14 DAY TRIAL // EndWar, the latest strategy title in Ubisoft's long line of Tom Clancy titles, is shaping up to be a very promising game. Placing the player as a commander of a huge army which wages war in a futuristic world may not sound very interesting, as a lot of other games have approached it, but the key feature is that you can command your units by using your voice. No more button mashing until your controller becomes obsolete, just say the orders into the headset and your units will follow.
Although it was slated for release on November 4 only for the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3, with a PC version still not having a firm release date, Ubisoft announced that the game would also be coming to the PlayStation Portable and Nintendo DS. Quite an interesting decision because Ubisoft made it quite clear that the game would not be available on any handheld console due to the technical limitation imposed by the hardware.
But don't think that it will be the same experience found on high end consoles; sadly, the voice control feature will be scrapped and replaced by a new kind of turn based strategy system. This system will consist of a normal RTS (Real Time Strategy) map on which the players will issue their separate orders in the beginning and then watch how they are carried out by the units simultaneously. Players will have the option to control three different factions in this futuristic World War III: the U.S. Joint Strike Force, the European Enforcers Corps or the Russian Spetsnaz Guards Brigade. These three single storylines will be interwoven and will offer a gaming experience unseen on the two handheld consoles.
Here are the features of the two games:
Turn-based strategy with a twist: Simultaneous move and attack phases make the experience as intense and authentic as real-time strategy. Three campaigns, one for each faction, with increasingly challenging battle scenarios and objectives. Over 20 units and vehicles per faction including ground, air and naval units. Units gain experience in combat, dramatically improving their combat performance. Two-player versus multiplayer mode, including additional missions specifically designed for multiplayer battles. Easy-to-pick-up mission editor: Create and share your custom battlefields and battle scenarios to play solo or against another player. Full stylus control on Nintendo DS.