IRON ACES (DC)
Iron Aces serves as a warning to the perils of trying to please all gamers. It’s clear that Marionette were treading the line between arcade-like action and simulation, with this dogfighting game falling somewhere in the middle. Unfortunately, this balancing act results in a game which will prove too simplistic for veteran dogfighters, yet too challenging for those looking to unwind on brainless action. When coupled with cumbersome bombing, lacklustre presentation and a dull story, Iron Aces is more difficult to recommend.
Marionette plays very fast-and-loose with its World War II setting. The general strand of the allied forces banding against the Japan/Germany union remains, albeit with the names of countries and locales having been changed. As the US and British from the Trincer islands unite to form an allied coalition, you play as a new allied pilot. You’ll then be tasked with over a dozen missions which range from patrolling Trincer, to all-out assaults. Unfortunately, the plot is wafer-thin, with bare-bones cut-scenes and almost no character development bar for one chap named Baker, and aside from mission briefings, there just isn’t much to it. It all has a dull, straight-to-TV tone, which fails to captivate.
Iron Aces feels a bit betwixt and between, unable to please both arcade and sim fans.
On the battlefield, Iron Aces compromises between simulation elements and arcade gameplay. Several factors can drastically affect how you play, such as altitude, speed and bombing distance. But on the other hand, many elements have been stripped out, such as wind speed affecting your direction, stalling your plane and take-off manoeuvres. When factored in with the shooting action, with most enemy planes only taking a couple of shots to down, and you can tell there’s a focus on action. Unfortunately, this mesh of gameplay styles does not gel. The stripping back of so many sim elements leaves it looking bare to anyone with experience of these kinds of games, even when you compare it to other console flight games. But, some of the sim elements, such as how frustrating it is to nail a bomb trajectory – with your speed and aeroplane tilt affecting where it will land – make it more frustrating for those unfamiliar with these games.
The campaign seems decently meaty, with 17 missions available to players. Beforehand, you can listen to a briefing and then select your plane, with more becoming available as you progress. However, there are a lot of bite-sized chapters, some of which feature no combat. While the idea of patrolling an area, rather than engaging in dogfights, seems interesting, the lack of a compelling setting or story leaves them a bit dull. When the action does heat up, the objectives are so short that you may finish a chapter within minutes. While higher difficulties do ramp up the challenge, Iron Aces still feels unfulfilling. The only mission which stands out – perhaps for the wrong reasons – is the finale. A frustrating affair even on Easy, it reinforces how cumbersome the bombing mechanics are.
The campaign seems decently meaty, with 17 missions available to players. Beforehand, you can listen to a briefing and then select your plane, with more becoming available as you progress. However, there are a lot of bite-sized chapters, some of which feature no combat. While the idea of patrolling an area, rather than engaging in dogfights, seems interesting, the lack of a compelling setting or story leaves them a bit dull. When the action does heat up, the objectives are so short that you may finish a chapter within minutes. While higher difficulties do ramp up the challenge, Iron Aces still feels unfulfilling. The only mission which stands out – perhaps for the wrong reasons – is the finale. A frustrating affair even on Easy, it reinforces how cumbersome the bombing mechanics are.
Outside of the campaign, there are few extras. A training mode attempts to help you master the art of bombing, but it doesn’t really help. There is also some multiplayer functionality, allowing you to not only engage friends in dogfights, but also add AI in to either help or fight against. That’s pretty neat, in fairness, but outside of this, there’s not a whole lot to Iron Aces, bar maybe replaying the campaign on higher difficulties.
The presentation is also rather dull. Despite being a late release on the Dreamcast, it doesn’t make much use of the systems capabilities, with bland geography and underwhelming textures. The planes look solid, but everything else lacks detail or refinement. The audio isn’t much better, as while the shooting and plane sounds are respectable, the music seems to be stuck on the same few track loops rather than creating unique music for each scenario. There’s no voice work at all, which only contributes to the story feeling uninspired.
The presentation is also rather dull. Despite being a late release on the Dreamcast, it doesn’t make much use of the systems capabilities, with bland geography and underwhelming textures. The planes look solid, but everything else lacks detail or refinement. The audio isn’t much better, as while the shooting and plane sounds are respectable, the music seems to be stuck on the same few track loops rather than creating unique music for each scenario. There’s no voice work at all, which only contributes to the story feeling uninspired.
Missions take place at different times of the day, resulting in very different levels of visibility.
Sadly, Iron Aces is a missed opportunity. Though not the only flight-combat game on the Dreamcast, it feels as if Marionette’s game could have stood out with a unique take on WWII-inspired dogfights. Unfortunately, in trying to please both casual and hardcore pilots, the gameplay ends up disappointing both ends of the spectrum. Coupled with a bland presentation and dull storytelling, it makes Iron Aces hard to recommend. Unless you can look past it’s flaws, you’re better off seeking your air combat thrills elsewhere.
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VERDICT
"Unfortunately, in trying to please both casual fans and hardcore pilots, the gameplay ends up a disappointment on either end of the spectrum." OVERALL: 5/10 |