‘Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp’ certainly captures the spirit of the original Game Boy Advance … [+] games.
Back in the early 2000s, the Advance Wars games on the Game Boy Advance were hugely popular and even beloved. This remake does its best to capture what made those games so special, and in many ways it manages to do just that.
Before the Advance Wars games hit Western shores, the series already had a storied history behind it. Starting with Famicom Wars back in 1988 in Japan, the series was built around quite strict turn-based strategy across a grid.
Multiple games followed on the Game Boy and Super Famicom, all of which were Japan exclusives, until Advance Wars that is.
Developed by Intelligent Systems for the most part, much like their other franchise Fire Emblem, the Wars games were sadly landlocked to Japan. So much like when anime fans were exposed to Gundam Wing for the first time, they had little or no idea about the series that had preceded it.
In some ways this lack of knowledge gave Advance Wars a huge cultural advantage, as it was something entirely new from a Western standpoint and its decades long series of improvements result in a pair of games for the Game Boy Advance that blew Western gamers away.
This new version pretty much recaptures all of that and gives it all a very nice visual upgrade.
Maps are classically grid based with a variety of terrain and obstacles.
Missions are varied and give you a fixed array of units from the off. Each unit has its own advantages and disadvantages, so learning to use them in the right situation against the correct enemy is key.
Some maps also have resources you can manage, such as factories for land-based vehicles and airports for things like helicopters and jet fighters. You even have to manage a quite involved navy at times as well.
There’s a lot going on and the game’s onboarding in terms of tutorials are decently done and should give you a good handle on things. You also get helpful hints if you fail a mission, which is good.
My only complaint at this point, is that the character designs are a bit off and the faux anime approach is a bit jarring. .
It’s not a big deal, but the original designs were great and these don’t quite capture that, at least for me anyway.
COs have special abilities that activate as you undertake each mission.
I may be being overly harsh but compared to the amazing animations you get in the Super Robot Wars games, what we get here could have been better.
Talking of the Super Robot Wars games, Famicom Wars was obviously an influence on the first Super Robot Wars game on the Game Boy back in 1991. While the turn based strategy and grid based map navigation are mostly present, it’s worth clarifying that the Super Robot Wars games are tactical role-playing games.
This means that between missions you have a lot of back-end character and unit management to deal with, from upgrades to various parts you can equip. This results in a continuity of units between missions, which is very different compared to Advance Wars.
In that, you don’t really get to choose what units you go into battle with, nor can you upgrade them beforehand. It’s definitely a purer approach in terms of strategy, as you do have to figure out the strategic puzzle with the resources given to you. However, it may come as a shock if you have played tactical role-playing games beforehand.
As an aside, you can currently play Super Robot Wars V, X, T and 30 on the Switch, and you may want to check them out if Advance Wars manages to hit the spot in terms of gaming strategy.
Overall, Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp is an excellent collection and remake of a pair of highly regarded Game Boy Advance strategy games. This game may look cute and simple in terms of its artstyle, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth in terms of its technical and exacting strategy-based gameplay.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp
Platform: Switch
Developer: WayForward
Publisher: Nintendo
Released: 21st April 2023
Price: $59.99
Score: 8/10
Disclosure: Nintendo sent me a copy of this game for the purposes of this review.
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“Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp,” the fresh reboot of the longstanding turn-based tactics series, brings a pleasant collection of remasters with its new visual polish, updated tutorials, and some other modern features.
The original Advance Wars titles are sure to spark nostalgia in veterans of the genre, and this revamp provides just the right level of maintenance to ensure longtime fans will enjoy the remaster while newcomers to the franchise will have an easy time diving in.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp’ has successfully updated the visuals without losing the series’ traditional charm. The game is packed with a load of content, with dozens of new campaign missions, horde-mode objectives, and skirmish battles to choose from.
The game also includes tutorials to ease new players into the game’s intricacies. The tutorials teach the basics of the turn-based tactics genre, with plenty of in-game context about the different types of units available and their terrain-based strengths and weaknesses.
The experience is bolstered by a new “simultaneous turns” mode that allows players to compete against other people in real-time. The addition of leaderboards provide much-needed incentive to climb the ranks, although this mode should be approached with caution as it can be a bit of a grind.
Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp is sure to be enjoyed by all kinds of players, providing a solid blend of nostalgia and modernity. It’s the perfect entry into the turn-based tactics genre and offers plenty of content to keep even the most seasoned veterans of the genre interested.
