E3 06: Panzer Tactics DS

LOS ANGELES--Take Advance Wars and meld it with the wargame classic Panzer Generals, and you'll get something that looks quite like Panzer Tactics DS, a simple yet deep game that should appeal to fans of turn-based tactics game, as well as wargamers in general.

Set in World War II, Panzer Tactics DS will let you play as the Axis, the Western Allies, and the Red Army over a variety of campaigns. The game takes advantage of the Nintendo DS's touch screen by letting you control everything using the stylus. Click on a unit, and you'll get a control menu around it, letting you choose special powers and abilities. Click and drag, and you'll move a unit around the map, or you can just click on the unit and click on where you want it to go. Meanwhile, the top screen shows can display statistics and unit information, including the detailed numbers that hardcore gamers love.

Battles are all resolved on the bottom screen. You won't have any input into them once they start--you just watch them unfold, with the odds displayed on the top screen. That's not to say there's no tactical depth in the game. Terrain affects the outcome. Put infantry against tanks on open ground, and the infantry serve as speed bumps. Have that same battle in mountainous terrain, and the infantry can dish out some hurt on the tanks.

You gain fame points throughout the game, and you can use those to recruit captains to join you. You can assign captains to units, and they'll boost that unit, as well as exude a command radius around them to help out other units. The enemy has captains as well, so you'll need to use special units such as commandos or stealth units to take them out. Or you can do other things, like sabotage the enemy's fuel supply and strand them deep in your territory.

Panzer Tactics DS will ship with a tutorial and a four-player multiplayer support, which entails hotseat and Wi-Fi ad hoc play, as well as online play. That's exciting, since it can be hard for wargamers to find fellow wargamers, but thanks to the online play, you'll be able to have one central location to meet. There will also be ladders and matchmaking online, as well. It all sounds good, and the game is scheduled to ship this fall.