Review: Panzer Tactics DS
What is it?
Panzer Tactics DS is a turn-based strategy game from Austrian developer Sproing, set in World War II. The game follows a single campaign that’s segmented into three parts, starting with the Axis drive forward into Poland, continuing with Russia’s involvement, and finally culminating with the Allied intervention. The game boasts a surprising variety of multiplayer modes to choose from, including several options for online play via Nintendo Wifi Connection.
How does it play?
The touch screen on the DS is particularly suited to this type of game. Unfortunately, the size of the screen makes things more of an issue than it needs to. The precision of the stylus is countered by the fact that I had trouble determining where I could send my units. Particularly with longer range units, such as planes, I found myself having difficulty placing them. A zoom mode would have gone a long way to resolving this… selecting a unit could scale the map back a little so the player can see further.
Turns are long, particularly at the beginning when you’ve got a lot of units available, but the space between them is acceptably brisk. The battle sequences shown during attacks are fun and brief, so you don’t spend a lot of time waiting for your turn to come back. Despite the fact that there are only a few dozen missions spread over the three difficulty levels, the game is lengthy due to the expansiveness of the missions and the optional objectives, which earn you more fame, which is currency that can be used to upgrade your forces.
This game is not at all for the novice player. Even the game’s tutorial took some effort to complete, and the explanation of how to do certain things might not make sense, even after repeated readings. For example, even after reading the manual and the tutorial, it took me over an hour to figure out how to load my provided troops into the plane. Do I step on the plane? Do I need to be adjacent? Does the plane need to be on the airport? Do the units? It turns out you place the troop on the airport and turn the troop’s unit into a plane unit, and then fly them elsewhere and convert them back, while I was trying to load my infantry onto a bomber. It seems my Warcraft experience will get me nowhere in this game.
How does it look and sound?
The menus are nicely styled, well animated and easy to read. The FMV of various war scenes running on the top screen is a nice touch.
Despite being very detailed, the units all look very generic, making them hard to tell apart. The main way to distinguish enemies on the map is by a tiny flag icon on each one, but I was surprised how many nations in this era had flags with a cross on them, so I spent a lot of time hunting through groups of units for specific types. It seems that in their effort to create as much realism as possible, the designers fell short on personality in the visuals. The need for detail means the decision was made to go with all sprite-based graphics, so the game lacks some of that flash that a number of the game’s 3D contemporaries enjoy.
The sound effects are reasonably good, and the music is surprisingly great, but there is very little of it. In the hours I spent playing individual missions, I started to wonder if the music would change, no matter how nice it sounded.
How is the replay value?
Once you’ve completed the lengthy campaign, you’re left with the multiplayer, which is clearly the point of this game. If you have friends to play with who own a copy of the game, and you’ve got a LOT of time to spend on it, you’ll be set. I unfortunately did not have that luxury. The other multiplayer options are pretty difficult to organize. The online play options are extensive and varied, but the logistics of pulling together an online game like this, when handhelds are better suited to shorter play sessions, seems counterproductive in such a niche product.
Is it worth it?
I will say yes, but only under specific conditions. If you’re a hardcore WWII enthusiast, you’ll probably enjoy the game. The attention to detail is impressive. If you’re a serious turn-based strategy fan, and you like the warfare theme, you’ll enjoy the game a great deal. The challenge level is very high, and casual strategy fans like myself are likely to find themselves overwhelmed quickly. If you have someone local to you who will own a copy of the game and play it with you, you’re going to enjoy the game more than anyone else.
So, if you’re this kind of hard-core war strategy gamer, I’ll rate the game a four out of five, particularly if you’ve got someone to play it with. For the average player, I score it a three. Most handheld strategy gamers would be better served by Advance Wars.
Recent Comments