Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Front Mission on the Nintendo DS delivers a deeply engaging turn-based strategy experience centered around tactical mech combat. Players command customizable wanzers—bipedal war machines—across grid-based battlefields, using the DS stylus to navigate menus, select weapons, and execute precise movements. This control scheme feels intuitive and responsive, allowing quick access to unit stats, weapon loadouts, and terrain information without interrupting the flow of battle.

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One of the game’s standout features is its dual-campaign structure. You can choose to fight for the Oceania Community Union (O.C.U.) mercenary outfit led by Royd Clive or join the Unified Continental States (U.C.S.) Special Forces under Kevin Greenfield. Each faction offers unique missions, mechs, and narrative viewpoints, effectively doubling replay value and providing fresh strategic challenges. Managing repair costs, ammunition, and mech upgrades adds an additional layer of resource strategy that veterans of the series will appreciate.

The pacing of engagements strikes a solid balance between thoughtful planning and pulse-pounding firefights. Early missions serve as a tutorial for core mechanics—positioning, weapon range, and armor types—while later encounters introduce specialized enemies like helicopters and heavily armored tanks. By the time you unlock advanced modules and weaponry, you’ll find yourself making tough tactical decisions about mech configurations and squad composition, ensuring each mission feels fresh and rewarding.

Graphics

Despite the Nintendo DS’s hardware limitations, Front Mission presents a polished visual package that captures the gritty appeal of mech warfare. Battlefields are rendered in bright, clear graphics that emphasize unit silhouettes and terrain obstacles, ensuring that strategic elements remain visible even on the DS’s smaller screen. Animations for mech movements and weapon fire are fluid and impactful, lending weight to each explosion and armored punch.

Yoshitaka Amano’s involvement in graphic art elevates the game’s presentation, particularly in character portraits and cutscene illustrations. His distinct, painterly style gives each leader and squad member a memorable visage, further immersing players in the political and personal stakes of the conflict on Huffman Island. Story panels and dialogue windows are cleanly designed, with legible text and well-placed portraits that reinforce the narrative tone.

The user interface strikes a fine balance between detail and simplicity. Health bars, ammo counts, and status effects are displayed prominently without cluttering the screen, and context-sensitive prompts make it easy to issue commands with a quick stylus tap. While the overworld map and menus aren’t as visually spectacular as some modern titles, they’re functional, streamlined, and in keeping with the series’ tradition of prioritizing strategy over flash.

Story

Set in 2090 on Huffman Island—neutral territory carved out between the superpowers of the O.C.U. and the U.C.S.—Front Mission delivers a classic tale of political intrigue and back-alley alliances. After a two-year war in 2070 ended with a fragile peace, a mysterious attack on a U.C.S. factory reignites hostilities and plunges the island back into chaos. From the outset, you’re drawn into a complex web of espionage, betrayal, and shifting loyalties that keeps you guessing about who really profits from renewed conflict.

Choosing between Royd Clive’s Canyon Crows or Kevin Greenfield’s Black Hounds offers two distinct perspectives on the war. Royd’s mercenary ethos and willingness to negotiate with shadowy backers contrast sharply with Kevin’s disciplined, patriotic outlook, providing nuanced commentary on the morality of warfare. Key characters from each side undergo meaningful development, with personal motivations and relationships woven into the broader geopolitical drama.

Dialogue is concise yet evocative, punctuated by occasional voice clips that add emotional heft to pivotal moments. While some plot twists follow familiar tropes—peace talks gone awry, secret superweapons in development—the game’s willingness to explore the human cost of mechanized combat gives its narrative staying power. By the final mission, you’ll understand why this franchise has endured and why the stakes feel genuinely personal.

Overall Experience

Front Mission on DS is a standout entry in the long-running series, successfully translating mech-based tactical combat to a handheld format without sacrificing depth. Whether you’re a veteran strategist or new to the genre, the dual campaigns, robust customization options, and finely tuned difficulty curve keep you invested through dozens of hours of gameplay. The inclusion of DS wireless multiplayer further extends replayability by allowing head-to-head mech battles against friends.

While the graphics and audio are tailored to the DS’s constraints, they never feel inadequate; instead, they complement the game’s deliberate pacing and strategic focus. Loading times are minimal, and transitions between menus, battles, and cutscenes feel seamless. The stylus-driven interface remains one of the best implementations on the platform, ensuring that commanding your squad never becomes a chore.

Ultimately, Front Mission offers a rich blend of tactical challenge, narrative intrigue, and mech customization that will satisfy fans of strategy games and sci-fi alike. Its thoughtful design choices—dual narratives, resource management, and clear presentation—make it an essential purchase for DS owners seeking a mature, rewarding strategy experience. For anyone curious about mech warfare or drawn to stories of conflict and camaraderie, Front Mission delivers on all fronts.

Retro Replay Score

7.3/10