The turn based strategy genre has gained a respectable presence in the handheld market over the last few years. Game Boy Advance owners have embraced games such as Fire Emblem, Advance Wars and Final Fantasy Tactics Advance; Codo Technologies aims to find newfound love for its neglected Rebelstar series with the new Rebelstar Tactical Command

Rebelstar is not a new name in the turn based strategy realm, though younger or American gamers may not have heard of it. The series dates back to Julian Gollop's Rebelstar Raiders for the Spectrum in 1983, published by Red Shift. Highly acclaimed but poorly distributed, the game was retooled and relaunched as Rebelstar under Firebird's wing in 1986, with a sequel in 1988. After working on the X-Com series at Mythos, Julian and his brother, Nick, formed Codo Technologies in 2001. Now that they have revived their Laser Squad franchise on the PC, another of their 80's hits, they are turning to Rebelstar.

Rebelstar Tactical Command takes place in the year 2117. The Arelians invaded Earth through the guise of peace and leadership, bringing order to war-weary humans. But the Arelian Empire is now exploiting humans, abducting people over thirty through an organized group of henchmen known as the Zorn. Not the type to be abused, individuals have come together to form a rebel group and fight their oppressors. The single player campaign follows the story of a promising rebel recruit named Jorel and his comrades, who aim to build an army powerful enough to reclaim the Earth.

The action takes place on a grid-based isometric playing field. Players dictate the actions of individual units, which can attack enemies, alter destructible environments, or hide to for a tactical advantage. For example, gas canisters can be burned (though fire can spread!) and units can mask their presence in smoke. Units can interact with their surroundings in all eight directions, and may be equipped with various weapons and equipment such as: grenades, sniper rifles, missile launches and laser rifles. To help confused tacticians, the enemy's last turn may be reviewed at will.

Accompanying campaign mode are skirmish and multiplayer modes. Two gamers can compete by sharing one GBA system (since gameplay is turn-based) or with a link cable.

Namco plans to release Rebelstar Tactical Command in August 2005 with an expected Teen ESRB rating.