Summary
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp gives a graphical overhaul to the game and lets you play online. Battling other commanders and keeping your soldiers alive is a tough task, which pushes your strategic skills. The difficulty spike picks up later in the game, but no mission is too difficult. The stories aren’t long and you must use the War Room if you want to keep playing.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp promises a good time for turn-based strategy fans and those new to the franchise. It’s nothing but strategy battles sprinkled with some story and the ability to unlock new characters. This might not be the game for you if strategy isn’t your favorite genre because there’s nothing else to do. But if you want a game that pushes your strategy skills, it’s hard to find a better game.
Developer – Nintendo
Publisher – Nintendo
Platforms – Nintendo Switch (reviewed)
Review copy given by publisher
Commanding an army is a tall task but Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp eases you into the process. You command a squad of infantry and vehicles, claiming bases and defeating enemy units. Commanders use abilities to bolster their forces or inconvenience the enemy. Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp does a great job of teaching you how to play while testing your strategic skills.
Both games have been visually upgraded from their Game Boy Advance days, taking advantage of the Switch’s graphics. All units look great and the environments are more detailed. The combat animations are smooth and accurately convey the devastation of attacks. Commander reactions to their success or failure. These animations make you feel the consequences of your actions, celebrating your success or punishing you for a bad decision.
If you haven’t played Advance Wars before or are new to the strategy genre, the tutorial at the beginning has great information. New unit types and situations are frequently added and you are properly informed about them. While this may feel like extended handholding, it ensures you know how to properly utilize your units and vehicles.
This extends to commanders as well. You get to use Andy, Max, and Sami throughout the game, even getting missions unique to them. Each of them has unique abilities that give them an edge in combat. When using these commanders for the first time, you learn about their inherent advantages and how to utilize them. This also applies to enemy commanders, who have their own abilities and advantages that can make your life miserable.
It’s great to see a game walk you through the basics of combat and let you know important information. This isn’t strictly handholding because you are often fighting on your own in the mid-late game. Those missions are a chance to test your strategic skills by coming up with your own strategies. Tutorials may give you a chance to put the battle in your favor, but it’s still possible to make mistakes.
Thanks to the improved graphics, mistakes are upsetting. Seeing your trained soldiers blown away or your vehicles destroyed is heart-wrenching. Fortunately, there is a rewind mechanic that allows you to restart a turn and choose different actions. If the battle is completely lost, you can also restart a battle by resetting it from the beginning. Ensuring that there’s always an option to retry makes it easy for beginners to play.
The ability to play with others online is also great for organizing multiplayer sessions. You can choose the commanders you have unlocked and purchased while playing on a variety of maps. It’s fun to test your skills against each other and practice learning how to utilize your commanders. Thanks to the wide variety of maps, there’s lots of replay value and opportunity to challenge your friends.
Playing through the story of both games will also take around 25 hours. The story isn’t anything special though you do get the chance to choose some of your battles. Most of the story is about fighting battles in unique situations with some story sprinkled in. If you struggle with the game, it’s easy to forget about the story because you are frustrated with your progress.
Thankfully the game never puts you in an unwinnable situation. While the odds can seem unfair at times with the enemy seemingly unaffected by obstacles, winning is possible. Rather than giving you an easy answer, you are forced to make careful and planned decisions. Understanding your commander’s capabilities and what your units can do is essential for victory. It helps that you can change commanders to give you a taste of your preferred strategy.
The downside is that there is little in the way of mini-games or the story to vary things up. The only activity is combat with everything else taking a backseat. You can unlock music tracks and images as a bonus, but most of the time you will be unlocking new commanders and maps. If you aren’t into strategy or are getting tired of the game, it’s easy to put the game down after a while.
If you want to extend your time playing, your only option is the War Room and configuring different maps. There are almost endless possibilities to configure a situation that challenges you in different ways. Fighting against enemies and honing your strategic skills helps if you have friends who enjoy the game as well.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp promises a good time for turn-based strategy fans and those new to the franchise. It’s nothing but strategy battles sprinkled with some story and the ability to unlock new characters. This might not be the game for you if strategy isn’t your favorite genre because there’s nothing else to do. But if you want a game that pushes your strategy skills, it’s hard to find a better game.
