North & South
System: NES
Release Date: December 1990
Developer: Kemco
Publisher: Kemco*Seika
Genre: Strategy
Head back to the American Civil War and turn the tide of the battles in North & South! If you’ve ever had a hankering to rewrite the Civil War in a way that the North wins in mere months, or god forbid, make it so the South rises to prominence, you can do it here. I had always expected this was more of a grand strategy game in the vein of Bandit Kings or Nobunaga, but it’s a quick board game with some minigames attached.
You can choose your side, difficulty level, and year of the war to begin in. I didn’t notice much difference between the settings and the map doesn’t change at all among the scenarios. I played as the North every time, because I couldn’t get myself to choose the South. You get a map of the regions and territories of the time. The goal is to conquer the map by destroying all of your enemy armies and there aren’t very many of them on the map at any given time. You can earn more armies by collecting five bags of gold or by holding North Carolina when reinforcements are sent from Europe.
Gold is earned when the train runs between towns marked on the map in red. You earn gold for the territories you control along the way. Each army is able to move into an adjacent territory each month. When the armies of the North & South occupy the same region, a battle breaks out. You are sent in with a regiment of cannons, cavalry, and infantry. You control each type one at a time and cycle among them by pressing the B Button. Cannons must be charged to set the length of their straight line shot. Cavalry start a charge and will swing their swords when you press the A Button. Infantry shoot their rifles for a distance in front of them. It is difficult to control all three unit types simultaneously. I usually got a blast off with a cannon before the enemy cavalry put them down. Then I would charge until I lost all my cavalry, and then cleaned up the rest with my infantry. I won many more battles than I lost.
When you capture an enemy occupied town on the rail line, you enter another minigame at the fort. You have to make it to the flag on right side of the map before time runs out. The enemy has a number of troops signified on the top right of the screen that they can send at you. These guys are equipped with throwing knives and can take you out. You also have to be careful to avoid explosives and running dogs, who want to rip your throat out. Climbing and jumping your way to the end captures the territory and the stop on the train. (21:30; vid 2)
There is also a train robbery minigame, that occurs when the enemy captures a territory on the train route. The goal is to make it to the engine of the train to take control. Much like the fort minigame, you jump from train car to train car, fighting enemy soldiers who are out to stop you with everything they’ve got. If you succeed, their taxes become yours. The computer can also take part in these games and you have to stop them. Pressing up spawns one of your men on the high level, while pressing down spawns them on the low level. Overwhelming your opposition ends the war in your favor and makes you feel like you would have easily won the Civil War.
Graphics: 2.0
The platforming mingame sprites are alright, but everything else is just serviceable.
Sound: 1.5
Sound effects are extra loud. You get little ditties during gameplay.
Gameplay: 2.0
It’s physically difficult to control your different units in the battle. The platforming is really simple to control. The map movement is butter.
Difficulty: 3.0
The computer isn’t very smart or good at the battle game, which gives you a fighting chance. I didn’t feel like the computer cheated.
Fun Factor: 2.5
I enjoyed my time as I learned the rules properly. The South was able to rise again once, but I crushed them every other time.
Overall Rating: 2.2
North & South earns a C+. It’s quick, simple, and didn’t insult my time. For a strategy game, that’s a winning formula.