#River N.White

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Player Review-Aero Fighters/Sonic Wings- ソニックウィングス (1992) Developers-Video System Publishers-JP: Tecmo (Arcade), JP: Video System (SNES), NA: Mc O'River (Arcade, SNES) Designers-Shin Nakamura Composers-Naoki Itamura Series-Aero Fighters Platforms-Arcade, Super NES Genres-Scrolling Shooter Modes-Single Player, 2 player Co-op The first Aero Fighters/Sonic Wings game is good but I didn't really fall in love with the series until the second installment. This one has basically all of the same elements that I loved in the other games just toned down. Aero Fighters came out in 1992 and it was also ported to the SNES so it's not exactly the pinnacle of what type of content this genre can produce.

My favorite part of the Aero Fighters/Sonic Wings series has always been the atmosphere they were able to build around it. The game has kind of a Top Gun feel with a hint of Street Fighter.  You can choose machines from 4 different countries, each with a Player 1 and a Player 2 pilot option but players are bound to fighting for the same country. The enemies range from pretty standard fighter jets, space shuttles, warships and massive tanks to armed satellites & a giant cyborg monkey. They didn't stay in the standard modern warfare box, this game not only has a sense of humor but also it's own unique identity.

There are only seven levels in the game which seems extremely short but actually that's fine because games in the vertical-scrolling shooter genre that go for too long eventually start dragging and then you don't want to play any more. There isn't a whole lot going on here and that's not necessarily a bad thing. You can experience the game within a fairly short time and it's fun enough to play again, although the following entries in the series are a lot more advanced; and therefore, better games...you probably won't come back to this one unless you're on some type of gaming marathon and you're going to play through all of them.

THE GOOD -The style of this game is probably the most intriguing thing about it. The designs of the machines, the individual characters & overall aesthetic of the game is what I take away from it most.

-It's not a very long game but short & sweet is a plus sometimes. When I completed it, I didn't feel like I wanted more. I enjoyed the sense of accomplishment from beating it and I moved on, there is definitely room for a sequel and those are very good as well but this is a good start.

THE BAD -You don't do much in the game besides destroy enemy machines. There aren't a lot of bells & whistles and added gameplay elements that enhance your enjoyment of this game. It pretty much follows the same basic blueprint as most games in the genre. You shoot down enemies, you collect power-ups, you get your fire power to MAX, you maybe collect some objects for extra points and then you face-off with the boss.

I give this game a 7.9 out of 10 NOT BAD