Air Combat (PSOne Review)

For those of us old school gamers, I'm sure there are plenty of you that would attest that back in the day there was no better looking arcade flight shooter than Sega's After Burner. I honestly can't remember how many hours I wasted during my high school years standing besides that gigantic moveable cockpit cabinet wishing for the day to come where I could play something that looked that real from the comfort of my couch.

Once I discovered the PlayStation back in 1998, I figured that my hopes and dreams for gaming had finally come to fruition. Everything looked so much better than it ever had on my Commodore 64 and damn wasn't it close to what the arcade cabinets were able to put out. The only thing that seemed to be missing was the ability to get the sofa to move underneath me. Little did I know, this was just the beginning where in-home gaming was to surpass that of the arcade variety. We now could have all the fun without the need to use up our laundry quarters.

The flight genre is one of the least overall exploited categories in the PlayStation library. Although, if you take a snapshot of the early days, you'd think exactly the opposite. In the first couple of years, there seemed to be a literal avalanche of flight concentrated titles, some being top-down shooters while others decided to dabble in the third dimension. However, this flood quickly dried up and only a few stalwarts remained. One of the first just happened to become the be all, end all to the flight game genre on the PlayStation. Although it would go thru a name change, it still set the bar for all that would follow and kept the pretenders honest. Of course I'm referring to the big daddy of all flight games, Air Combat (AC).

The backstory for AC is nothing new or unique. You are a member of an elite group of mercenaries hired by the governments of the world to combat and defeat an invading force of terrorists. Where the air forces of the establishment have failed, it's up to you and your band of mercenaries to succeed. The danger is great, but so are the rewards. Are you up to the challenge? Well, strap in tight and let's get ready to taxi. Up next, Air Combat. Ready? Break Now!

The first thing for any flight game that a person wants is variety in the plane lineup. Well, Air Combat does not fail in this department. Although you initial choices are limited, as you progress through the game you will have the opportunity to pilot sixteen different planes ranging from the slow, plodding A-10 Warhog to the nimble SU-27. Each plane has varied ratings in five different categories (Stability, Offense, Defense, Power and Mobility) and they all handle differently, which adds the possibility of replayability for players looking to complete all the levels with all the different planes.

You begin the first mission with only 3 planes in your personal hanger. However, more become available for purchase as you progress through the game allowing up to eight planes total to be at the ready. However, if your plane gets shot down, or you crash and burn, to get that type of plane again you must purchase it from funds in your account. One thing to keep in mind though is that all unlocked planes do not remain purchasable at all times an you might have to wait to find your preferred ride again. Once you fill your hanger, you do have the option of selling lesser planes back, for half of their original purchase price, to open up a spot. But, once again, be careful of what you get rid of, as it may not become available later on when it could have been useful.

You also do not have to take on all the missions alone. You have the opportunity, in some of the missions, to purchase the assistance of various mercenary wingman to watch your back and help out when the going gets hot. Nevertheless, their respective abilities and planes are not free. These mercenaries want their money up-front, so if you crash and burn, not only do you lose the plane you had but also the cash you used to purchase your help. Money management is an added factor that must be taken into consideration at the beginning of every chapter.

Where do you get the funds? Well, along with a standard pre-announced cash prize for successfully completing the mission, everything that you shoot down or blow up has a prize value that gets added to your score when you achieve your goal. Usually there are specific targets, designated with special HUD cursors, that must be destroyed to complete the mission. However, all other additional forces can either be engaged or ignored, depending on the whim of the player. I would suggest though that leaving these targets still sitting on the table can create a real cash crisis later on in the game and should only be passed up if your plane is in a critical condition. Also, you do have a limited amount of missiles, ammunition and fuel to take into consideration. So, if you are running low on any of these, I'd advise you to concentrate on the primary objectives and leave the gravy on the plate.

The mission variety is definitely on par with any flight game you may have experienced. Dogfighting other planes does occupy the majority of the experiences, just as it should, however you can expect Namco to keep everything fresh and exciting. Not only will you take on terrorist planes and 'copters, but also ground forces, supply stations, naval vessels and even a super-sized air fortress in the final mission. One nice touch is that you don't have to follow the game linearly. After getting into the meat of the game, multiple mission branches begin to open up. Players can choose where they want to go next and tackle which specific mission when they want. Eventually, you will have to complete them all to get you to the end, but having the freedom to decide when is a big plus in my book. The environments are also as varied. Besides the wide blue yonder, you can expect to have to tackle desert lands, open ocean waters and some rather claustrophobic canyon runs tight enough to challenge Maverick and Goose. All in all, there are 17 very different missions to complete and each one has something different to offer.

