Games
Blazing Angels 2: Secret Missions Xbox 360
The problem with making games set in world war 2 is that you’re sort of stuck with the same sort of restrictions that the bosch and tommies had to put up with. No nukes, no lasers, no forcefields and so on. Nope, back in the 40s all they had was a tin of beans packed with nails and a rifle with a spiky end for jabbing at the huns guts. There was the occasional machine gun nest and tank, but for the most part it was a brute and unsophisticated war. Since Ubisoft didn’t really want to make a brute and unsophisticated flying game again, they took the rather novel idea of just plain old cheating. In Blazing Angels 2: Secret Missions you get to dump the fokkers for stealth fighters, but eh….you’re still up against the nazis in World War 2. So be warned: this game is not a reliable source of info for your history essay.
Blazing Angels 2 is at first glance exactly the same as Blazing Angels 1. You start off learning the controls of the ship by performing a couple of stunts at a memorial air show where you’re the star attraction. To pitch up and down or steer as we non-pilot folk call it, you use the left thumbstick, to change throttle you use the right. The controls are pretty intuitive and after a times perishing in a flaming inferno you should be a regular Goose from Top Gun. Before he died, that is. Anyhoo, once you’ve grasped the idea you thrown back into world war 2 by means of a flashback and straight into battle.
The gameplay is all very similar if only in Hi Definition. You still shoot down enemy planes and zeppelins, and take out threats on the ground like trucks, gun emplacements and so on. In the dogfights, you have the opportunity to lock on to your target so you can follow him in the air. This is invaluable if you plan to stay on his tail as these guys can pull off some dizzying maneuvres.
The more enemies you destroy, the more prestige points you earn and these allow you access to new weapons upgrades which can be purchased in between rounds. These include armour piercing shells, high velocity cannons, speed modifications and so on. This is the first real difference between Blazing Angels 2 and it’s predecessor: As you start to take on the secret missions, you get to try out secret technologies on futuristic planes like the stealth fighter Komet. Upgrades get more flossy too, - I’m pretty sure they didn’t have heat seeking missiles or tesla lighting attacks in 1939. Wait, do they even have that now?
Anyway, Considering you’re practically taking on the entire Luftwaffe on your own, you’ll need all the help you can get. I say practically because you are supplied with wingmen this time round and can issue commands by using the directional pad. You can order your wingmen to take on a particular target, or get them to rally round you. Each of your wingmen have different abilities to help you to victory such as taunting the enemies to attract their attention and take the heat off your ass.
The other new features include a paintjob option that allows you to customise your plane and add individual wing markings. Of course this is comes into its own during multiplayer matches but these little touches will also show up during the single player experience.
Online is fairly decent too, you can play co-op through campaign missions and the usual deathmatch games. Ps3 owners are rewarded with a few more extras here including multiplayer races.
Many will tire of Blazing Angels 2 for its repetitive nature and although it’s difficult to argue that point, the game is still a marked improvement from the first encounter in all aspects. Flight sim aficionados will probably do well looking elsewhere for their thrills, but pick up and play pilots will find a pretty enjoyable romp in the skies awaiting them if they give this title a chance. Chocs away boys.
Jonathan McCrea
