1991 video game
Game Boy Wars
[a]
is a
wargame
developed by
Nintendo
and
Intelligent Systems
and published by Nintendo for the
Game Boy
in Japan only in 1991. It is a portable follow-up to the 1988
Family Computer
wargame
Famicom Wars
, making it the second game in Nintendo's
Wars
series. A series of sequels to the original
Game Boy Wars
were produced by
Hudson Soft
.
Gameplay
[
edit
]
Two countries, Red Star and White Moon, are warring against each other. The player takes control of forces from either on hexagonal maps with square tiles. As the commander, the player must direct their forces to either destroy all the enemy forces or capture the enemy's capital city. In pursuit of this goal, the player attempts to take control of the cities, factories, airports, and harbors on each map. There are a total of 36 maps in the game.
The player and their opponent (the CPU or another player) take turns (or phases) in moving their armies, which can deploy up to 50 units. Each of the units can be given an order, such as attacking enemy units, assisting friendly units, or conquering. Units can be land, sea, or air units, and can be deployed from near the player's capital using funds obtained from any of the player's properties. Land units can be sent out from cities or factories, air units from airports, and vessels from harbors. There are 24 different kinds of units that can be deployed by both armies.
Reception
[
edit
]
GamesRadar
listed the
Game Boy Wars
series as one of the titles they wanted in the
3DS
Virtual Console
.
[1]
Sequels
[
edit
]
A series of sequels to the original
Game Boy Wars
were later published several years after the original game was released. These sequels were developed and published by
Hudson Soft
instead of
Nintendo
and
Intelligent Systems
.
Game Boy Wars Turbo
[
edit
]
Game Boy Wars Turbo
is an enhanced version of the original
Game Boy Wars
that was released on June 24, 1997. The main new feature in
Game Boy Wars Turbo
is that the CPU now has a better decision-making algorithm during its turns, allowing battles to proceed swifter than in the original.
Turbo
also features 50 new maps, as well as
Super Game Boy
support. Like some of Hudson's other Game Boy games at this time, the game was released exclusively in a tin, rather than the cardboard boxes of most Game Boy games.
An alternate version of
Game Boy Wars Turbo
was released as a promotional giveaway by
Weekly Famitsu
featuring a set of maps submitted by readers of the magazine.
Game Boy Wars 2
[
edit
]
Game Boy Wars 2
, the second of the
Game Boy Wars
sequels by Hudson Soft, was released on November 20, 1998. It features support for the
Super Game Boy
and
Game Boy Color
. The CPU's decision-making algorithm has once again been improved and the game now displays which spaces the player can move into or attack when they're moving a unit, allowing for a clearer decision-making process for the player. There are 54 new maps in
Game Boy Wars 2
.
Game Boy Wars 3
[
edit
]
Game Boy Wars 3
, the third and final
Game Boy Wars
sequel produced by Hudson, was released on August 30, 2001 (a month before the North American release of
Advance Wars
) for the
Game Boy Color
. The working title during the game's development was
Game Boy Wars Pocket Tactics
.
[1]
The gameplay of
Game Boy Wars 3
is a departure from the previous
Game Boy Wars
titles, being modeled after the
Nectaris
series of war simulators that were also produced by Hudson. For example, indirect attack units can now move and attack at the same time in one turn. In contrast to the previous
Game Boy Wars
titles, having the required fund is not enough to produce certain units. The player must provide construction materials to the factories and cities as well. To do that, the player must deploy construction units to these sites and build the materials. These construction units can be used to cut down trees and create roads.
Game Boy Wars 3
features a Beginner Mode, which gives the player a 16-part tutorial on how to play the game, as well as a Standard Mode in which the player can fight against the CPU or another player in one of 60 maps. There's also a Campaign Mode in which the player must fight through over 45 different maps that are dictated by a storyline, which has several branching points determined by the player's performance. A feature exclusive to the Campaign Mode is the ability to redeploy surviving units from a previous battle into the next one. Units gain experience points through combat, allowing them to be promoted from one of five ranks (D, C, B, A, and S), increasing their strength. Units who reach an S rank can be transformed into a new type of unit.
On release,
Famitsu
magazine scored
Game Boy Wars 3
a 31 out of 40.
[2]
Notes
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Intelligent Systems
| |
---|
Kuju Entertainment
| |
---|
WayForward
| |
---|
|