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Battallion Wars 2
Cute units mill about the field. Everything also sounds as merry as can be. But I am not talking about the 'Settlers' here. Otherwise I would have used the word 'swarm'. Cuteness comes first with Battalion Wars 2. Nintendo has put the follow-up to the supremely successful Battalion Wars (GameCube) into the running. Whoever is hoping that this latest version will be a console ported version of Advance Wars – as its predecessor was inexplicably advertised – will be sorely disappointed, because this handheld sequel requires substantially more tactical finesse than its ‘big’ brother.
You control a ‘Commander’ through a virtual battlefield using your Wiimote and the Nunchuck. As befits a Commander, you have subordinates beneath you. But the difference from real war is however striking. Anyone can become Commander. The unit currently under your control can always either shoo the remainder from the battlefield, or it can be allowed to follow at the touch of a button. You can also control each individual item. Each unit has strengths and weaknesses. This much we already know from strategy games. So what makes Battalion Wars 2 so different? The emphasis is on action-loaded game play. The game is clearly tactically influenced – you don’t send infantry against a flame-thrower unit, or a tank against a bazooka unit. That much is already clear.
The game is completely linear and a supervisor from headquarters spurs you on at every turn, telling you what to do. Yet from time to time it is still possible for you to complete secondary missions, which simplify the completion of the primary task. You have a choice. Destroying the hostile artillery cannon on the bridge make it substantially easier to take the enemy base than if you had left those cannon alone.
The program seeks to juggle both tactics and depth, For example, with the statement that you can only use heliports once. The fact that you should use these wisely is drilled into you by a not exactly attractive female commander. Aha.... use these wisely. When I cannot select this or that, what can I provide for my units? I am not completely sure. Furthermore, it is usually only possible to ‘take’ a heliport after a fight, thanks to the aggressive opposing AI. My attempts failed pitifully, however, when enemy units remained in the vicinity.
The battles usually unfold quite chaotically. In some ways, the controls work well. But as soon as a higher number of different opposing combat forces appear on screen, the whole thing degenerates into a wild waving and clicking of the Wiimote. Selecting your own units is however not the problem. This works best on the Wiimote’s joystick. BUT – yes, here comes the big BUT – with more than 6 opposing units, it is down to pure luck when it comes to selecting the correct target. Unfortunately, the game thus shoots itself in the foot, as its tactical requirements thus wither even further.
MS
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