It turns out that the game is shaping up to be a rather nice 3D action twist on the traditional turn-based strategy genre that we all know and love -- or hate, depending on your gaming tastes. After a quick title change to finally disassociate itself completely with the Advance Wars franchise, Battalion Wars picks up some of the basic gameplay elements of those good, old-fashioned, turn-based wargames, bringing a fast-paced, energetic hands-on experience to the 'Cube.
Even though the characters and settings are pretty similar to those found in the Advance Wars universe, the similarities stop there. Battalion Wars is all about action -- and quality action, at that. The story sees two erstwhile warring nations in an uneasy state of peace. The perceived bad guys known as the Tundran Territories are lead by Tzar Gorgi and Marshal Nova, whereas the good guys -- the side that you get to play -- are The Western Frontier, lead by the warmongering General Herman.
After a wee while and a decent introduction through cutscenes that detail the state of affairs on both sides, you get to start out on a training mission as a trooper performing field exercises. This serves as the training portion of the game, as well as the instigation of a brewing conflict when a Tundran spy is spotted running away from you character. Sure enough, it seems as though the Tundran army is simply itching for an excuse to fire up its guns, and so you head into a long series of battles comprised of the main campaign scenario.
At first, you'll be running simple missions that familiarize you with the control scheme and terrain, and moves and units that you'll need to master in the long haul. Battalion Wars features many different types of troops, vehicles, and weaponry, all of which have their own strengths and weaknesses. Controlling squads on the ground is a snap, as the game automatically separates different troop types into squads and allows you to quickly jump around selecting whole units at a time.
The commands are kept simple, with either a "follow," "stay," or "attack" order. This allows you to keep focused on the action at hand without having to worry too much about complex button combinations. You'll be able to "hop" around and take personal control of any one of the troops or machines under your command at anytime. This means you can quickly zip around in a combat situation to make sure your guys are doing their intended jobs.
