Product Description

Almost 90% of mankind has been killed off following a devastating meteor strike that has caused a massive dust cloud to blot out the sun. Scattered survivors pick through the wreckage, and the remnants of several military superpowers patrol the ravaged landscape, some factions protecting the innocent while the others prey upon them. The two rival world superpowers, Rubinelle and Lazuria, continue to fight among the ruins of their countries, the few surviving military leaders of each side carrying on the conflict begun before the catastrophe. In their wake, various warlords rise to power, seizing scarce food rations from the defenseless survivors and attempting to assert their dominance in the absence of law and order. Follow the Rubinelle COs Will, Brenner, and Lin as they embark on a mission to rescue as many of the survivors as possible, with the help of the mysterious Isabella, an amnesiac girl who seems to know vital military secrets, and various other sympathetic factions.
ESRB Rated E10 For Ages 10 and Up

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #867 in Video Games
• Brand: Nintendo
• Released on: 2008-01-22
• ESRB Rating: Everyone 10+
• Platform: Nintendo DS

Features

• New characters and settings
• Online battles via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
• Map trading

From the Manufacturer
Advance Wars has been reborn. Set amid a world in chaos and boasting new characters and settings, the latest game in the series features a gritty look, an engaging storyline and online battles and map trading. It's the most stunning Advance Wars ever.

• New COs and units, realistic graphics and a new environment bring the world of Advance Wars to life like never before. After a cataclysmic meteor strike exterminates 90 percent of the population, the survivors must battle barbarians, disease and megalomaniacal strongmen who seek only to secure their own power.
• Strategy fans will rejoice over the long-awaited inclusion of online play, which promises to add almost unlimited depth and replay ability. Hop on Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and battle against a friend halfway across the world, or use the powerful map editor to create, trade and battle on custom maps.

Game storyline:
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin features a new group of COs and supporting characters, as well as a new setting. After a terrible asteroid strike that leaves few survivors, the world is in chaos. Toxic dust clouds are choking out the food supply. New diseases strike without warning. Terror runs rampant as people do whatever is necessary for their own survival. Against this background, one small band fights to restore human dignity in a world gone mad, but the mission seems impossible. Their own country is being led by a dictator. Their former enemy thinks only of revenge. And behind the scenes, a scientist with unbelievable power dreams of eliminating the human race once and for all.

Game-play Modes:

• Single-player: Players battle their way through a lengthy campaign and the twists and turns of the main story.
• Free Battle: Players challenge themselves or up to three friends on more than 170 two-, three- and four-player maps. When playing with friends, players use one Nintendo DS and pass it among players.
• Battle: Fight up to three other players on more than 170 maps via local wireless communication or Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Each player must have his or her own game card.
• Design Room: Players use the touch screen to design their own maps, controlling every aspect from troop placement to terrain features.
• Trade Maps: Link to a friend via local wireless communication or Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and swap topographical masterpieces.

Special powers/weapons/moves/features:
Multiplayer has always been the backbone of the Advance Wars game play, and the addition of playing via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection makes it even better. Here's a brief overview of the online experience:

• Exchange Friend Codes with a close circle of military geniuses, then declare war against one of them over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. While battling, players can communicate with each other using full voice chat.
• Players pit their skills against the world as they take on random players. They can choose to fight against people of their own skill level or engage whoever dares to take them on.
• Advance Wars: Days of Ruin contains one of the most robust map-creation systems ever seen. Use the stylus to paint and create the perfect map, then send it to a friend for a test run. It's easy, fun and very, very addictive.

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Customer Reviews

The latest and greatest Advance Wars
Being a veteran of the 3 prior games (Advance Wars 1 & 2 for the GBA and Dual Strike for the DS), my expectations are very high for the latest title in this fantastic strategy franchise. I'm happy to report that this Advance Wars satisfies most of those expectations. The addition of several new units adds even more depth to an already deep gaming experience. Surprisingly, a few units were taken out as well to keep things pure and simple, and I applaud the developer's brave decision which ultimately is for the best.

A new take on war gives this game a fresh feeling, although feeling familiar at the same time. It sheds it's cutesy, almost comical approach to war, for a more serious and rugged post-apocalyptic setting.

The addition of the CO system adds an exciting new layer to the already deep gameplay. This time around you can actually have a CO out in the field in the fray with your army. The dynamics of boosting your CO bar in order to use your CO power have been modified dramatically.

The online portion is also fleshed out: you can battle with others online, and you can upload and download maps from Nintendo WiFi Connection to keep the gameplay experience fresh through the addition of new maps. Voice chat through VOIP is also present, but you can only do this with people in your friends list, so don't expect Halo-like trash talk fests. :)

The only drawback is the lack of unlockables (which to me was icing on the Advance Wars cake). Overall this is a worthy addition to a very high Advance Wars pedigree, and a title that's worth adding to your videogame library. 5 stars.


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*Addendum*: So far I have clocked in 51 hours into this game, and I see no end in sight. I am completely hooked, even more so than the three previous games combined. I find myself downloading recommended maps every day and creating new ones every few days while whistling Gage's and Brenner's BGM. This is truly the best Advance Wars yet.

Outstanding War Strategy
Days of Ruin is the second Advance Wars title released for the DS, the first being the now hard-to-find Advance Wars: Dual Strike. With over 120 hours logged on the first game, Dual Strike provided excellent entertainment for under 25 cents per hour. Based on my first 5 hours on this new release, I'm sure I'll get the same value out of Days of Ruin. One can easily spend over 100 hours completing every map, mission, and rank in the game.

Days of Ruin is functionally similar to the original, keeping most everything that made the original so addictive. Still, Days of Ruin departs from previous Advance Wars titles in enough ways to keep the new game fresh. As previously, a campaign mode provides a story-line series of increasingly difficult maps for the one-player gamer. Multi-player modes are also available including a Nintendo Wi-Fi mode that allows you to challenge players around the globe. The artificial intelligence of the computer players is enough to challenge anyone, but the ready availability of human players makes the replay value of this title nearly infinite.

Bottom line:
Outstanding value.
Outstanding fun.
Outstanding replay value.

Spectacular
Proving that change can be quite good, Nintendo's long running portable turn-based strategy series Advance Wars gets a fresh coat of paint with Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. Taking a more mature themed storyline, Advance Wars: Days of Ruin still features pretty much the same tried and true gameplay that fans of the series will come to expect and will be quite easy for them to pick up and play. Besides a more mature themed storyline, Days of Ruin also features a more comic-style artistic design scheme and a less cartoony feel to it as well, making it a pleasure to look at as well as play. Sadly, the Shop that was in previous installments of the series has been done away with, but what we get instead is some spectacular multiplayer and Wi-Fi options that only up the replay value even more so than ever before. The single player mode, which has been shortened when compared to Dual Strike, is still great as well, but the multiplayer options are where the most fun is to be had. While there's really nothing new in terms of the overall gameplay mechanics of Advance Wars, Days of Ruin remains a spectacular strategy game that delivers on all fronts. All in all, fans of the Advance Wars series will should cry with joy once they pop in Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, which is undoubtedly one of the best installments in the series, and one of the best strategy games and multiplayer experiences you'll have on your DS.