Advance Wars Dark Conflict review for Nintendo DS

Advance Wars is back with a new instalment, Dark Conflict. The strategy series goes much darker in this iteration, with appropriately bleak visuals for its post-apocalyptic setting. The gameplay itself sees a change from its previous outing - leaner and meaner and with more streamlined combat. We're really impressed by this new look, bleaker Advance Wars, which is why Dark Conflict gets our prestigious HGZine Gold Award. Find out more in our full review now!

Click here to read our Advance Wars Dark Conflict review for Nintendo DS now!

Advance Wars Dark Conflict review for Nintendo DS
E vidently My Chemical Romance have b een on heavy rotation on the Nintendo office radio of late. Dark Conflict – as its name suggest s – is about as bleak as it gets for a first-part y game. It's coloured in the greys and browns of a post-apocalyptic landscape where 90 per cent of Earth's population are dead. Cheer ful stuff, eh? It gets worse, as the remaining survivors are dying from starvation and parasitic diseases, while also under attack from insane megalomaniacs hell-bent on wiping out the last 10 per cent. Yet if at first the pitch-black plot and doom-laden dialogue feel a little depressing, that old Advance Wars magic soon starts to worm its way under your skin.

It's a far cry from the kitchen-sink approach of Advance Wars: Dual Strike, where the rock-solid ruleset was t weaked once too of ten. Dark Conflic t is essentially a series reboot; a stripped-down, leaner, meaner Advance Wars, where each skirmish is not just a Tonka Toy war, but a genuine fight for sur vival. As the story deepens, you'll grow attached to units and charac ters, and the well-ratione d CO powers are rare welcome boosts to your depleted frontline.