Crimson Skies

"A wonderful arcade simulation from Microsoft.."

I'd first heard of Crimson Skies while perusing my usual gaming oriented web sites. I read that it was quite an unexpected gem, so I decided to take a ride out to the local mall and see for myself how good this game is. The game takes place in an alternate reality in the 1930s where the Unites States has split into many separate nations. The game revolves around a group of air pirates known as the Fortune Hunters, lead by the well known ladies man, Nathan Zachary. Here's my rundown:

Graphics: 9/10
Quite good. The textures are lovely, and the environments are absolutely stunning. From the streets of Manhatten in the Empire State to the Kingdom of Hawaii the terrain is breathtakingly beautiful. The planes themselves look very smooth, some of the models are impressive and you can't help but think ''Damn that plane looks good!'' The explosions are decent, a bit choppy sometimes but no gripes of major note.

Sound/Music: 10/10
All I can say is ''Wow!'' The music and sound in this game are phenomenal. You can't help but feel upbeat at the tunes that come from your speakers just before a mission, they give you a little bit of extra adrenaline rush before you start flying. The voice acting in this game is absolutely brilliant if you ask me, the pilots interact well and the actor's voiceovers in flight and during briefing are very convincing and well done.

Gameplay: 9/10
Very very very fun. The physics engine in this game isn't for diehard flight sim fans. They wanted to keep a certain degree of realism to this game while also giving a more arcade feel where you won't be stalling every two seconds trying to pull an Immelman in a hot dogfight. This game is very fun and addictive. It has a very slight autoaim to keep shooting down the enemy planes from becoming a teeth grinding chore, and it enhances the fun of the game a great deal overall. Some of the stunts you can pull by flying through some tight spaces (i.e. through a zeppelin hangar) are absolutely spectacular and give you quite a rewarding feeling.

Replay Value: 9/10
With the ability to customize all the parts of your plane, multiplayer modes, and the very highly customizable instant action mode you'll keep coming back to Crimson Skies for even more aerial pirating goodness.

Overall: 9/10
An extremely solid title that is a blast to play, and well worth the money that you pay for it. The learning curve isn't too steep, even flying novices will find themselves executing a good barrel roll in a tight dogfighting situation after some practice. I'd highly recommend a joystick of some sort to play because it greatly adds to the realism and overall experience that this game has to offer. I'd call this a must have for fans of the genre, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a good game to spend their hard earned cash on.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 11/03/00, Updated 11/03/00