Genre: Airplane Action	Developed By: Ubisoft
	The fluid and responsive controls as well as arcade game mechanics make this game appeal to a broader audience.

 Clancy, Tom Clancy:

Tom Clancy games are known for being detailed and having depth in their gameplay. However, HAWX does not try to be an aerial simulation. Rather it can be best described as the ‘Rambo’ in the genre. This arcade oriented game is fast paced and will have players be a one man demolition team that single handedly turns the tide of wars.

Players will take the role of Creshaw, a pilot for the US Airforce. Governments have cut down their investments in military resulting in the rise of private contracted military. Creshaw gets decommissioned and decides to join the private military corporation. The corporation decides to launch a full scale invasion of the USA and Creshaw switches sides to defend his country. Unfortunately similar to other Tom Clancy titles, the game fails to deliver the story in a way that immerses the player. That being said it presents some awesome scenarios that include a full fledged aerial warfare above the Whitehouse and disarming of a nuclear missile in downtown Los Angeles.

The Gist:

For a fighter jet game, it is imperative that it have strong controls and players feel that they are completely in charge. Fortunately, the game delivers strongly in those aspects. There is also an ample variety of planes to choose from that look distinct, feel and handle a little differently from each other.

The game knows that it’s an arcade title and does not pretend to be otherwise. There will not be memorable one on one dogfights in the single player campaign, but rather players will be fighting numerous enemies at a time. To complement the fast paced gameplay it is easy to perform nifty maneuvers which become necessary with multiple bogeys on your tail.

There are only a handful of air to air and air to ground missile types. But I never felt that I needed a large variety as the missiles present are already unique and different.  Ammo is not a concern as the game provides ample basic missile ammo. This again suits the fast paced gameplay as it encourages players to go all out with the special missiles without having to worry about depletion. 

The game has the standard 3^rd person and cockpit camera options. It also introduces “Assistance Off”. This mode zooms out and focuses the camera on the target. In addition this mode allows players to make sharper turns but a turn too sharp could stall engines. But recovery is easy to do and explained well in the tutorial. The mode takes a little getting used to in order to control your jet, however with practice this will be the camera that gives the best view point for the action and will be the prime choice when engaging in dogfights.

Another addition is the ERS. This has you choose a target and presents waypoints in order to take said target out. It can be used for taking out ground units when they are surrounded by sky scrapers or guide you behind an enemy jet for an easy shot. There are some scenarios that require you to use this but for the most part it’s an option for players that are having difficulty with the game.

Fellow Wingmen:

Most of the missions have you fly with two other pilots. They can be issued orders to defend you or to engage a targeted enemy. The game also gives the option of playing the missions in 4 player co-op. If you have friends that have the game, then this mode will be the most enjoyable especially with the difficulty cranked up to maximum.

Beauty is only skin deep:

The game employs GeoEye satellite imaging technology. From high altitudes this makes the cities and environments look stunning and realistic. However when you drop altitude and get closer to the buildings, they look like two-dimensional pixilated cardboards.

The visual effects of rockets flying all over the place are quite a sight. However the explosions are low in resolution and also look like two dimensional cardboards. Fortunately when you are flying at high speeds at vast areas of land, the shortcomings in graphics are easy to overlook.

One issue I did have with the graphics was that from a distance it was hard to spot whether the object was a tank, fighter jet or a helicopter. When firing long ranged rockets, often these targets were destroyed without even getting close to them. However the game does have a camera on top right corner that displays the target. In addition there is an option to follow your missile from a third person perspective and watch it destroy the target.

Final Word:

HAWX boasts responsive and fluid controls which are keys for a successful aerial action game. However unlike other Tom Clancy titles, HAWX provides a simplified gaming experience that may turn off veterans but the fast paced gameplay and accessibility will make it appeal to a broader audience and gain new fans for the genre.