In arcade mode (the default), this a pretty great flight combat game: the graphics are okay, the planes are top-of-the-line WW2-era (which means even missiles aren’t guided, and that makes air combat much more interesting), controls are pretty good (although I’m not a fan of controlling engine speed with the right stick — nobody needs the precision of setting it from 0% to 100%, at least in arcade mode), and the physics engine feels perfectly real (contrary to what I thought when I watched videos of the game).

In simulator mode, though (which is completely optional, thankfully), well… I have no idea what’s going on — I haven’t been able to do such a simple maneuver as banking, then pulling up, to turn around, without the plane going into an uncontrollable spin. Maybe planes are insanely more complicated than you’d ever imagine, and maybe the full version has a tutorial to explain how to master that, but in the meantime that mode is just unplayable.

Fortunately, the arcade mode satisfies quite fine. It looks like missions ought to be varied enough (as much as they can be in a flight combat game), and as a bonus the game offers an unlimited “continue” whenever you crash — resetting you just where you were, like a Bioshock vita-chamber. And even simulation mode doesn’t prevent you from using that option (but nobody forces you, either, since you have to press a button to continue). The future The present definitely belongs to games that don’t penalize death.

I’ll add that I read someone’s comment that they couldn’t adjust to the controls because they were so used to Battlefield 1943. And all I can say is: I weep for that person.

Couldn’t try the online mode, since I’m not a Gold customer these days. But this is definitely a must-download if you’re interested in planes at all (plus, it provides quite enough gameplay to warrant the download). Probably less fun and accessible than Hawx, but more interesting, more real — think Project Gotham Racing vs. Burnout.