Ace Combat’s Latest Flight Game

Namco Bandai’s Ace Combat Assault Horizon was one of my favorite titles at the recent Tokyo Game Show, and because of that my husband thoughtfully gave it to me for my birthday.

I’ve always been a big fan of the Ace Combat games, and on this one I find it interesting the story does not take place in fictional lands as it usually does.

The storyline is actually written by New York Times bestselling author Jim DeFelice and takes place in the year 2015.

This time around, as a part of the 108th UN task force, you’re on a mission to stop an anti-government insurgency that is sweeping through the African continent.

In short, a group of Russian rebels quickly become involved, and there is a threat that a warhead will be dropped on America in retribution for its role in the Kosovo War.

Your job is to stop this from happening.

If you’ve played an Ace Combat game before, you’re aware that it’s not a flight simulator but an arcade flight game.

In Assault Horizon, you’ll see a new gameplay system called Close-Range Assault (CRA), which increases the intensity and brings the action closer to you without the feeling of shooting at small, faraway dots typically seen in flight games.

You’ll see CRA in action while you’re in the Dogfight Mode (DFM) for air-to-air combat and Air Strike Mode (ASM) for air-to-ground targets. CRA is not optional, as certain aircrafts can only be destroyed using this method.

If you want to jump into a dogfight, fly close to an enemy aircraft and the push of a button gives you full control of your flight path, and you can aim more accurately.

The dogfights are loads of fun, but can become mundane after awhile as some of these fights are long and drawn out.

Additionally, getting out of the pilot’s seat keeps you interested as you man the door gun of a helicopter or play the role of a tactics officer while targeting enemy assets as your ground troops move in.

Another added feature is the multiplayer mode Capital Conquest. It involves two teams of eight versus eight, where each team takes turns either defending or attacking a world capital, such as Paris or Washington, D.C.

In this mode, fighters, attackers, attack helicopters and bombers can fly together, and you have the ability to play some of the campaign together. You can even do these missions over and over again with different fighters and/or weapon loadouts to see various outcomes.

If you’re an Ace Combat fan, this is a must-have addition to your game library. It retails for $59.99 for the PlayStation 3 or Xbox 360.

Find it at your nearest Best Buy (bestbuy.com), GameStop (gamestop.com) or Amazon.com.