First Hour Review

Battlestations Pacific

Alas, for this review, GameCam refused to co-operate with me, so there will be screenshots and no video, all you will have are my experiences. I hope I do not bore you too much.

When I was a child, I enjoyed watching a series about World War II pilots. I still have no idea what it was called, but I remember dreaming of becoming a pilot. That was one of the reasons that I felt very excited about this game when I started. Did it live up to my expectations? I guess you are just going to have to read on to find out (or cheat by scrolling down to the end of the review)…

0:00 - Some Eidos logos, so they could build their brand a bit.

0:01 - Loading screen, with authentic-looking World War II videos playing in the side. Nice way to set the atmosphere right from the beginning.

0:02 - Now I am faced with my first decision of the game: Who to play as. Since I have not played this before, I decide to try the training section. I am surprised when it turns out that I will be playing for the Japanese side, as a member of Imperial Aviation.

0:03 - The instructions tell me to select a base, and so I do.

0:04 - Launching a plane. I decide on a J1NI Geck, since it looks cool. (Some may find fault with my strategic decisions at this point)

0:05 - It takes a bit of time for the plane to taxi out to the airstrip from one of the hangars, and I am notified that a hostile ship is nearby.

0:06 - I see my target ship, I shoot at it, to be rewarded with some very satisfactory looking explosions. I like the fact that I can target differnet sections of the ship, such as the engine, ammo and fuel.

0:07 – I see the word “ineffective” appear outside the targeting reticule… I am not sure if I am too far, or if my guns are just not strong enough to penetrate the armour.

0:08 - Since I have no idea how to select another plane, I try to get in closer… A bit too close, as I impact the ship, and explode.

0:10 - Spent the last two minutes trying to remember how to get back to base selection, finally checking the help system, where I discover that I just need to press “Y”.

0:11 - This time, I chose a bigger plane, a J2M Raiden… It looks like the kind of plane that should take out a ship…

0:12 - The delay between selecting a plane, and being able to actually fly it is slightly annoying, even if it is far more realistic this way. Soon enough, I am back in the air.

0:13 - This time, I manage to hit and sink the ship, getting to see a smoking close up as the ship sinks beneath the waves. I also find out that another enemy ship is approaching.

0:14 - I spot the new ship, easily enough, this time trying to fire a couple of my missiles at it, all of which seem to miss.

0:15 - I see what look like parachutists descending, I try to shoot them down, but I guess they are too far away.

0:16 - I fire another volley of missiles at the ship, and this time I am pretty sure some of them do hit, but the ship shows no damage. Either I am a lousy shot, or the missiles are just not effective against a ship.

0:18 - I lose track of the ship, but I see my port, as I fly a bit closer, to get a better look, I realise that I am going too fast, and end up smashing into it.

0:19 – This time I chose to fly KI-43 Oscar, a tiny looking plane, which seems completely unsuited to dealing with ships, but I have not tried it yet.

0:20 - To my complete lack of surprise, my machine gun is completely ineffective against the allied ship. I almost hit it, but manage to pull out just in time, probably giving some crewmen a huge fright.

0:21 – My guns continue to be useless against this warship, and as I try to do another strafing run, I end up hitting the mast, and going down in flames.

0:22 - I launch another Raiden, since it seemed to work for me last time.

0:24 - I sink the ship with ease.

0:25 – While trying to sink the last ship, I end up doing an accidental Kamikaze attack, as I hit the ship, and sink it… And myself.

0:26 - Having (successfully?) completed the training, I am back at the starting screen. This time, I chose to play the Japanese campaign, since its the first one in the list.

0:27 - Some more archive footage, with some information about the attack on Pearl Harbour.

0:28 - I get to see which planes will be available for the mission, and get to chose the difficulty level. I chose rookie, based on the number of times I was killed by stationary targets during training. If the targets in this mission actually decide to shoot back, I will be in real trouble!

0:29 - A cut scene starts. I see a Japanese airman walking through a garden, and a butterfly flies past, it seems very serene.

0:30 - I watch what looks like an amphibious attack onto an unidentified beach, its a full on battle scene with soldiers running, tanks, ships using their cannons, and buildings blowing up.

0:31 - I now see inside a hanger, as planes get ready for take off. I see them launch and do a strafing run against an aircraft carrier.

0:34 - The cut scene lasts for another three minutes, setting the stage nicely, and really adding to the atmosphere of the game, although after  a while, it seems a bit too long. Finally, I see the Japanese flag, and a loading message.

0:35 - Another cut scene, this one done in grainy looking style, that suits the setting and era of the game. A voice over with a heavy Japanese accent explains about the attack o Pearl Harbour. A nice way to see the attack from a point of view I have not been exposed to before.

0:37 - The cut cene continues, displaying the area and the Japanese air force approaching.

0:38 - With a shout of “Tora, tora, tora!” I finally get control of an A6M Zero. The guy with the Japanese accent from te previous cut scene seems to be my commander.

0:39 - I am surprised to hear an American accent from the radio, but then realise that we are listening to the radio chatter of the target… Another nice way of placing the player into the action.

0:41 - For some strange reason, I get a reminder of how the controls work, just as I get close to my targets: A couple of flying fortresses still on the ground. Apparently I have to take them out before they have a chance to take off.

0:42 - In my eagerness to take out the American machines of death, I end up flying to close to the ground, turning my plane into a fireball when I try to turn. I quickly switch to another one of the planes.

0:43 - I blow up a Catalina (water plane) still sitting in the water.

0:44 - This is one of the moments, I really wish I could have captured: I get very close to another Catalina, and keep firing at it as I get closer. Just before I impact into it, it blows up, and I fly through the fire, smoke and debris, emerging uscatched.

0:46 – My joy is short lived, as I manage to blow myself up once again.

0:47 - My new plane seems to be flying very high, nd as I get closer to the ground, I forget to cut the speed… Next!

0:49 - I somehow manage to end up in a stall, and pull out of it, by running my engine at maximum.

0:50 - I fly around a bit, trying to find more targets.

0:52 - I blow up a truck on the ground, and then hit the burning wreckage…

0:53 - The plane I switch to seem to have already been in a dive, and I fail to pull out of it in time… My quickest death yet!

0:55 - I manage to blow up another plane on the ground!

0:56 – I hit another plane multiple times. Its on fire, but apparently not destroyed yet?

0:57 - I see the I have one plane left, and go in search of it.

0:58 - I see that the last one is a Warhawk, and I blow it up with an entirely unaccustomed ease.

0:59 - I am told that I should land the planes, now that this first part of the mission is over. I promptly do so.

1:00 - The scene fades, informing me that i have reached a checkpoint. Perfect timing!

Conclusion: I think that this game is very good at creating atmosphere, making the player feel like he was really on the battlefield in World War II. The graphics are attractive, and work well with the game. I think it would reward sutained play. I found the planes unresponsive and hard to fly, but this might have been a nod t realism.

Will I play it longer than an hour? No… I suck way too much.