Previews

Hands-on with Trenches 2 on iPhone and iPad

In for the long-haul

Hands-on with Trenches 2 on iPhone and iPad
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iOS
| Trenches II

EA Mobile has picked up publishing rights for this sequel to the Pocket Gamer Bronze Award-winning casual strategy game, so we’re expecting it to make a bigger splash than its 2010 predecessor by default.

If you're not au fait with the original Trenches, Trenches 2 revolves around getting your bunch of plucky soldiers to the right-hand side of the map in order to overwhelm an enemy bunker.

Naturally, the enemy soldiers are trying to do the same, so play proceeds in real-time with each side trying to dart to cover (a shed, broken carts, etc) so that they can return fire in relative safety.

Battle plans

It starts off fairly simple, with the enemy vastly under-resourced and slow off the mark, allowing for you to either take them head-on with numbers or sneak round the edge of the map.

But it only took a few missions during our hands-on before we were having to punch forward and retreat to let our medics attend the wounded, timing our runs for maximum effect.

All this is performed with a simple touch-and-drag control system, while new units can be drafted in by tapping the respective icons at the bottom.

Back for more war

Trenches 2 will almost certainly have a higher profile launch than its predecessor, and it deserves to, having fixed so many issues with the formula.

All of our main complaints with the original seem to have been addressed, from being able to select the French, Germans, or British (each with their own strengths and campaigns) right through to a new local and online multiplayer mode over Origin or Game Center.

New units like the spy (who can turn invisible) add a fresh twist and prevent games from nose-diving into battles of attrition, while huge upgrade trees for your skills and units means there’s plenty of depth waiting for those who invest the time (or, inevitably, real world money) into the game.

Trenches 2 is out on iPhone and iPad later this year.
Will Wilson
Will Wilson
Will's obsession with gaming started off with sketching Laser Squad levels on pads of paper, but recently grew into violently shouting "Tango Down!" at random strangers on the street. He now directs that positive energy into his writing (due in no small part to a binding court order).