At the click of a button, you will be presented with a tunnel which will guide you out of the way of an approaching missile, or give you the precise trajectory to hit a target that is otherwise well hidden and protected by the scenery.
You will find that this is an absolute life saver whilst learning the game, as you are only supplied with a minimum amount of flares. If you do not use this system, you will be blown out of the sky.
This support can also be deactivated which will take the view from the safe proximity of the aircraft and thrust you firmly into 3rd person. This literally removes all electronic support, except your lock-on. This is to aid in dogfight situations, allowing the player to perform complex moves in order to “stay on target, squad leader!”. There is debate in the GR team as to whether this facility does what it says on the tin. Personally I prefer to stay in the pilot seat, but we do agree that when you break the sound barrier, the visual effect seen around the plane from 3rd person is a nice little touch!
Weapon usage is extremely satisfying as there is a good variety of missiles, bombs and rockets to choose from, and selection of the right tools can mean the difference between winning and losing.
Another nice little touch is the missile cam – hold down X when firing a missile and you will be able to follow it until it blows your opponent to the great scrap yard in the sky. Destroying a foe is an experience that does not lose appeal, but there is nothing more satisfying that shooting a plane out of the sky with your cannon!
The missions are great and there is a reasonable amount of variety embedded into the campaign ranging from air, land and sea combat. We would recommend that you start the game on Normal or Elite mode however, just to get a decent amount of mileage from the campaign as well as help you to level up more quickly – a help as after Level 20 the game rewards you less frequently.
Where this game elevates itself further is the co-op. You are able to invite 3 more players to join you through each of the missions and it is here that you will find yourself returning to most. VOIP works really well, which is important as the banter levels in this game go through the roof. We are currently replicating the frequently cheesy American dialogue as though HAWX was set above the streets of Leeds. "By eck, bogies on me effin' six? Box two love, ah said box two... in yer face y'old duffer!". Classic!
The multiplayer is fun and we here at GR do keep returning to it, (mainly because of the minimal number of players allowed into co-op) but the experience is just not quite as rich in team deathmatch. Even though TDM contains performance-based power-ups, there is just one game mode: Shoot, blow up, respawn – repeat until the time expires.
In co-op you have a mission to follow, like protecting Air Force 1 or stopping an assault on a major City. Just a little more variety in the multiplayer option would make it all the more appealing. I hope that Ubisoft release some DLC that will open up additional game modes in the multiplayer as it is, in my opinion, the weak link in an otherwise strong title.
So overall, H.A.W.X. is a nice addition to the Tom Clancy series. A beautiful looking game with a high level of replayability for the sociable. The experience brings with it a fantastic sense of freedom - rarely offered in games today - where you will find your head rolling all over the place as you bank and twist your fighter through the sky. The in-game sound is understated yet realistic, and the synth-driven, hint of Harold Faltermeyer music fits perfectly with the mood of the game. This is a great addition to any gaming collection and we hope that it is the start of further things to come.
