I was originally going to write sort of a round-up of Game Boy Advance games you could play while sitting in class, but I got my hands on Advance War 2: Black Hole Rising and couldn't put it down. It is one of the best games of the year on any platform.
First Impression
I didn't really know what to expect going into this game. It's prequel enjoyed some amazing success and won a few awards, but other than that, I didn't know anything about this game.
After getting through the first mission, I was thinking to myself, "Self, you gotta be kidding me. This game is too easy." That, my friends, is the understatement of the year. By the fourth mission, I was swearing like a sailor reeling in a huge marlin.
Gameplay
AW2 is more than just your basic turn-based strategy game. The AI is what really sets it apart from the rest. You have to really out-think the computer to defeat some of the harder missions. You never play the same game twice.
You take control of different commanding officers from the five different countries that are being attacked by the Black Hole Army. Each CO has their very own fighting style and attitude, but ultimately how you attack rests on your soldiers.
Like with most games today, AW2 has a power-up feature that gives your units more strength and firepower. For instance, there is a power-up that will increase your firing range by three times of what it was.
To add to the strategy of the game, the opponent also has the CO power-up abilities. This is what annoyed me, just when I thought I was winning, my opponent would power-up and increase its defense and then beat the crap out of me.
So you have a few friends with a Game Boy and a connector cable but they don't own AW2, fear not because all you need is the one game pak for up to four players. You can create custom maps to challenge your friends then give them a copy of the map.
Sound
Considering that the sound is coming from a Game Boy, you can really put too much stock into it. The music probably stands out more than anything. It's nothing to really write home to mom about, but coming from a Game Boy, it does the job.
Graphics
Sticking with the Game Boy factor, the graphics actually are done really well. They are a bit cartoony, but that's what adds to the appeal of the game. I'd like to compare it to the Worms series in that the game looks real cute, but an extremely difficult game lies underneath it. The characters look like your basic anime that you've seen all over the place, but packaged the way it is, it just works.
Final Word
Like I said before, Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising is absolutely amazing. I was totally surprised at how deep and hard it can get.
One word of warning: Be prepared to be up for hours because that's what this game does to you. It sucks you in and never lets you go. Go out and buy it today.
Ryan Eilders is the Webmaster and video games reporter for the ASU Web Devil. You can reach him at ryan.eilders@asu.edu.
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