A Review: Aces Of The Air, PSOne 2002

This game is one of those titles that is quite hard to find any solid information on. It's what I would call the gaming equivalent of a 'direct-to-DVD film' and, as such, seems to not have really made much of an impact. There are some user and gamer reviews across various websites, but nothing (that I could find) from the critic side aside from two separate reviews.

Play is really simple and consists of taking one of a variety of World War II-inspired aircraft and battling from stage to stage, in a style similar to what I would expect from an arcade game. In fact, I suspect that this game was originally intended for arcade cabinets but somehow found itself released for home consoles instead.

In honesty, I did not care much for this game and actually found it to be dull, repetitive, and lacking in any real depth or worth. Play is mostly the standard tropes for a game like this, limiting missions to dogfights, bombing runs, and other such dated cliches. Once a playthrough is completed, there is little to no replayability value to this game either. Aces of the Air feels like a hollowed-out skeleton; everything is there, but there is no substance. I honestly think that this game was a failed arcade game, and in an attempt to make back some of the production costs, it got slopped onto a disc and sold for home consoles. That would explain why it seemed to have been bypassed by the reviewers and critics of the time. It may not be the worst game that I have put time into, but knowing what I do know, I can say that you're not missing much by passing this one by.

The graphics aren't any better, really, with there being what would seem to be the least amount of effort possible put in. The planes are basic and poorly detailed, with very simple models and animations. The world environments are dull and mostly undetailed, with only mission objects added in—no extras or points of interest at all. Just simple, bland, and basic—that pretty much sums up the looks of this game.

Overall, taking time to go to the potty and whatnot, I had this game completed in 5 hours, to the point that further play was just repeating myself over and over. I can say that this game is a time waster at best, but it might be liked by someone who is really into planes and air combat; otherwise, just don't bother.

 

4/10 – Could've Been Better!

Signed Off – Leonardo – PSJ

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