Nintendo delays war game due to Ukraine invasion

Nintendo has postponed the release of upcoming Switch game Advance Wars 1 + 2 Re-Boot Camp, which depicts cartoonish tank warfare and the siege of cities.

Driving the news: The game doesn't look realistic, but its visual themes and gameplay evoke the real mechanized combat happening now as Russia escalates its invasion of Ukraine.

What they're saying: "In light of recent world events, we have made the decision to delay Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp, which was originally scheduled to release on Nintendo Switch on April 8th," Nintendo tweeted this morning.

• The company did not refer specifically to the invasion.
• It has not provided a new release date.

Between the lines: Advance Wars titles are turn-based strategy games that play a bit like chess, with players directing tanks, artillery and platoons of troops across fields and mountains, with the goal of seizing cities and bases.

• The new release, which remakes two earlier Advance Wars games from more than a decade ago, includes factions that evoke real-world countries, including one bearded commander whose visual design looks Russian.

The big picture: Game companies around the world have been reacting to the Russian invasion.

• Last week, Nintendo put its Russian online game store in maintenance mode saying it was unable to process transactions. But it has not made any statements explicitly about the war.

• Game publishers Activision, EA, Ubisoft and Microsoft, among others, have announced they're suspending business with Russia due to the invasion. Development studios, particularly those based in Ukraine and neighboring countries, have rallied for donations to support Ukraine.

Flashback: The critically acclaimed Advance Wars series has intersected with terrible world events before.

• The franchise's U.S. debut, made for the Game Boy Advance, was released on September 10, 2001.

Go deeper: Ukraine calls on gaming industry to suspend business with Russia

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