Visually, Air Combat isn't that much of a backwards leap, even though it was released early in the lifespan of the original PlayStation. True, it doesn't have photo-realistic backgrounds and there definitely are some jaggies here and there. Nevertheless, unless you are a graphics whore, I really don't see much complaining to be done. Everything is running at a steady frame-rate, the distance draw-in is minimal, for a first generation PlayStation game, and there are no real collision detection issues that I've found. The night missions are a little more difficult than the normal day flights as you don't have a good clear view of your surroundings. But, I found if you pay just a bit more attention to the landscape than normal, you won't be having to scrape your plane off the side of a mountain as often.

While this is all may sound overly positive, everything in AC is not top notch, especially in the audio department. Yes, you do have eleven different background tunes to keep the dogfights fresh. However, the only way to pick your favorite tune is to use the music player in the options menu.  Each level usually has it's own set song, most of which would sound perfect if injected into the movie soundtrack for Top Gun. Nevertheless, they can become stale if you have to repeat the same level over and over again. Besides that, there are only the standard choices of mono or stereo in the options menu even though the PSOne is capable of so much more. Probably this disappointment stems more from the plethora of modern-day options available in today's games like custom soundtracks and multichannel surround sound. Nevertheless, the sound options and output are acceptable and keep you in the game and what does come out does it at an extremely high quality.

One other negative aspect I discovered in Air Combat was the lack of analog control, along with no support for the thumbsticks. Once again, this simply is a product of its time. These two options did not exist when the game was created. I found using the D-pad more difficult than piloting a plane with the later standard fare, but it still was possible to keep yourself flying once you got used to the retro controls.

According to the instruction booklet the controls are customizable, but the booklet is not very helpful in explaining how it is done. Only with extensive investigation did I discover that the "expert" controller setting does allow complete controller customization while the "novice" only allows a player to adjust the Y-Axis choice. Besides this, this only difference between the two is that the "expert" setting gives the player greater control over their turning ability. Selecting them means you can bank more sharply, execute maneuvers like barrel rolls or turn slightly using the separate yaw controls. Although this may be important to some air jockeys, you still can easily complete the game using the standard pre-set "novice" controls.

Players do have the option of choosing between the standard third-person (behind the plane) or the first-person (in-the-cockpit) views. Even though I tried both, and they are feasible, I much preferred to put myself into the virtual cockpit. Although I doubt that many players use the third-person view, it's nice that Namco added it in for gamers to exercise their personal taste. Either way, you are kept visually in the action and never have to worry about getting blindsided.

The one other thing that I found disappointing was the overall length of the game. There are seventeen different missions, but none of then had any extensive depth. Once I figured out the controls and got used to them, I was able to streak through most of the game in a single afternoon. I just had to finish up the final two levels after dinner to have the entire first playthough completed in a total of 6 hours. Granted, this was on the most simplistic of the three difficulty level, however I really would have preferred to have more available. One thing I did learn was that once you complete the game on different difficulty levels, you open up special unlockables to assist you repeating the process. Finishing up on the easy level allows players access to all of the planes in the game without having to purchase them, and without the limitation of hanger size. There are additional prizes, which I won't spoil for you, for completing the additional difficulty levels, so there is a reason to play the game through multiple times.

But, if you get tired of playing by yourself, Air Combat also comes packed with a 2-player split screen mode so you can fly the unfriendly skies against a buddy. There is not a lot of depth to this option. You can change up the initial face off of the combatants, giving one player an advantage of starting behind the other, but it really doesn't affect things that much after the first few seconds. Honestly, this mode is nothing to get overly excited about and only is a neat distraction that probably would last a couple of minutes, at the most, before you and a friend went to discover fun elsewhere.

In summation, Air Combat gives players a solid experience, especially if you take it's release date into consideration. However, it definitely gives room for development and refining for future renditions. As a flight game, it gives you a half decent time even though the story is a bit on the short side. Nevertheless, it's always nice to experience things at their origin, and in no way is Air Combat a disappointment to fans of the series. If nothing but for its historical nature, this one should be gobbled up by flight fans everywhere. For those casual gamers, you can probably pass it up for something with a fresher coat of paint.

