The Wars series, also called Famicom Wars and Advance Wars, is a group of video games that focus on military strategy. These games are mainly created by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo. The series first appeared in Japan in August 1988 with the original Famicom Wars. Later versions were released on the Super Famicom and Game Boy. These early games were only available in Japan until Advance Wars (2001) was released in North America and Europe. Advance Wars was first sold in the United States on September 10, 2001, but its release in Japan and Europe was delayed because of the September 11 attacks. Although it was released in Europe in January 2002, neither of the Game Boy Advance versions of the game was sold in Japan until the Game Boy Wars Advance 1+2 collection, which came out for the Game Boy Advance on November 25, 2004. The popularity of Advance Wars in the West is often seen as a key reason Nintendo brought Intelligent Systems' Fire Emblem series to international markets, as both series use similar tactical gameplay.

In 2005, Advance Wars: Dual Strike was released for the Nintendo DS. This game followed the same basic style as earlier versions but added new features. That same year, Battalion Wars, made by Kuju Entertainment, was released for the GameCube in Japan under the name Totsugeki!! Famicom Wars. This game is considered a spin-off of the main series and is a 3D action real-time strategy game, unlike the turn-based strategy of the main series. A later version, Battalion Wars 2, was released for the Wii two years later. The last major game in the series, Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, was released internationally for the DS in 2008. This game had a more serious tone than earlier titles. Like the two Game Boy Advance games before it, Days of Ruin was canceled in Japan after several delays and was finally released as a downloadable game in 2013. At E3 2021, more than ten years after Days of Ruin was released, a collection of remakes of the two Advance Wars games, called Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp, was announced for the Nintendo Switch. It was planned to release in December 2021, but the release date was later changed to April 8, 2022. However, on March 9, 2022, it was announced that the game would be delayed due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A new release date of April 21, 2023, was set a year later. These remakes were created with the help of WayForward Technologies.

Gameplay

The player acts as a Commanding Officer (CO) in an army, typically from a country named Red Star (later changed to Orange Star for international releases). In Days of Ruin, this country is replaced by Rubinelle (called Laurentia in the European version). In the single-player campaign of Advance Wars games, each level includes a new map and a new opposing CO to defeat. Victory occurs when all enemy units are destroyed, their headquarters is captured, or another victory condition is met. COs take turns recruiting and controlling units on grid-based maps. Available units include infantry, tanks, artillery, bombers, and other military units. Each turn, units can move and/or perform actions, such as attacking or capturing a property. Some actions, like capturing, diving, or loading, can only be done at specific times during the game.

The original Famicom Wars game features two armies: Red Star (later renamed Orange Star, possibly to avoid links to Communism) and Blue Moon. Players can control both armies or compete against an AI opponent. The Game Boy Wars games use a similar system, but the grid squares are shaped like hexagons, each connected to six other squares instead of four. Game Boy Wars also includes a new opposing army called White Moon. Otherwise, the rules remain the same, with Game Boy Wars 3 introducing unit levels and a new resource. Super Famicom Wars, a sequel to Famicom Wars, added Yellow Comet and Green Earth, increasing the number of playable armies to four. It returned to the original square grid-based map style.

The Advance Wars games introduced new features, such as CO Powers, which are special abilities that give temporary advantages, like boosting allied unit strength or damaging enemy units. Black Hole Rising added Super CO Powers, and Dual Strike introduced Tag CO Powers. Conditions like fog of war, rain, and snow affect unit movement and map visibility. Days of Ruin removed many features from earlier Advance Wars games, reducing CO Powers and bringing back a unit level system.

Multiplayer mode is a key part of the Nintendo Wars series, allowing players to compete against friends by choosing a CO and a country. The Advance Wars series and Game Boy Wars 3 include map editors, increasing replayability. The original Famicom Wars allowed two players to compete, while Game Boy Wars supported hotseat multiplayer. The only version without hotseat multiplayer is Game Boy Wars Turbo. The Advance Wars games on the Game Boy Advance used link cables for multiplayer. Online multiplayer was planned for Dual Strike but added later in Days of Ruin. Battalion Wars 2 introduced online multiplayer via the Wii’s Wi-Fi connection, offering three modes and 16 maps. While the multiplayer section was praised, it was criticized for lacking voice chat support.