UniWar promises a lot – this turn-based combat game is looking to take the crown of strategy king in the Symbian world, having already put up a strong and arguably successful challenge on other platforms. Admittedly there's not a huge amount of competition on the platform, but that doesn’t stop UniWar stepping up and doing everything right.
Download the game and old hands might be a bit worried about the code and how suitable it will be for Symbian. This is not only a Java-based application, but it's one that runs on multiple platforms. Previous that’s been a big waved flag that something in the package is going to upset you.
Thankfully that’s not the case. There are certain apps that show the potential of Java in providing games that are easily mistaken for those coded just like native applications. UniWar joins that legion. From a developer and coding point of view this is an almost faultless application.
Even though every single convention of the turn-based strategy game is here with just a little tweak, it is programmed well, with no compromise because this is a mobile platform. If you’ve experienced titles like Advanced Wars on the Nintendo DS and Gameboy, then you know what to expect – and you'll be impressed.
You have a playing field split into a grid (in this game it’s a hexagonal grid, which is much more open and allows true strategic movement, compared to the limits a square grid can supply); these hex tiles make up different terrain which affect your combat units; you have eight different types of units available to you, be it troops, tanks, aerial and aquatic. The exact strengths and weaknesses will depend on which species you chose from… Sapiens (that would be us humans – Ed.), Khraleans or Titans are all available.
So far, as expected. You start with a few troops and bases, and on each turn you receive more money which can be used to generate more combat units on the next turn. You have a number of “actions” available per unit on each turn, and these can be used to capture neutral or enemy bases, move around the map, heal units, attack the enemy or use a special power (such as an EMP burst). Once you use up your actions on every unit, it’s the end of the turn and time for your opponent to move. All this continues until you hit the victory condition, which is normally to capture all the enemy bases.
Everything here is as smooth as I would expect on a desktop computer strategy game – the terrain offers a huge number of options to move around, there is never a simple and telegraphed way to win the level, it genuinely is a challenge in every level. Of course, as your skill increases and you start to work out your own tactics, the computer AI level needs to be increased to keep up the challenge.
For the solo player, you can start a single battle on one map, just to get used to the game, or you can start a campaign that has a series of linked battles that tell a story. This is going to keep you occupied for some time, and the developers are to be commended for providing a strong single player challenge.
If that was it, I’d be a happy little strategy bunny. But it’s not.
UniWar provides two multi-player options. The first is a simple vs mode, where you pass your smartphone between the two players taking turns, which is nice, but does mean you need to have someone close to you that wants to play a strategy game – that’s probably a tough challenge.
The second option is to play online. While you can stay anonymous, if you register a name and email address, you’ll not only be able to keep your settings and preferences between matches, but you’ll be alerted when your opponent makes a move.
Rather than have to wait till everyone is online, UniWar invokes the spirit of “play by mail.” You make your move, and wait up to one day for your opponent to make their move. When that happens, you get an email alert (if registered) and a note that it is your move when you enter the Mul tiplayer “Lobby” from the menu. Games may take a few days to play through, but you can have more than one game on the go at any one time. Much like chess rankings, you’ll get points added or deducted depending on how well or badly you do – and you’ll always be matched with players of a similar score to keep your opponents matched to your skill level.
It’s slow, but patience is a virtue, and turns UniWar from something you could burn through in a week, to something that stays with you, dipping in and out of the game on a daily basis for a few minutes. And with it being multiplatform, you have the widest pool of opponents possible. I’m seeing between 100 and 300 people online whenever I log in.
I also love that as you play online, there is an onscreen indication of how much data you have been using.
UniWar delivers on the promise of an in-depth strategy game. It delivers a connected online multiplayer game. It makes war on your mobile fun, exciting, and challenging. The genre has limited appeal, but for those that want a mobile version, I doubt there is a finer game available at the moment.
The king might not have actually existed before, but long live this king of strategy.
-- Ewan Spence, April 2010.