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Air Conflicts
Console
PSP
Publisher
Graffiti Entertainment
Genre
Action
Developer
Cowboy Rodeo
Release Date
04/14/09
ESRB Rating
Teen
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REVIEW
Air Conflicts: Aces of World War II
May 4, 2009 | 11:28 AM PST

by: Matt Furtado

Kombo's Review Policy: Our reviews are written for you. Our goal is to write honest, to-the-point reviews that don't waste your time. This is why we've split our reviews into four sections: What the Game's About, What's Hot, What's Not and Final Word, so that you can easily find the information you want from our reviews.

What the Game's About
World War II had some of the most memorable and remarkable air battles take place in the skies of England and over Europe. Though not as famous as the battles of the Red Baron, these were still truly amazing feats. If given the chance, you should definitely watch the History Channel when they showcase World War II stories and documentaries, because you'll hear some amazing story accounts from the pilots themselves or other soldiers. Of course, you can always watch HBO's hit series Band of Brothers, too. Either way, Air Conflicts: Aces of World War II tries to convey these battles in gaming form.

What's Hot
This game has a lot of missions for you to indulge yourself in. You'll take control of a vast number of planes and get into quite a few dog fights with the enemy. Each mission will take place in a different location and the amount of enemies to take down will also vary.

What's Not
Sadly, no matter how much there is to the game, it doesn't make a bit of difference if the game is virtually unplayable. For one thing, everything found in the game is way too small -- except for the loading screen. The font, cross-hairs, plane, radar, menus, etc, are all too small. It's nearly impossible to notice the cross-hairs on the screen while flying in battle. It actually looks like a burnt out pixel that happens to move. The font on the menus and debriefing screens are just as small, too. Playing this game at night and trying to read the font will easily cause your eyes to bleed and may possible cause your retina to burst. For the sakes of your eye health and your optometrist, please play in well lit areas, if at all.

The loading times are the only thing you'll find large in the whole game. This may be the biggest battery killer ever released. The game loads for long periods of time periodically. You select a mission and it loads...loads...loads...Mission Start! Then you fail. Load...load...etc. You get the picture. It almost seems like the game wants you to stay away from it. By having such revolting load times, Ace Conflicts seems to be testing your patience. Morosely there isn't a prize waiting for you in return. Patience is a virtue; but this game pushes that to the brink of insanity. The long load times could be forgiven if the game was a graphical phenomenon, but it isn't one. The environments are horrendous and more or less bare. You may spot a base or some trees, but they are so badly rendered you'll want to bomb them out of existence.

If you do find yourself actually waiting it out and ready to get into a mission, you'll be welcomed with a lackluster and overall dull experience. The radar is as inconspicuous as the font and cross-hairs, and the enemy planes are intangible. You need eagle level vision to be able to discern the enemy.

Final Word
The game isn't fun. The load times, graphics, presentation, and lack of readable fonts and radars make this game unplayable. This game was shot in the back and has tailed out of control. This flight has been grounded due to technical problems. Please wait for a better combat simulator to arrive on the PSP in the future.
Visuals
The plane renders before entering the actual game are decent, but then everything goes downhill once the game begins. The framerate is also very clunky.
3.5
Sound
Solid sound effects, actually. Nice flight based music.
5.5
Control
The analog controls are a little bothersome at first. Need time to adjust.
5.0
Gameplay
Too frustrating and hard to shoot an enemy down. It's not hard in the typical hard sense, it's hard in the WTF sense.
3.0
Lasting Appeal
History fans and World War II fanatics may want to play all the missions and unlock all the planes. But for everyone else out there, there's nothing for you.
2.0
Verdict
Not fun to play and it'll only cause aggravation. Members of the historical society may have some fun here.
3.5
[not an average]
Review Scores Guide

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November 20, 2009
Happy Friday! Check out the new feature content we have available. Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Make sure you think about what you're most thankful for... Also, make sure you become a fan of Kombo on Facebook!!!

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