Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising
There are some sequels that can't compare to the originals. Or, just as bad, are only as good as the originals. Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising is neither of these.
The Advance Wars series puts you in command of any of the four nations on the fictitous planet where you will do battle with all of the other nations. Each CO (Commanding Officer) that you can choose has an active ability that affects all of their units (Max's tanks, for example, are more powerful than the average tank), a normal power that is charged by giving and receiving damage (Andy's power heals 2 HP from all of his units) and, new to the sequel, a superpower. The superpowers are generally powered up versions of their normal powers but in some cases they will not only add to the ability of the normal power but will also give you a special effect for the duration of your turn (Sam's superpower allows her infantry to instantly capture any city that they come across, regardless of their health).
In Story Mode, you take control of the Orange Star's armies and try to fend off the attacks of the Black Hole army. After Orange Star is safe, you move onto harder missions protecting the other nations (Blue Earth, Yellow Comet and Green Earth) from the advancing threat of the Black Hole army. You accomplish this by building your armies, and attacking your opponent. Each unit is different and must be used to their full advantage if you want to win. Infantry and Mechanical Infantry are the only units that can capture cities (And cities get you money each turn), but the infantry units are easily killed by a number of other units. To protect them, you would need tougher units, perhaps Tanks or Battle Copters. Just remember that every unit has a disadvantage, be it slow movement, limited ammunition, or terrain difficulties. All of these things add up to a truly good strategy game. If you want to try it though, you gotta have patience. Just like any other game of its type.
Here's the bottom line though. If you like games that require tactics rather than fast reflexes, don't hesitate to get Advance Wars 2.
Graphics: 8 (For a GB game, they're pretty decent)
Sound: 6
Story: 7 (The Black Hole army bit is interesting but it won't draw you in.)
Enemies: 8 (The AI will make you want to break the game in two, but there is always a way to win)
Settings: 7 (After awhile, you start to lose interest in what exactly the map looks like and really just acknowledge what units can move where. That's not a bad thing though.)
Battles: 10
DarthSupero's Overall Score (out of 100) for Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising: 84
Written: April 20th 2005
Reviewer: Musa Mack
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