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Battalion Wars
| Battalion Wars | |
| File:BW boxart.png Boxart of the first Battalion Wars game | |
| Developer | Kuju Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| System | GameCube |
| Rating | "T" for Teen |
| Release Date | US - September 20, 2005 JP - October 27, 2005 EU - December 9, 2005 |
Battalion Wars is a spin-off game of the Famicom Wars series. Originally titled Advance Wars: Under Fire, it was renamed in order to reinforce the many differences from the handheld games.
Story
For decades, the neighboring countries of the Western Frontier and the Tundra Territories have been locked in an uneasy ceasefire, with only a small Demilitarized Zone separating the two nations. However, this fragile peace is disrupted when Tundra launches a misguided pre-emptive strike on the Frontier that escalates into a global war.
Gameplay
The game mixes real-time strategy with third-person-shooter action. The player can take control of any unit under their command by using the C-Stick to select the unit type, then pressing the Z button. The C-Stick can be used to select all units, unit types, or individual units. Once a unit is selected, the X and Y buttons can be used to issue commands. During combat, the L button can be used to lock onto enemy units.
Although the game is mostly action-oriented, strategy is key to completing each mission. Many missions require assigning certain units to eliminate potential risks to other units. Like with the Advance Wars series, certain units have advantages and disadvantages in relation to other units.
The game contains twenty missions throughout the campaign where the player takes the role of the Western Frontier. By achieving a high average score in each of the four sub-campaigns, four additional bonus missions can be unlocked. In these bonus missions, the player has the opportunity to command each of the other four factions, each time fighting from an alternative perspective on a mission. However, the game lacks any other mode of gameplay aside from the single-player campaign.
In relation to Advance Wars
Considering the game's origin with Famicon Wars, there are still many similarities with the handheld games.
- The game features Commanding Officers like the Advance Wars series. However, these COs only provide mission intel and story-related cutscenes. They do not provide any special powers to the units under their command.
- Although ground forces and air units are available, naval units are absent from this game.
- Some missions will require the player's foot soldiers to capture flags in order to reclaim enemy-held facilities. Unlike the Advance Wars games, there is no opportunity to capture cities or gather funds. The player can receive additional units, but each facility only supplies a certain unit, while the player has no say in which unit appears.
- The nations of the Battalion Wars world can be considered the console game counterparts of the Advance Wars nations. The Western Frontier resembles Orange Star, the Tundran Territories are similar to Blue Moon, and the Solar Empire can be considered a parallel of Yellow Comet. Based on historic Germany, Xylvania is the closest counterpart to Green Earth.
The Sequel
A sequel to Battalion Wars, Battalion Wars 2, was released in 2007 for the Nintendo Wii. This newest game in the series added naval units, a new nation (the Anglo Isles), and a multi-player mode.
