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"Hmm... Looks like the striker is a fighter."

Let me start off that by saying that I love this game to death (mainly due to the fact that they got it to work at all (which is why it gets its overall mark compared to the rest of the review)), and I love Microprose as a company as well. Why the low marks? Well, I'll get to that in a moment. However, here, in my own words, is the gist of how one might play the game:

-Intro sequence; Ooh, shiny
-Title screen (insert cheesy voice sample here); Press start
-Strange options screen; Press start
-''Briefing'' screen; Confusion as to what's going on - Press start
-(Laughably cheesy voice sample here) Takeoff sequence; Wait
-Cockpit view; Stiffly try to fly around at about 5 frames per second with the illusion of control
-Replay; Watch your aircraft fall out of the sky in a manner that is completely unrelated to the way you really crashed

-Gameplay (2/10)
Ouch. With difficult to navigate menus and an absolutely horrid ''3D'' engine for navigation, this game is a pain in the proverbial ass to try and play with any degree of precision. When you attempt to bank the aircraft, it banks at about 15 degrees at a time. Doesn't sound too bad, right? Well, when you bank, your aircraft turns. Sounds OK, right? Yeah, well, get this: It's virtually impossible to see where you are by looking at the terrain. You think you're at your target? Hmm... Think again. On this note, the aircraft is extremely fast, and you'll likely end up flying by the target without even firing at it, while you try to (with much futility) adjust your choppy aircraft's pitch and roll. Dogfights are all but impossible, and should a MiG get on your tail, no matter what your radar says, it'll almost never show up on screen, and if it does, it'll only be a brief visit.

-Sound 1/10
I give this a 1, simply due to the fact that it has sound. On that note, maybe I shouldn't have given it a 1. The sound in this game is, simply put, absurd. There is all but one music track (consisting of a seemingly single-instrumental pizzicato ''sneaky'' type theme with some sort of upbeat twist), and the sound effects are comprised mostly of scratches and other sound effects that don't sound remotely realistic. ... And then there's the two voice samples. Oh, the horror of the voice samples...

-Graphics 3/10
Hmm... Not great. The vulcan cannon's animation, while fluent, is absolutely pathetic, and the severely limited colour palette makes the graphics almost look like CGA at times, though it's actually more like EGA. I know that the NES isn't capable of that much of a choice in colours, but why these ugly ones? Also, the 'backgrounds' are simply a looping animation of clouds and trees/waves/what have you flying by you, and the menus... Ugh, don't start me on the menus. Then, there are the animations between flying sequences; Things like the landing sequence, or the 'replay'' of your aircraft essentially falling out of the sky (which is absolutely hilarious). The only really good thing here is the opening scene, which is lackluster at best.

-Controls 1/10
I am still trying to figure out the controls. There are so many functions that don't make any sense that it's not even funny. The start button, for instance, is used to launch either a flare, or chaff. Select and B, which sometimes works, to show your radar. On top of this, this game's control is the figurehead for sluggish and unresponsive controls.

-Replay Factor 1/10
*yawn* The game's boring unless you count the hilarious voice clips and sequences. You won't spend much time coming back to this one.

-Rent? Buy? What?
Neither. If you really must play this game, then rent it, if it's available. If not, you can always download the ROM. However, don't blame me if it wastes your time.

Reviewer's Score: 3/10, Originally Posted: 09/29/03