Difficulty: 8

Control: 7

Audio: 6

Visuals: 7

Replayability: 8

Overall: 7.5

Aero Elite: Combat Academy (PS2 Review)

Throughout all of history, man has quested after the power of flight. Life is truly ironic. Great minds like Leonardo Da Vinci, Isaac Newton and Daniel Bernoulli were unable to get their feet off of the ground and two simple bicycle repairmen were the ones to make powered flight a reality. Since that windy day in 1903, man has progressed through many stages of flight design and has even landed upon the soil of another heavenly body. 

 

The video game industry has moved forward with the same leaps and bounds. What began as a simple distraction of a few white dots moving on a black background has evolved into photorealistic graphics and movie quality production values. Where games used to be completely designed by a single person over a four day weekend, they now have a staff of a hundred or more people working for two or three years. How fitting that these two elements have finally come together to create a wondrous marriage where everyday people can enjoy the best of both worlds, without all the risks involved with leaving the security of the solid earth.

Each genre of gaming has their elite. Saying the names of Halo, Gran Turismo or Zelda will either cause a player to get that dreamy-eyed look or their face to explode in a crimson fury. There just is no in-between. On another page of the same book, most PS2 flight fans have come to consider the Ace Combat series the weight upon which all other flying games are to be measured. Some feel this is true because of the lack of competition, while others believe that it is one of the best arcade flyers because it is done so professionally. No matter what side of the coin you prefer, the why really isn’t important, since the end justifies the means. Ace Combat is the reigning ace of aces when it comes to PS2 flight games and there are very few game developers willing to take the series on. 

Then out of nowhere, Sega suddenly emerges onto the scene with Aero Elite: Combat Academy (AE: CA). With their great reputation for quality gameplay coupled along with hard-core action, this looks like there may be a new heavyweight contender to take away Namco’s crown. The game options are long and deep and the list of playable aircraft is huge. It’s everything that flying fanatics everywhere desire. However, let us examine if the cake is moist in the center or if it’s nothing more than creamy icing over cardboard.

To start off with, there really isn’t a heart to the game. In flight games, there usually is a Story Mode with a bunch of side modes tossed in for good measure. AE breaks with tradition and recreates the wheel. Everything is evenly spread across five separate sections: Arcade Mode, Training Mode, Aero-meet 2002, Free Flight and the 2 player Vs. Battle. No one section is dominant over another.

The Arcade Mode is a way for players to get a quick fix. You have only four available aircraft to choose from and the missions are all the same no matter what plane you pick. This option has its good and bad points. On the bright side, ammo is unlimited and you have the freedom to use as much as you would like to complete this section. The bad is that you cannot save your progress in-between the missions, so it’s either finish what you’ve begun or give up and come back to start over when you have more time. Missions are all timed, but don’t learn to rely on that counter to tell the truth about how much time is actually remaining. An example would be the final contest, where you are tasked to take out a bomber before it can obliterate your base. I have personally experienced losing this section with ten minutes left, out of the original fourteen, on the timer. The lesson learned from this was to finish each segment as quickly as possible.

The training section is very detailed and well presented for flight rookies. You have nine separate stages, that are broken down even more internally, that go through every aspect of flying from takeoffs to complex flight maneuvers. All of the lessons have a visual tutorial explain what is to be done and you are given tips while going through the motions as if the instructor was sitting next to you in the plane. These instructions are of high enough quality that they could easily be used for persons interested in learning how to fly a plane in real life.

Areo-meet 2002 is presented like a simulation competition, but comes off more like an edited story mode. You have four main categories (Air, Ground, Maneuver and Recon) from which you can take part in and the later stages are much more challenging than the arcade mode. Ammunition is in short supply and your fuel is limited. Add to this a clicking timer and the stress levels go up even higher. Successfully completing missions in this section unlocks more available aircraft to be used in the game. Although the air and ground sections are self-explanatory, the maneuver and recon sections are unique and add more flavor to the flight tastebuds. Performing the recon missions simply require you to stay below a certain flight level and take a picture of a target when you get close.

This may sound like a cakewalk, but it’s more challenging than first perceived, especially since you only have one chance to take a picture. Most terrain vary greatly with obstructions, like mountain ranges or towers, that force you to keep low and dive through valleys to keep from being detected. The maneuver part of the game matches you up on target fields with balloons and other non-lethal objects where time is your biggest adversary. Once again, your ammunition is limited and you have bunches of targets that you need to obliterate before the countdown reaches zero. Having a heavy trigger finger will not get the job done and only by releasing short, well-aimed bursts of firepower will let you have enough weaponry to finish what you started.

