Aerobiz Supersonic

"Strategy gamers Unite! (badump-ching!)"

Aerobiz Supersonic is a completely unique game for the Super Nintendo. It definitely fits into the strategy gaming realm, but it's different from pretty much all the other games in this genre.

You're the CEO of a new airline company. Your job is to set up operations on the continent of your choice, setting up routes between different airports and then eventually start flying interregionally. There are some cities which are more desirable than others which generate more revenue for your company, but it generally costs more money to by the slots necessary in their airport to land and fly your airplanes there. You win the game by having flights to every region, and being the top airline in four of them. To increase your revenue, you can buy hotels and other city improvements. You can run ads to increase the number of passengers you get.

The game is pretty simple. The bulk of it is planning routes between cities. Some cities won't allow you to fly there, due to poor relations with that country and your own (Russia and the U.S. during the Cold War, for example.) Depending on what time period you're in, you can buy different planes that have advantages and disadvantages. Occasionally, historic events happen like wars or the Olympics which can either hinder or increase traffic to certain cities or regions. It's a pretty neat concept, and is relatively realistic, although I'm certainly no airline expert. If I were, I wouldn't be sitting and writing reviews for games that pretty much nobody plays anymore.

Like many of Koei's games, it is strongly addictive. Somehow though, I don't think that some strategy gamers will enjoy this game. It really doesn't have any complex elements and isn't full of intrigue. You don't get that same rush of power being an airline executive as you do being some warlord setting the torch to some city or dominating vast tracts of land. To compensate this, Koei kind of makes opening a new route to an airport feel like you're invading that other airport, as funny as that may sound. Only you're invading them with planes. Without bombs. If only all of our wars could be fought in the skies with passenger planes. Whoops, rambling again. The game just isn't that exciting when you get right down to it, but it's somehow fun.

One of the drawbacks I've seen with this game is that there just aren't enough airports. No doubt the game would become an unplayable piece of junk with hundreds of airports per region, but honestly, there could be some slight improvements made. Also, there are regions that you can pretty much ignore, sending an occasional flight there. This shifts the game's focus to just a few key areas, and I could see how that could become an annoyance. Plus, the graphics, even though it's just a simulation game, are just not that great. And the music/sound departments aren't too hot either, droning on with uninventive tunes that just start to wear on you after a while.

The bottom line: A pretty fun game that you can definitely tell is made by Koei. It might hook you, it might not, but it's worth a try. The music, sound and graphics aren't too great, but don't let them ''bring you down.'' Aha ha ha. Not funny.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 08/17/01, Updated 08/17/01