The demo for Ace Combat: Assault Horizon really helped put the game in my watch list. Unlike what everyone feared you can go from third person to first person HUD and still partake in the new dog fighting mode (DFM). On top of that the game is just plain fun but I’m getting ahead of myself. Ace Combat: Assault Horizon is coming to PS3 and Xbox 360 October 13th 2011, I would have really liked to see a PC release as well. If you guys have any hesitations about this game you really need to check out the demo as it’s extremely fun. You can continue reading below and also check out our video review.
The demo gives you 2 options for campaigns, you can either fly a jet or fly a helicopter. First up we tried to jet mission and it sets you in an dog fight over the Miami coastline. The majority of this mission felt like it was taken up by the tutorial but it was fun once they let the reigns lose a bit. Locking on enemies, entering into dog fight mode, firing off your cannon and missiles felt great and responsive. The thing we really liked was the multi-lock-on special missions that took out about 5 enemies at once, it brought back memories of Afterburner in the arcade. We left the flight controls on normal and didn’t feel restricted though there are advanced maneuvers you can only perform with it on.
Next up was the helicopter mission and the tutorial for this felt much shorter and the mission also felt longer as well. The helicopter mode was good but didn’t seem as exciting as the jets. There seemed to be a more almost 3rd person shooter mindset to fighting in the helicopter. If you zoomed out and back in quickly with the triggers you would lock your reticule onto the nearest enemy just like a third or first person shooter normally will do with auto-aim. If you tried to manually scan the battlefield for enemies and fire it didn’t always seem to let you get your reticule on target. It was a very weird transition but one the designers obviously had to make as the combat is very different. After we got the hang of it we were blowing up bad guys with out much trouble though a few times we found guys we couldn’t seem to kill until they were triggered as actually being enemies.
This demo really highlights the fun aspects of this aerial combat game. It’s basically the best game renditioned of being in the movie Top Gun I can think of, without all the drama, but we’ve heard there will be some of that in the final game. Namco Bandai also released a multiplayer trailer and WOW, it’s all out craziness with Jets, Stealth Bombers, A-10’s and Choppers mixing it up all at the same time. I really can’t wait to see how that plays, thankfully October 13th 2011 is around the corner.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizons – Weekly Gaming Recap Demo Impressions
Ace Combat: Assault Horizons – TGS 2011 Online Assault Trailer