Free flight mode lets the player experience twelve different environments in three different options. Solo flight lets a player enjoy the wild blue yonder without the burden of enemy fighters buzzing about. You also have the choice of either an air-to-air or air-to-surface attack. There also is the ability to have all of your mission options chosen randomly. Wingmen become available in the later stages, once they are opened, and can be directed by a push of a button to watch your back, take on enemies head-on or simply to stay out of the way.

The final playable selection is the two-player vs. battle. You can either choose whatever option that please your soul, or have them all randomly generated. All of the planes that you have unlocked are available in this one-on-one confrontation where it can finally be decided who is the true king of the skies.

Game options are plentiful. The DualShock 2 can be completely customized to however the player prefers to have it coordinated. Sound selections allow the choice of the standard mono or stereo speaker output, along with individual settings for the background music sound effects or voice dialog. There also is a music player which will let you listen to all of the Top Gun styled in-game music.

Some of the smaller extras that AE has to offer help to round out a nicely put together product. The Replay room will allow the player to watch saved missions or your most recent flying endeavor if there hasn’t been one personally saved by the player. One can also watch training missions to get a closer inspection on what is needed to be done to complete them properly. The data bank keeps track of all of your flying statistics, the multiple unlockable squadron emblems and an aircraft glossary and encyclopedia. One exceptional finishing touch is the ability to have red or black outs when you are pulling excessive G’s in your craft of choice. AM2 really tried to assemble the complete package. Unfortunately, they missed one specific element; the control factor.

Only one factor was neglected in the making of Aero Elite, and that was having the planes actually react like their real-life counterparts. No matter which fixed wing craft you choose to pilot they all handle the same; like a dump truck with a full load of gravel. Turning, climbing or diving makes no difference. The only factor I found to make maneuvering partially tolerable was to power down the forward thrust of the plane to turn the ship, and that still didn’t give me the reaction that I was looking for. The helicopters are on the complete opposite side of the fence. Fast and exceptionally loose, these craft are so twitchy that it makes locking onto targets well beyond difficult. After everything that Sega had to offer, they forgot the most important thing and it totally destroys the entire experience. 

Although it may not be the first, AE is the oldest game that I have found, so far, to actually support the newly released PS2 Hard Disk Drive (HDD). The game disk is still required to play the game, but I have noticed shortened loading times with it being installed. Aero Elite also has a wide-screen option which, when used on a big-screen TV, gives you a better surrounding view for your flight operations.

Aero Elite: Combat Academy has so much going for it that it was very difficult for me to give it its final grade. What should be a flyboy’s erotic dream, turns into their worst nightmare because of the horrible control. Sega had themselves a surefire winner and they let it slip through their fingers. Even with this massive obstacle, I still found myself attempting to continue to work my way though the game, repeating the same mission or test over and over again. Nevertheless, I can in no way give this game a quality score by overlooking such an important factor. This game can only be recommended to flight fanatics or those into self-abuse. All others should just taxi themselves over to Ace Combat 4′s runway or just wait until Ace Combat 5 is launched off the carrier this fall.

Difficulty: 6

Control: 4

Audio: 7

Visuals: 8

Replayability: 4

Overall: 6.0

Ace Combat 4: Shattered Skies (PS2 Review)

If there is any specific gaming genre that has been historically underexposed on the PlayStation it would definitely be the flight combat/simulator category. This gaming group has been so neglected that during a gaming magazine’s retrospective on the best 10 PSOne games in each category a few years ago, they had a footnote under the flight-sim group that noted why there were only 7 games listed. You have to remember that there have been literally thousands of games released for the PlayStation and there weren’t enough games released to fill a top 10. 

 

The PS2 seems to have followed the same path of it’s older sibling. With so few flight games available for the system, it would be easy to release a substandard product onto a starving public. However, Namco has always taken pride in it’s games and usually gives it’s consumers a quality title. Ace Combat 4 (AC 4) is the introduction of a series to the PS2 that has been on the PlayStation since it’s beginnings in 1995 and has been known to the public as the premier flight game on the Sony Family. AC 4 continues to carry the torch for the next generation of hardware.

AC 4 brings you the evolution of the game through the eyes of a young boy. The storyline begins with the boy’s family being killed by a plane crashing into their home while he is on the way to school. The local town, along with most of the country, is occupied by the enemy and you are forced to retake what has been lost. The presentation of the CG cut-scenes is brought to you in the form of a story-board comic book approach with the child narrating his story. Eventually, the gameplay and the storyline meet in the middle and it all meshes together nicely. 

