Ace Combat 6: Kaihô heno senka

I'm not such a big fan of all these flight sim games and was a bit weary of tackling Ace Combat 6, but I needn't worry. It's not really about getting all of the technical controls accurate as much as it's about ACTION! As the first of the Ace Combat games to be released on a next-gen console, Atari have certainly given their best effort at using the XBOX 360 to the max.

I'm not the best when it comes to controlling games but the gradual increasing complexity of the game eases you into it nicely. But less about that and more about the graphics. Though far from being an avid video-gamer, I have been playing video games since the mid-80s and it's no exaggeration to say that Ace Combat 6 literally has the BEST graphics I have ever seen. They are so incredibly photo-realistic that you'll think you're actually in control of a real fighter plane.

Most of the aircraft are actual licensed fighter planes though there aren't as many to choose from this time around. The stunning environments and landscapes are so gorgeous and believable you'd be forgiven that they are lifted from Google earth (albeit an extremely high-resolution Google Earth). It's the kind of game where simply flying around and buzzing over the mountains and oceans is its own kind of fun. In some ways I wish I had my own plane so I could soar into the heavens like I did with this game. Terrific escapism indeed.

But this game isn't actually set on Earth. To avoid any serious political subtext (I assume) the good guys in the game are from a country called Emmeria, where all is well and happy and the bad guys from from Estovakia. At the risk of sounding xenophobic, Estovakia is where evil comes from. The good guys refer to them as 'Stovies' but here in Scotland that word means 'Corned Beef Hash'. So that is quite funny for me.

I can't play online, as I don't have that capability. But the single player is splendid on it's own. With great graphics, impressive visual effects, an awesome sound design and a thumpingly good score (where is the CD?), what more could you want from a game? Be nice to your XBOX and buy it some eye candy.

Just another quick review here, as I must admit I grew tired of the game after only a couple of sessions.

Whilst Ace Combat 6 is nice to look at and the controls are responsive, the story is impenetrable (which I accept is my fault for joining in game six, rather than game one) and the dogfights quickly revolve, as they do in all my experience of dogfighting games, into endless spinning to try and gain the shot on an enemy who is also spinning to do the same to you.

Specific to this game I found it difficult to work out exactly what the target was supposed to be. The opening mission involves a bombing run that you have to quell by destroying the bombers, but there were so many targets I was happily shooting down planes only to fail the mission as apparently these weren't the right planes I was supposed to be after.

So after that happened a couple of times, I decided that life was too short, and on to the next game.

You are an ace pilot in the fictional Emmerian Air Force. Badly beaten by the invading country of Estovakia, you and your countrymen are huddled up on a nearby island. Your main objective henceforth is to stop the total elimination of Emmeria and lead your forces to kick the Estovakians out. This game is different from its predecessors, weaving your character's own experiences of the war with the stories of military personnel from both countries. Each individual battle-space has also expanded; forcing you to keep tabs on up to six battalions at once is truly for 'The Next Generation Of Aces'. While it's really demanding and you have only 15 aircraft to choose from, the cockpits are brilliantly animated, the graphics are spectacular, the orchestral pieces are enjoyable and you have plenty of goodies that cannot be unlocked on the first play-through. Overall not Halo 3 standard but still worth considering. Job well done, Namco.

Ace Combat 6: Fire of Liberation (AC6) is by far the most fun I had in the series.

Each mission has operations. Multiple branching pathways of battles within the over arching mission. Those operations made me analyse and listen in on mission briefings when I would typically skip them in other AC games. It made me plan how I approached the mission. What aircraft, what weapons, and what operation to take on. It was all part of the mission. From hangar to the gameplay, it affected how the rest of the sandbox interacted with you.

In one mission I remember choosing the operation to help allied special forces take the enemy's runway. We took their runway and it became a forward operating base for the mission. I used that same runway to land for resupply, changing my weapon load-out from bombs to missiles. Unknowingly the enemy quickly closed in whilst I was most vulnerable. Locked on by enemy missiles I rocketed to the sky, taking off leaving those missiles to barrage the runway I was just on. I quickly got behind the enemy and shot them down with the new missile loadout. Those enemy pilot's cursing over the radio "that must of been the ace they call Garuda".

It was one of the many adrenaline filled unique sandbox experiences I had with this game. But that one experience could have been drastically different if I didn't choose that path. Or I could have missed this experience if I played differently. The experiences are tailor'd to you in AC6 unlike other Ace Combat games. Something the franchise has forgotten moving into Ace Combat: Assault Horizon and AC7.

Typically exciting moments in the Ace Combat franchise are limited to scripted dogfights made by mission designer, whilst in AC6 it is your unique approach to the sandbox.

As years go by, I still comeback to this game. AC6 wants you to come play over and over again to see what you missed on your first and subsequent play through's. To see how the gameplay can change with your new approaches.

The only negative is the story is a bit cliche, and it doesn't have the same narrative blood pumping dogfights as intense as other AC games. But AC6 is the pioneer for sandbox flight sim's. That is why it will always be a "gem" in my eyes. AC6 makes you feel apart of this Ace Combat universe. You are the ace, fighting for your country. Talisman the Ace Pilot of Garuda Team is you, not the other way around.

Garuda, the tip of the spear of a defeated country. Your decisions will affect the battlefield. Will you be the fire to liberate your country?

If you are interested, get Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation. Take to the skies and Go Dance With The Angels!