Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising

"Time to raise some hell again!"

Advance wars 2: Black Hole Rising is the second game in the long-running series of war strategy games to appear on the Gameboy Advance. Some of the previous games includes Famicom Wars, Super Famicom Wars and Gameboy Wars of which none of the aforementioned games have appeared outside of Japan. Now we will be getting our second Wars game, how does it fare against the popularity of the first GBA outing?

GAMEPLAY

The gameplay in this sequel is essentially the same as before. Using a variety of different troops, weaponry and vehicles, you must do whatever it takes to protect the enemy from attacking and capturing your bases. This time around, the story revolves around the threat of Sturm's Black Hole army gathering forces and attempting to capture countries throughout Wars World. Players of the first GBA outing will be immediately familiar with various characters including members of the Orange CO - Andy, Max, Sami and Nell as well as introducing brand new characters into the mix.

- CAMPAIGN and the lack of training mode -

There is no Training Mode this time round but gamers new to the series need not fret about being unfamiliar with the game's mechanics. The first few missions in the Campaign mode are designed to give newcomers a mini tutorial of what's what as well as being a refresher course for those who have already played the first Advance Wars. The campaign allows you to embark on the main storyline of Advance Wars 2. In this campaign you will be able to work with and control old allies from the first game which gives a much more varied outing for gamers. Whereas before, you are mainly stuck to using Andy, Max and Sami, this time, you can control members of the Blue, Yellow and Green COs as each must try and drive the enemy off their lands. Also, the route is a lot more non-linear in this installment because you are given choices as to which scenario you want to conquer and in which order. So if you find yourself stuck in one scenario, simply go away and try another.

Characters now have 2 levels of CO power they can build up and unleash instead of 1. The advantage of this is that it helps to balance out some of the disadvantaged characters from the first game. For example, the character Olaf could only summon blizzard to cover the terrain in snow in AW. In AW2, his extra power level enables him to damage all enemy units. Of course, the extra power levels also applies to the enemy so don't expect them to go easy on you!

--War Room--

The War Room option returns and allows you to play out all of the old War Room maps from the first game as well as giving you a few brand new ones. This is the place to try and aim for as high a score as possible and leave your mark on the high-score board. Your opponents in the old maps are now shuffled around a bit so the experience will not be as repetitive as you may think.

--Design Maps--

Good news for you creative folks out there. The design mode is back although you can still save only three of your creations. Unfortunately, you are not allowed to fiddle with the new stuff that have been added to this game like pipes and Lash's inventions. There's also a new option to change the colour of your CO characters. Not essential but adds a nice touch to your choices.

--VS--

More multi-player goodness for those craving to beat the hell out your mates. As with most games with this option, the replay value is already set on high.

MUSIC

The music doesn't disappoint. Old character themes are left untampered with, thankfully. The new character themes for the new characters are awesome pieces that fits in with the character personalities quite well. Now, when you activate a CO's super power, a tense and very upbeat tune plays throughout the rest of the round which creates a sort of adrenaline rush for the gamers and really emphasises the 'power'. Well done to the composers of the tunes in making the soundtrack to this game some of the best yet for the GBA!

GRAPHICS

The graphics remains more or less the same as before. This isn't a problem because the interface and the unit details are clear and precise for the player to distinguish, same as the first game. Whatever the case may be, don't be put off the game simply because it looks like a cartoon and you may think it's a game that will appeal to kids only. I'm in my 20's and this is one of the most addictive games I have ever come across in any system.

LENGTH/REPLAY VALUE

With more missions in both the campaign mode and War Rooms mode, there is an immediate boost in replay value over the first game. Not to mention the return of the 'Advance Campaign' setting which was deviously challenging in the first Advance Wars, will please those who are looking for some serious challenge! Needless to say, the multi-player option in itself will serve as a reason to replay the game to really try and thrash your friends.

OVERALL

Not much has changed since last time but all the better for it. The first Advance Wars had a winning formula of challenge and addictive gameplay that is still retained in this latest installment. Only one new unit - the neotank - is added in this game and may disappoint those of you who are looking for more units to play around with but on the whole, this package should please anyway looking to play more of the same.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/28/03