Intro
Lethal Skies II continues Sammy's semi-realistic interpretation of
a flight sim for those that crave a bit more true to life flight mechanics in
leiu of the arcade feel of games like the Ace Combat series or the boring
mechanics of a flight sim without combat. Sammy takes the higher road here trying
to incorporate what might be in the future and the planes that fight for whatever
lofty goals the alliance that owns them holds. It's an attempt to combine the
best elements of an arcade type feel without sacrificing too much for flight purists
Gameplay: 8/10
There
are over twenty missions in Lethal Skies II and with the successful completion
of each successive sortie, you'll unlock more planes, pilots and weaponry. Obviously,
you'll start off slowly (training here is an option, not a requirement) and engage
two B2 Bombers that have unknown intentions but are presumably hostile. Once those
are engaged and destroyed you'll find yourself chasing down ICBM's to destroy
before they hit the city that you're trying to defend. Sound easy? Well, it is.
But it doesn't stay that way. The story is set in a post apocalyptic world wherein
much of what was is destroyed. Without getting into story specifics, which are
best experienced by the player instead of reading a review, you must help the
the alliance fend off a mysterious threat that will reveal itself later in the
game.
As with most titles in this genre,
the further along the road you travel the more difficult and varied your missions
become. You'll have to destroy ground and air targets in order of priority, whether
it be to stop a potentially dangerous transport or to rescue allies before they
are captured by the enemy. You have a few different viewpoints to choose from
(first-person, cockpit, and two external cameras) from which to fly your missions
(unless you choose "novice", in which you're limited to one view) and
a very limited arsenal of weapons. Your payloads, once depleted, are gone and
the game gently forces you to use them conservatively. Naturally, you also have
a vulcan cannon which you'll find yourself using more often than not. You have
a multitude of planes from which to choose from, including the F-14, F-16, the
F/A-18E, the F-22 Raptor, as you become more and more successful these will be
at your disposal. Unlike many other games of this nature, your wingmen are important
and actually progressively get better as they get more experienced. And (gasp!)
they actually take out enemy targets. Flight
control is standard fare, with the D-Pad being used to issue commands or change
the range of your radar. You have to wait until you're "locked on" in
order to fire your missiles, as well. The controls are intuitive enough that you'll
have little difficulty getting the hang of it. There's also a split screen multiplayer
mode, if you're feeling inclined to blow one of your friends out of the sky via
a dogfight mode, or you can try to shoot as many planes out of the sky as possible.
Graphics: 7/10
Lethal Skies II features detailed aircraft (much
like the first Lethal Skies) and improves upon the landscape and environments
from that game. There is some evidence of "the jaggies" but nothing
that really detracts from the experience greatly other than a few of the explosions
which just don't come off as being realistic. The static screens ("loading")
are almost reminiscent of a Super Nintendo title screen as are the mission/hangar
screens as well. The FMV, in the beginning, is excellently rendered and has strong
visuals which continue to characterize the cinematic sequences in the game. The
weakest element of Lethal Skies II might be the fact that your increases
in speed are very difficult to measure in relation to other aircraft or even the
ground. You have to keep a constant eye on your HUD to determine how fast you're
going to merge with how fast you think you're going.
Sound: 8/10
The afterburners
blasting and the level of actual noise of the aircraft increases as your speed
does, which adds quite nicely to the sense of realism. The mixed bag of old school
rock and roll and original music isn't all that inspirational and serves little
purpose besides making additional noise. Your wingmen will talk to you and advise
of their progress or the lack of yours. Mission briefings are fairly dry and somewhat
emotionless. Strange. Control:
8/10
Control of your aircraft is spot-on and the user display makes everything
a breeze, from targeting long and short range opponents to monitoring what your
wingmen are doing. The first person perspective's controls feel a bit too touchy
as it's far too easy to move further than you intended more quickly than you intended. Overall:
7.5/10
There are many comparisons between this and Ace Combat 04,
which aren't really justified as this title isn't trying to be that kind of game.
Lethal Skies II stands well enough on its own merits and doesn't warrant
comparisons to a title that it's really not trying to be. That said, if you own
the original Lethal Skies, it's questionable whether or not this title
should be among those you consider to add to your library, unless you absolutely
adored it. If this is a niche that you're interested in, then Lethal Skies
II serves up a nice platter. [
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