Although there should be some limits, I should at least have some choice in the matter. COs now have a zone and units in said zone get a boost based on the CO. This is nice and everything, but some of the COs have absolutely insane boosts that make them far more valuable on certain maps and situations. Although there was also specialization in the previous games, COs like Tabitha make one unit super powerful and near impossible to kill. Another CO is a Sasha clone named Penny who is only good in weather maps. Although her CO power creates a weather effect for three turns, you're basically doing nothing unless you're playing on a permanent weather map, and when you're on such a map (namely a sandstorm) it can be almost impossible to lose since the units in your zone don't get a 30 defense penalty and it becomes a game of countering all their units with your superior ones. Although people say it's balanced, certain situations aren't, although it isn't as bad as some COs like Colin who could get so much money (and then SCOP) that he would kill your megatank with a medium tank in one hit...

Unlockables- Alright, so I have to beat certain campaign missions to unlock special maps that basically mimic the War Room. I have to get to a certain chapter to unlock characters, which leave me no choice but to beat the entire game before I have any chance to have fun pretty much. Sure I could hop onto Wifi or Free Battle with the few characters I have, but it makes no sense that I have to play so many chapters to unlock my first character!

Score Changes- The maximum possible score in a certain area is now 150. Although this makes it even easier to get S ranks, the changes are quite refreshing. To boost your technique in previous games, you merely spammed cheap units from all your production structures so you could get 100 points. Now you must decide when you have enough units and then stop spending money to achieve a good score in this area. It makes the game far more interesting I believe that you must actually use strategy in how you send your units to keep this score up, and not overproduce just to get a high technique score. Of course, speed and power must also be considered, but I can't figure out how they are calculated at this point. It's Definitely an improvement towards older games in the series though.


Overall, Days of Ruin is an entire different Advance Wars. Any fan of previous Advance War games will still enjoy it most likely, but it's something new and new strategies must be developed. It's a reccomended purchase to anybody who enjoys Turn Based Strategy games, especially Fire Emblem. I just hope some more of those bonus features from Dual Strike will be included in the next installment in the series. It's a good game, but missing some important features to me so it only gets a 7.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/31/08

Game Release: Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (US, 01/21/08)