Before picking up Advance Wars, I didn’t know much about it. All I basically knew was that it was a strategy game, and a good one at that. At this point I’ve gone through all the training missions and the first 2 missions in the campaign. Only one word can describe this game. And that word is “astonishing.” It’s so excellent.

The graphics are simple and nothing breath-taking, but they fit very well and the style is excellent. The sound is the same. It’s nice but there is nothing special.

Gameplay, on the other hand, is phenomenal. I haven’t played as addictive a strategy game since StarCraft came out for the PC way back when. Again, it’s also pretty simple. But the depth is incredible. There are so many things to consider while fighting the enemy. The game is pure concentrated fun packed into a tiny little Game Boy Advance cartridge. The controls as well are very good. Nothing ground-breaking (not that there really could be). They are very functional and the menus are easy to understand and the game is easy to play (though the game is not easy itself).

I’m thoroughly impressed with Advance Wars, and then some! This is easily one of the best, if not the best GBA game released yet.