As is stands however, the single-player campaign quickly becomes very boring, as the player simply goes through the motions of completing objectives and taking out enemies until they move on to the next mission. Thankfully, the multiplayer mode fairs better, in large part due to the fact that everybody is vulnerable. Up to 16 players can compete in modes including Dog-fight, which is essentially a standard deathmatch, Seek-and-destroy, a last-man standing mode where each player has one life, and Aces high, the most fun of the competitive modes, wherein a player is designated an Ace and everyone else guns for them. Once the ace is killed, the player that took him down takes on the title and the cycle repeats itself. Its amazing how fast one’s skill at maneuvering improves after a few rounds of this game type.

In addition to the competitive modes, there are also team-based, or ‘squad’ match-types, which are highly enjoyable. Capture the base requires players to capture air-strips by landing and staying put for about 10 seconds, during which they are easy prey for the opposing team. It’s up to the player’s team-mates to protect him long enough for them to capture the strip. Kamikaze steals the show however, as players are tasked with either shooting down extremely fast Japanese fighters before the nosedive into the friendly carriers, or tasked with doing the nose-diving themselves. Finally, the single-player campaign can be completed in co-op mode with up to four players, which is far more enjoyable than going it alone as each player is actually vulnerable, and the team must work together effectively to survive and complete the campaign.

Controls

Here is something Blazing Angels does excel at, any rookie pilot can jump right in and take flight with Blazing Angels which makes the opening tutorial mission that more unnecessary considering how easy this game is to just pick up and play. Here’s a quick run-down of the control setup:

• Left thumbstick – pitch and yaw
  
• Right thumbstick – roll and speed, click for secondary fire
  
• Right trigger – primary fire
  
• Left trigger – follow camera
  
• A button – next objective
  
• Y button – show current score
  
• B button – switch to closest thread
  
• D-pad – squad commands

My only real gripe with the controls was the behind camera targeting system used, when you hold the L trigger down you will switch to a few behind your aircraft, it’s typically used to chase down your prey, but in reality it prevents you from seeing much of what is below your plane and ends up just has you chasing planes around all over the place.

The same thing happens against human opponents on or offline. I personally found myself chasing my opponents around in circles for 10-15 minutes until either crashing into a building or getting shot down by another plane, oddly enough usually one on the surface landed.

Graphics

Graphically Blazing Angels isn’t going to win any awards, especially with stuff like Oblivion and G.R.A.W. on the 360. However Blazing Angels is no slouch in the graphics department and it looks amazing on the 360. The smoke and burning effects are especially impressive and add to the overall experience, you’ll fly though clouds cities full of burning buildings and debris from the destruction and chaos that will ensue during some of the games battles. Another impressive graphical touch was the wear and tear on the planes themselves; normally in World War II titles or flight combat games in general the planes or jets will look like a million bucks, despite the fact that they are being used in a war! When it comes to being historically accurate, Blazing Angels doesn’t mess around.

Sound

The soundtrack in Blazing Angels is your typical World War II epic battle music, which - while somewhat uninspired at this point - does suite the title, but the voice acting is pretty horrendous and just about as entertaining as a game of shuffleboard. The planes themselves however have some truly great sound effects and improve the overall audio package.

Final Verdict

While Blazing Angels does show a lot of potential and seems to nail most everything, it manages to fail on the two most important aspects of any game, the gameplay balance and fun factor. Hopefully UbiSoft can take a look back at Blazing Angels and bring out a sequel or another aerial combat title that is more than just eye candy. Until that happens continue to enjoy Crimson Skies for all your online aerial combat needs.