"Great game for those with a low-end computer"

Overview:

WarBirds from iEntertainment Network is a world war two online flight simulator with good graphics and challenging gameplay.

Storyline: -/10

This game does not have a storyline. It is aimed towards realism, aerial combat and bombing missions.

Gameplay: 9/10

WarBirds gameplay is split into two main categories. You have the offline mode where you can fly freely in the terrain and plane of your choice. You will also have the selection to choose other offline modes such as offline air attack, ground attack and free arena. In the online mode, you play against other players.

There are basically four countries in WarBirds. ''Red team'', ''Green team'', ''Gold team'' and ''Purple team''. Some online arenas have only two teams while others have up to four. The types of planes you fly depends on the team you choose. For example, ''Red team'' flies the axis army which include Messershimitt Bf-109s, Mitsubishi A6Ms and Kawasaki Ki-84s. The ''Green team'' on the other hand flies the allied army which include Grumman F4Fs, Grumman F6Fs, Lockheed P-38s, Supermarine Spitfires and Hawker Hurricanes. For whichever team you fly, your mission is to destroy the other team’s facilities such as factory, air fields and planes.

WarBirds has a very steep learning curve. There are basically three category of training you are required to master. You will have to know how to handle and fly the aircraft. Basic piloting skills such as take-offs, landings and stall recovery are very important. Then followed by other skills such as aerial combat maneuvering and gunnery. This isn't the 21th century where you have high-tech weapons such as missiles. This is world war two. Your plane you are flying only has machine guns, cannons and a simply looking gun-sight at the cockpit. You will need to master gunnery skills such as lead aiming and deflection shooting if you are even thinking of hitting anything with your guns. Thankfully, there is an online training arena where instructors will teach you the above skills step by step.

Graphics: 7/10

The graphics in WarBirds are pretty good. The aircrafts, terrains and other visual effects such as clouds, smoke and machine gun fire were pretty well detailed. Also to add, WarBirds does not require you to have a good computer to play it. The game is very friendly to older computers.

Sound: 7/10

The sound effects in WarBirds were pretty good. The sound of the engines and machine gun fire were pretty accurate. But one problem regarding the sound effects is that several planes uses the same sound file, which makes certain noises pretty similar to each other.

Replay value: 9/10

WarBirds is one of those games that doesn’t get old as quickly as you might expect. It also has regular online updates which add more features and planes to an already awesome game.

Overall: 8/10

This game is fun, intense, frustrating and exciting. The feeling of killing your first online opponent doesn't get any better than this!

Rent or buy?

Looking at other new flight simulators but don't have a good computer to run them? Look no further. Go to totalsims web site and download WarBirds right away.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 10/27/03, Updated 10/28/03