1-Mar-2006 Angels boasts a level of intensity and illusion that most flying games completely lack - tally ho! Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII is not your average flight sim. It boasts a level of intensity and illusion that most games in the genre lack completely. It pulls your mind into the hell of combat, absorbing you in the same way Call of Duty 2: Big Red One does.
The first time you're launched into the air above war-torn London, it will take your breath away. The first thing you'll notice is the shockingly detailed scenery below. Most flying games usually keep the detail down below to a bare minimum. City environments tend to be flat, blurry grey textures. But Blazing Angels isn't having any of that, boasting a level of detail on the ground that you wouldn't have expected to see on a current generation console. An insane number of buildings sprawled out across the landscape stretch as far as you can see. This is easily the most convincing city environment we've ever seen in a flight sim, and one that demands to be played on a really big telly.
The hugely detailed landscape is brought to life by plumes of smoke gushing from buildings hit by bombs and downed planes, tanks in the streets, anti-aircraft turrets and even boats on the water. There's plenty going on in the skies too. You'll be tackling dozens of planes that fill your screen like a swarm of flies, all with their own objectives. The fighters buzz around frantically as they do their best to get in a good position to blast your ass out of the sky. Bombers cruise slowly and menacingly towards their targets on the ground, waiting for the right moment to unleash their devastating explosives. All of this comes together to make for some truly spectacular scenes on your TV.
With all the different types of enemies you'll encounter comes the various birds you'll pilot to tackle them in. Blazing Angels gives you the controls to 38 planes throughout the game, each one tailored to specific mission objectives. You'll pilot nimble fighters to take on enemy planes in ferocious dogfights, performing acrobatic evasive manoeuvres as you avoid enemy fire and pull up behind foes to let your guns rip.
You'll jump into the cockpit of missile-armed fighters, taking out tanks and concentrated military positions to help ground troops in their missions. Or you can deal some major damage with a bomber, dropping packets of death and watching as they hit home and wreck everything. It's hugely satisfying each and every time.
You're not alone in your missions either, with three wingmen on hand to assist you. You can communicate with them individually or as a group, giving the order to attack your targets, watch your back or regroup. Even cooler, each wingman has a unique skill that you can call on at any time. One can attack a specific group of targets with exceptional devastation. Another can taunt enemies, flying nearby to lure enemies from your tail. The third and most useful wingman can help you repair your plane during a mission. If you call him for help, he'll tell you what damage he thinks your plane has sustained and how to treat it. While this is happening, a button combo appears at the top of the screen. Complete the combo quickly enough and your plane is repaired.
Your wingmen are more than just useful - they cannot be ignored. As we found out very quickly, there are far too many enemies for you to take out on your own. Shooting down huge squadrons of bombers before they blow up the Houses of Parliament is nearly impossible without the help of your wingmen, no matter how good you are.
The missions may be tough, but controlling the planes isn't. Steering, climbing and diving is all done with the left thumbstick, while the right stick lets you bank and control your speed by pushing left/right and up/down respectively. But the most intuitive function is the ability to focus the camera on your objectives with the right trigger. Not only does this guide you easily to your targets, but also makes it much easier to track the movements of enemy aircraft. It certainly feels more intuitive to the very similar Heroes of the Pacific.
With such accessible controls flight sim noobs will have no problems getting to grips. And the spectacular visuals and hectic action will keep anyone hooked. If it runs as smoothly online as it does in single-player, the 16-player dogfights are sure to be awesome. You'll also be able to battle through ten co-operative team-play missions. And we can tell you now, the experience lives up to the stunning graphics. Full review coming soon.
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