Posted on: December 5, 2020
laverniusregalis
Zweryfikowany użytkownikGry: 127 Opinie: 2
Wearing Its Inspiration On Its Sleeve
Project Wingman has already prompted a lot of discussion over whether it is better or worse than Bandai Namco’s own arcade flight action series. But I think these discussions tend to miss the point a bit: instead, PW helps highlight the underappreciated strengths of Ace Combat more than anything else. This game lacks the professional presentation that Ace offers, though that’s to be expected from such a small team. The visuals and audio design aren’t as consistent and polished as Ace Combat 7, and there are bugs and glitches to deal with still, actively being worked on by the devs. In return, there are a lot of options here that Ace lacks – FOV, HUD color, incredibly detailed key mapping, axis assignment, and so on. Welcome additions all around. As for the campaign, this game relies on no gimmick levels (canyon runs, radar avoidance, etc), and instead every mission entails destroying lots of targets. It’s a cross between the game design of Ace Combat 04 and 6, and it’s likely to be fun for veterans of the series, but it highlights the pacing issues that come with only having pure combat missions. Gimmick levels aren’t as replayable, but they help with pacing tremendously. Similarly, the story has some strengths over Ace, and some big weaknesses. I care more about the wingmen here than in any Ace game, and I know more about them too. The voiced WSO is also welcome. But there are no cutscenes, and the game has quite a few glaring plot holes - not to mention that it ends on a terrible note, narratively face-planting during the home stretch. These problems could have been remedied with some Ace Combat 04-style slideshow cutscenes, a lower-budget solution to the storytelling issues. This is a game that Ace Combat fans should certainly look at, but I would be less confident recommending it to people unfamiliar with those games. It doesn't offer the best first impression for this type of game, even if it's fun for series veterans. 4/5 for Ace fans, 3/5 otherwise.
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