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Thunderstrike 2
Firestorm: Thunderhawk 2 is a fun 'light' helicopter simulator from Core Design that is reminiscent of NovaLogic's Comanche series in many ways.
Specifically, it is a fast-paced action game that should not be confused with the upcoming complex simulator like Apache Longbow. The AH-73M Thunderhawk attack helicopter you control in Firestorm is part of a special helicopter group codenamed 'Firestorm', created by NATO to respond to urgent crisis situations. You are 'Firestorm One', the lead pilot of this elite force.
The game includes eight long campaigns, each with a variety of enemies, ranging from pirates in the South China Sea, Serbian forces blocking a humanitarian convoy, Iraqi troops invading Jordan, and even Colombian drug cartels. You can start the campaigns in any order you want, but you will have to finish all the missions of one before you can start another.
As in other similar games, before each mission you will receive a briefing with a clearly marked map indicating the location of enemy forces and objectives. The missions are very varied: in addition to the usual location and destruction missions, you will be sent to defend a NATO base or to liberate a passenger ship from the clutches of modern pirates. To carry out your tasks, your helicopter will be equipped to the teeth, from the standard 30mm chain gun, to heavy missiles (homing and anti-ship), 3 types of bombs and rockets. By default, you will be given a selection of weapons suitable for that particular mission, though you can always change it.
The graphics are quite impressive - the landscape is fully textured in 3D, with 2D graphics for the background - although they are not as smooth as NovaLogic's games. Buildings, enemy forces and other moving objects are also rendered in 3D, making the environment quite realistic even though the game only uses standard VGA resolution. The usual range of views is available, from stealth cockpit mode to external cameras.
Controls are as simple as in any first-person action game, and can be played with keyboard, mouse or joystick. As in more traditional flight combat simulators, you can lock your weapons on targets and fire at will. When you destroy a target, it will blow up with debris and multiple explosions, leaving blast-marked areas and blackened wreckage on the ground. You'll even see soldiers running away when the tanks explode, and you can kill them if you lower the altitude and shoot in their direction ;)
With plenty of detail, fun missions, and an easy-to-use interface, Firehawk is great fun for action gamers or casual flight sim fans who want a bit of realism, or for hardcore pilots who want an arcade-style sim for a change. Recommended.
