Advance Wars is a game that debuted on the Game Boy Advance a few months ago, and is one of the best that I've played for the system. This game, though a war game, is not inappropriate for young children. It is not bloody and there is no bad language. Young kids might have problems with the huge element of strategy though, because one wrong move could spell doom for your team. The game is one where you must move units about a map, and get into fights with bands of enemy troops. Each unit group starts with ten hit points, and five of that unit type. Every time two hp. is lost though, you lose a unit. For example, if you have three hit points, you would have two units, one injured. If eight hit points, then four units. You usually, for most missions at least, must decimate the enemy force or capture their headquarters.

The game starts where you can't even do campaign mode. You must complete Field Training with your instructor, Nell. It takes a little while for a beginner, but eventually you'll do it. Then you can start Campaign Mode. Your starting CO, or Commanding Officer, is Andy, a young boy who is good at fixing stuff. All Co's have a special CO Power to help you, that you can do after a certian amount of battling. Andy's is Hyper Repair, which gives all units back two health and makes their attack longer for one turn. Your team is the Orange Star team and you fight Olaf's Blue Moon Team to start off. Eventually you run into different teams with different CO's, and you also get Sami and Max to fight for you. The Campaign progresses and climaxes at the extremely hard last battles against Sturm. It is fun, but a little tedious.

There are other modes, such as the War Room, a skirmish type place, and there is a multiplayer mode where you can fight with four friends and thier GBA's. This game is very fun and addictive, and will prove hard enough to keep older games working hard, and easy enough for the younger ones who want to play. I recommend this to anyone with a GBA, and I must say that I really liked this game.