Blazing Angels

Necessity is the mother of invention, and as little as three years prior to the beginning of WWII, Britain’s RAF didn’t have much of an air force to speak of. In response to the growing threat in Germany however, Supermarine was commissioned to design a new fighter aircraft and the Spitfire was born, entering RAF service a year after Hawker had completed production for its Hurricane model in 1937. These were anxious times for Britain and following the return of the British Expeditionary Force from Normandy – having been ousted by a mighty German army, the RAF and the broad English Channel were the only true line of defence the country had from Hitler. Fortunately, they both did us proud, though it’s the RAF fighter pilots, their bravery and the iconic aircraft they flew that inspired generations of children and adults alike.

With most of those aircraft and veterans now consigned to history, it’s down to film, our own imaginations and, of course, games to get a taste of what it might have been like to fly a propeller-driven aircraft and dogfight over the channel. In fact, short of hiring a restored Spitfire, videogames are probably the closest most of us will get to flying, full stop. Which is why we felt it was particularly important for Ubisoft to get Squadrons Of WWII right: we don’t want to sound too melodramatic, but there’s more than just a good game at stake here, there are the dreams of a nation.

Blazing Angels launches with an appropriately dramatic orchestral score and an intro that sees you, an American pilot sent to help the floundering Brits, take to the skies in an obsolete bi-wing Gladiator aircraft, tutored in the art of flying by a stereotypical Limey. The first thing we noticed was that the visuals weren’t bad: the textures were a little rough and the lighting effects almost non-existent but the detail was relatively deep, even up close.

Our second impression was of the Wii Remote control scheme which is pretty darn excellent. It’s one of the most natural uses of the remote we’ve experienced so far: tilt it up to climb, down to dive and twist your wrist left or right to bank in the appropriate direction. Furthermore, it’s very intuitive, and considering many publishers have released ports that have contrived, bolt-on Wii controls, it’s refreshing to play a Wii title that makes obvious use of the remote yet has sublimely integrated it into the gameplay. It makes Blazing Angels as realistic a flying experience as anyone that hasn’t flown a propeller-driven aircraft with a purring Rolls-Royce engine can imagine.

It’s the gameplay itself that’s flawed. Initially, dogfighting the Jerries in their Messerschmitt’s, and bombing Panzers is entertaining and the difficulty is superbly pitched. While Blazing Angels doesn’t thrust you into the split-second reactions and pinpoint accuracy required by fighter pilots, it does provide an authentic feel for engaging the enemy in air combat. Performing the same fly-by manoeuvres time and again, however, becomes routine after a few levels. Mission environments vary, and you’ll be tackling ground-based ack-acks, flights of bombers, naval fleets and dogfighting. Often you provide a defensive role to ground-based troops or structures, however, the basic format of strafing past and peppering the enemy with 20mm cannon fire or bombs before looping back to make another pass doesn’t change. Even one of the African reconnaissance missions, where you must navigate a sandstorm in an unarmed Seafire and take photos of three German camps, sees you perform the same tactic.

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