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The more serious tone of the game really makes a difference. Now updated with video!
The first thing I noticed about Days of Ruin when sitting down to play it for about a half an hour was that Intelligent Systems isn't messing around with the game's tone. Instead of the happier, colorful settings that the previous Advance Wars games had, everything in this new DS version is darker, grittier, and a little more serious. No, not on the same level as Saving Private Ryan or Band of Brothers (at least, not in the first few levels), but you're not going to see a carefree smile on any of the COs in this game. Just like a new coat of paint can transform a car or a house into something new, so too does this more realistic take on Advance Wars. Frankly, I love it.
The new tone brings with it some new game mechanics. The new units I spotted in the early levels were the fire-spewing flame tank, and more significantly, the motorcycle unit. Motorcycles have the movement capabilities and firepower of the recon unit, but have the added bonus of being able to capture cities like regular infantry or bazooka troops. This comes into play as early as the third mission, where you can send motorcycle troops out ahead early to pick up cities and add to your daily funds. They are easily taken out by tanks, however, so you may not want charge a pack of cycles into town without some good backup.
A major change in battle is the introduction of unit levels. Taking a page from Fire Emblem, the longer an individual unit stays alive and the more enemies it attacks, the stronger that unit will become. The unit's level is denoted by a golden roman numeral on the bottom left corner of the unit (next to the HP remaining) on the map screen. Having more powerful units is certainly noticeable, as I had a Level III bazooka unit do quite a bit more damage to a medium tank than I did a bazooka unit fresh from the barracks. I think this new feature will change up traditional AW strategy by giving you a choice of overwhelming the opponent with numbers or carefully building up your force to take everything out in a single, powerful sweep.
In previous Advance Wars game, fuel and ammo supplies were never really a factor during most of the game. Only toward the end did you really need to worry about running out of gas or ammo for the common unit types. What I noticed right away in this version of the game was that ammo and fuel consumption rates had gone up considerably. After three moves with a medium tank, I noticed that I was down to 66 fuel already, a situation that never happened so soon in the older games. It kind of makes me think that having a stable supply line will be more critical than ever in Days of Ruin, though I didn't see any other evidence of that during my play time.
General gameplay has been improved upon in a few ways. For one, moving and attacking with a unit is now done in one motion. No longer can you select to make a move, move to that spot, and then cancel to move back. You won't be able to uncover someone hiding in fog of war or underwater by fishing for their location anymore. Instead, after you choose a spot to move to (with the D-Pad or stylus), you'll then immediately be asked for a command to perform once you get there. Once that's locked in, the game does the movement and command at the same time. This is a little change, but it's one for the better, I say.
Another welcome change is a map zoom feature. You can zoom out a little bit to see more of the map, and keep that zoomed-out view while playing. Although you can still see the overall map on the top screen of the DS, being able to see more of the map and the more detailed information it carries is very nice.
I really like the changes that Days of Ruin is bringing to the Advance Wars series. It's like the game is growing up with its fans. The only thing we need now is a yeah or nay on Wi-fi multiplayer...
Advance Wars: Dark Conflict
Advance Wars: Dark Conflict
