Control:  
It takes a little getting used to, but the controls in Army Men are very good and very rewarding. You can move and fire in 8 directions, with ‘A’ firing whatever weapon you are currently armed with, and ‘B’ throwing a grenade (if you possess any), and ‘L’ changes weapons. The tough, but necessary part, is strafing with ‘R.’ It is a little disorienting at first, being that holding down are keeps you facing whichever direction you’re facing, but it is necessary – especially when you’re being confronted by multiple enemies at once. As soon as you have the strafing down, Army Men’s controls become second nature.

Gameplay:  
The adventure puts you in control of one of either Bravo Company Leader, Sarge, or as Ace Reporter Vikki, through 17 enormous environments and sub-levels to explore, while traveling between the Human World and Plastic Soldier World. Unfortunately, I was disappointed to see that there are no differences between Sarge’s missions and Vikki’s. There are only five different weapons – M16, M60, flame thrower, Bazooka, and grenades – but you will hardly notice this fact in the game; trust me.

Army Men is hard – you only have one life to make it through each mission and failure to do so results in you having to start from the beginning of the mission again, but this is a good thing and adds to the sense of urgency with every enemy encounter. A lot of the earlier missions begin with simple objectives such as merely escaping the area, locating keys, and blowing up stuff, but they do get more varied the further into the game you go. In one later mission, for instance, you’ll find yourself in a game of “Frogger!”

I really liked the action that ensued when faced against tough odds against a lot of enemies. Their bullets move at a slow enough speed where you could actually try to evade them, and the tense action that results from trying to frag the tans while avoiding their shots is great. I occasionally found myself stuck and wondering where to go next; however, that happened infrequently enough and didn’t detract from my enjoyment too much. Provided that you aren’t expecting the deepest, most involving experience ever, you’ll probably enjoy the style of gameplay that Army Men offers.

Sound:
What’s in the game is really good, but a lack of variety is disappointing. There is only one sound, a simple “aargh,” when you kill enemies, and likewise, only one noise that queues to you that you’ve completed a mission objective. Furthermore, while in-game, there is no background music at all. Disappointing. On the positive, the weapons sound beefy, although they too lack any variety. Finally, the opening intro song in Army Men is impressive and very “Yankee Doodle-esque,” but it’s just an intro song… I’d much rather be able to make a statement like “there’s some really kickin’ background music that pushes along the game’s action.” Unfortunately, I can’t.

OVERALL:
If you’re looking for some quality 3rd person shooting/action, Army Men Advance is a game that you’ll likely enjoy. If you’re looking for an adventure with a lot of challenging puzzle elements and a deep experience, this game isn’t for you. Simple as that, really. If you do pick this up, you better have paper and pencils ready, since you’re stuck writing down passwords at the end of every completed mission.

 

The Lowdown on  Army Men Advance Aesthetics: Above Average Control: Very Good Gameplay: Very Good Multiplayer: Sound: Average Innovation: 3/6 Lasting Appeal: 4/6 Overall: Very Good! "A Must-Buy"