Namco gives you a solid desire to find out what happens next without forcing the player to flounder through hours of non-gaming game time. Bravo for someone finally getting the mix right.The main aspect that the true professional gamer worries about is control. Eye-candy is great to have as an extra, however if the game is unpalatable because of shoddy controls, it really is a waste of time. Namco understands this and gives solid and responsive control to AC 4. They have also utilized the pressure sensitive buttons on the DualShock 2 to their fullest extent. The right stick can even be used to look around your surroundings without changing your direction. Playing this version with the analog controls is a major improvement over the earlier digital-only games on the PSOne.   

There are 18 various missions with 6 different difficulty levels in which you can play them. These are not your run-of-the-mill tasks either. Sometimes you are going up against over 100 separate targets on land, sea and air while trying to beat the clock and reach your main target before time expires. Although this may be daunting, your plane is able to house enough weaponry to handle most missions and if you run out of ammo you can always land and rearm your plane. Be advised that the clock does not stop, so precious seconds, or minutes, may be ticking away because of an itchy trigger finger.

Computer AI opponents are not dead-in-the-water targets that wait for you to shoot them down. Underestimate their abilities or ignore their presence and you will be decorating the landscape with your prized plane. Concentrate too much on a single target and someone will slip in on your six. I’ve even experienced where the yellow squadron will bait you with one plane while another two are circling around to get the proper angle to reduce you to rubble. Lock-on missile shots are not a done deal, as planes will maneuver after you have fired. Then don’t forget about the ground forces while you are dogfighting as a SAM site is just waiting for you to get within range. This is one title that is not lacking for having plenty of action going on around you at all times. 

AC 4 gives the player 20 different aircraft from which to choose from. Most of these are instantly recognizable including the F-15E Strike Eagle, the MIG-29A Fulcrum and the tank busting A-10A Thunderbolt. Some of these are unlockable only after the game has been completed. Others must be purchased with credits that you earn while completing missions. Each plane also has unique secondary weaponry that can be bought to make life a little bit easier. Nevertheless, even with the best plane and the most powerful explosives don’t expect to turn any of your assignments into a walk in the park. You’ll have to earn your stripes the hard way.  

While most gamer pilots would drool at the opportunity to play a flight game with the song Danger Zone blasting in the background, Ace Combat 4 leans more towards the light opera-styled rock that adds, but doesn’t distract, to the game. Simulated voice contact with your fellow wingmen and bogeys is crisp and can be understood clearly. If fact, you can feel your chest swell with pride as the ground forces call over the radio their thanks for your timely arrival. All of the different sound aspects have an individual volume control so you can set the sound to your own personal liking. This is one game that you definitely won’t be hitting the mute button to listen to your own selection of tunes. 

Visually, AC 4 doesn’t fail to impress. Your line of sight is completely to the horizon. There is no clipping, slowdown or draw-in evident at all. The graphics are topnotch and offer some of the best to be seen this side of an actual PC Flight Sim. Some of the night missions can be difficult to see where you are, however I would expect that to be the way it is in real life screaming at 500 knots in pitch blackness. 

There are 3 different views that you can choose from and each plane has a unique cockpit view which can be exceptionally challenging. Some of the plane’s cockpits are very claustrophobic and visually limiting, just as they are in real life. If you can beat the game using this option on the Ace difficulty then you really need to contact your local Air Force or Naval Recruiter immediately.

There is also one of the neatest extras ever seen in a PS2 game. I call it the missle-cam. If you hold down the fire button when releasing a missile, your point of view changes and you actually get to see your shot fly through the air towards your target. By using this, you can relish in the kill. Nevertheless, it is not recommended to be used when you have a dozen angry fighters buzzing you from every direction unless you would like to join your most recent conquest in a parachuting race to the ground.

Since AC4 was released before the network adapter, there is no online play in this version. Hopefully this will be something that Namco adds in its future renditions. However, there is a 2-player verses mode where you can take on a friend to find out who is the true ace of aces. There also is an excellent flight tutorial which can turn most flight rookies into professional dogfighters within mere minutes.

Namco gives us a well-rounded product that towers over the competition. The shelf-life of the game is above average and only the most dedicated player will actually complete the game on its highest difficulty. If you are looking for a topnotch flier, you can call off the search. This one is a must-have for any PS2 owner.

Difficulty: 9

Control: 10

Visual: 9

Sound: 9

Replayability: 9

Overall: 9.5