Lair

"Dragon Fans Unite"

Lair is a game that combines the cool dragons and sense of adventure from Draken, and the big action dogfights of Rogue Squadron. I mean the latter part quite literally because this is a game made by longtime Rogue Squadron game maker Factor 5. The Rogue Squadron games are generally loved by Star Wars fans and liked among everyone else. The games are decent to say the least, but are Factor 5 ready to break away and make a strong new game?

Graphics
Superb. These kinds of graphics are what make buying that 1080p HD TV worth the money. The details in both the modeling and the animations are all very smooth and life-like. You will be amazed at all the beauty of all the levels, in fact, the city's all look so good you will not want to destroy them. The dragons and various other creatures you encounter all look as real as you can expect them to be. Finally, we see a hint of what the PS3 graphics engine can do.

Sound
The musical score is movie quality. I actually left the menu screen on for a while just to hear some of the music. The other sounds, like the battle explosions and people fighting are all real enough. Voice acting is on par with the graphics, giving all the characters an even more realistic feel to them.

Controls
This is really the main grey area for the game. Originally, the game would force you to only use the SIXAXIS controller motions and nothing else. In other words, you can't use the analog stick to steer your dragon…you have to use the motion controls. This gives you a more realistic feel; however, it takes A LOT of practice and patience to get use to. Now having said that, there are two things that I must stress: first, a patch is available to download that allows you to use the analog stick instead of motions, and second, once you get use the motion controls…you will ONLY want to use them.

The only thing I feel was done wrong here was that Factor 5 figured everyone would accept the motion controls and didn't feel it would be necessary to waste time making analog controls. Instead, the opposite happened. Most people were too impatient to get use to the motion controls and therefore, rejected the game. What should have been done from the beginning was to include the analog controls “out of the box” from the beginning. Either way, I found the controls to be smooth and well done.

Game play
Lair is purely an arcade flight-sim. The game is very similar to the Rogue Squadron games, only there is much more air to ground combat. You will find yourself spending a lot of time killing solders, ships, and machines/beasts of war on the ground. Don't worry though; there is plenty of aerial combat. Plus, Factor 5 takes it a step further to make the game unique buy adding a few “bosses” in the game that will require you to think fast. The most notable is a Leviathan type creature that comes out of the water below to attack you while you are flying low to the water.

As you play the game you are given missions to complete, usually in a predictable order. A good example is that you first have to fight incoming Dragons, after that there are ship's coming in from the sea, then there are catapults approaching the gate of the city, and so on. Each level has many missions to complete and there is usually you will also have to keep the moral of your troops up. This is done by either slaughtering the enemy or just by completing the missions quickly.

After each level you are given you stats for the last level. You are assigned a medal if you do good, Platinum being the best followed by Gold, Silver, and Bronze. You are also given the stats required for the next medal. The biggest factors are number of deaths, time, and enemies killed. Also after each level are where you get to see the awesome CG movies that tell the story. The only negative part of the whole game play experience is that there are some area's that you are alone with a million or so enemies and your only option is to run away. This happens a few times and while it might be looked back on as the “challenging” parts of the game, it is overwhelming for novice gamers, especially people new to Flight-Sims.

Story
The story is done very well and had good flow. You start as an officer in the “Sky Guard” which is the elite group of Dragon Riders protecting the City. Your rival nation attacks and you are thrust into a story full of politics, religion, and war. Without spoiling anything, let's just say that it's a compelling story. Interestingly enough, the ending doesn't leave too much room for a sequel, but that doesn't mean they can't have one.

In conclusion, this is simply a great game. Don't believe all of the negative stuff about the controls you read from the professional reviews, this game shouldn't be missed. This is also one of the prettiest games on the PS3 to date, and top if off with an awesome soundtrack. The game has perfect length at about 10 hours or so. It might take less for the veteran gamers, or up to 15 for the newer players. This game is defiantly worth it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/28/08

Game Release: Lair (US, 08/30/07)