Flight combat not only takes strength of the mind, butstrength of the body; as a result, it is perhaps best reserved for those withthe right stuff. After all, hitting speeds of Mach 1.6 and flying at 40,000feet in an F-16 isn’t for everyone. With stereoscopic 3D, the experience couldbe recreated more truly, providing both the sense of speed and distance fromthe ground that’s needed. Ace Combat:Assault Horizon Legacy not only provides that, but an exciting gameplayexperience as well.
Players star as Phoenix, a member of the Allied Forces whoare tasked with taking down the rebels on the continent of Usea. They’ll besent on a variety of missions that include defending bases, attackingsquadrons, and others. Even in the air, AssaultHorizon Legacy manages to provide both variety and a challenge, whether itbe stalling in high altitudes or finding a balance between hitting targets andnot buildings at lower altitudes. Unfortunately, there was no multiplayerexperience to go along with the game, which really killed any lasting appeal itmay have beyond the single player mode.
While many missions have players assaulting ground units orplanes that are otherwise incapable of keeping up with them in speed, almostall missions also include faster planes and dogfights. With aerial combat gamesbeing somewhat of a niche, the game does a good enough job of introducingplayers to the controls. Beginners may take a while to adapt to the upside downy axis and the sluggishness of a fighter jet, but the aerial maneuvers easilyremedy the problem for newcomers to the genre.
Aerial maneuvers take players behind enemies at the touch ofa button or easily dodge an incoming attack. It may sound as though these takethe challenge out of dogfights, but players will still have to make an effortin order to make use of these. The attack maneuver requires players to havefollowed a target for a set amount of time first without being attacked orusing evasive maneuvers, meaning that strategic positioning is definitely key. Evasivemaneuvers on the other hand have fewer requirements; however, players stuck ina cluster of enemy fighters will find themselves evading endlessly, hardly evengiven a chance to shoot off a missile.
Although HorizonAssault Legacy is obviously visually inferior to its console counterpart,the stereoscopic 3D is impressive. It only makes the aerial maneuvers look allthe better. The visuals give the sense of height that 2D visuals just can’t. Whennot preoccupied with shooting down enemy pilots, I was more concerned withenjoying the view from above than I was with the next mission objective. Fromfar away, the landscapes impress, but quickly lose their magic once playersclose in. On the other hand, the fighter jets themselves are renderedsurprisingly well, making for a pleasing viewing experience during anydogfight.
As an introductory game to flight combat, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy isperfect. It combines the difficulty of flying at high speeds while providingattack and evasive maneuvers so that everyone can join in on the fun and be anace pilot. The visuals are naturally enhanced by the system’s 3D capabilities, whichshould usher in even the most skeptical pilots to give it a try.
Available on: 3DS; Publisher: Namco Bandai Games; Developer: Project Aces; Players: 1; Released: November 15, 2011; ESRB: Teen; Official Site
Note: A retail copy was provided to Denkiphile for review purposes by the publisher.
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