Glory Days 2 is another title for the DS that I hadn’t heard much of beforehand. Though it seems like a 2D flight simulator/shoot-em-up from the surface, it actually implements an interesting approach to the RTS genre: you never actually command your units as is the case with most RTS titles. However you still have to make important decisions on the fly in order to push your army to victory. And though this isn’t exactly the RTS I’ve been waiting for over the last 3 years, the game’s unique combination of action/RTS is enough to turn my head.
Decision Making on the Fly (while flying)
What’s interesting about Glory Days 2 is that there is so much going on at once. Two lines of tanks, vehicles, and infantry march 2-dimensionally towards one another and are constantly battling at the frontline. Though you don’t control these units (they march at a steady pace and cannot be stopped) you are given purchasing power over them (after the first couple of missions). Money is obtained by capturing buildings across the map via infantry or rescuing civilians along the way with your helicopter or ambulances. The goal is for your line to reach your opponent’s HQ and destroy it.
Whilst all of the above action is ensuing, players take command of an aircraft or helicopter to help sway the battle. The catch is that though RTS is a major part of the game, your piloting prowess is the pivotal part of overpowering your opponent (try saying that 5 times fast). Dodging anti air, timing your bomb runs, dropping paratroopers and eliminating enemy aircraft are all part of the pilot’s mission in this game. Strategy aspects are also evident in action form: Should you bomb the enemy’s tanks or go for their funding supply? Should you be fighting on the front lines or transporting infantry to properties or civilians to your base? It’s factors like these that help to seamlessly combine the two genres into one.
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