Warhawk

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Developer: Incog Inc. Entertainment
Genre: Action
Release: August 28, 2007
Platform: Playstation 3

Reviewer: Dan

OK, let me tell you right now, that I knew absolutely nothing about this game before I paid the $59.97 (thanks for the two cents off, Wal-Mart) for it. The only thing I knew about this game is that you fly around in a futureistic fighter plane and that it had decent interactivity with the SIXAXIS controller. With that said, I think Warhawk was one of the best "on a whim" purchases I've ever made.

The game is very straightforward in concept; It's just combat, plain and simple. There is no storyline (as far as I can tell, anyway) and there isn't even a single player mode. Yes, you can have 2-4 player split screen, but to really experience the game, you need to try a 32 player online battle. So far, that's all I've played, but I really doubt I'm missing anything.

For those of you who don't know (like myself before I bought the game), there are three different modes of transport across the battlefield. First, you can walk around in 3rd person mode. You get a basic assortment of weapons, some better than others at particular tasks, and you can run around shooting at other people, the aircraft I mentioned earlier, the second form of transport, ground vehicles. You can choose between a tank and a jeep. The interesting part about the jeep is that the machine gun mounted on it can actually run out of ammo in its ammo belt. You do have infinite ammo belts, but you only have 60 rounds per belt, so there is acually a reload period you have to worry about. That means you shouldn't just hold in the trigger forever since you want a full belt when encountering the enemy. But by far the most fun thing to do is fly around in the Warhawk fighters. Well, if you want to get really technical and go with correct military terminology, its a fighter/attacker because it is used in both air to air and air to ground combat. Anyway, this is probably the most fun thing to drive/fly in the game, although the AA guns and the SAM sites you can control make the Warhawks very vulnerable. Overall, I think this game does a good job at adjusting the amount of damage a vehicle can take. Not so much that they're unstoppable, but not too little to make them useless deathtraps.

One of the best aspects of the game shows through if you have a nice HDTV. The clashes going on off in the distance look spectacular, especially the air battles when you're on the ground, witnessing a dogfight above you. The backgrouns are also pretty nice...it's basically an overall nice game to look at. The sound quality is decent, there are no major problems with it, although some people online need to fix their headsets. There were a few times I was yelling at people that I couldn't understand a word they were saying and that they should stop talking.

The few problems that I do have with it are the somewhat worse control feeling with the walking and the ground vehicles. It is hard to explain in words, but basically the Warhawk fighter controls is where the time and effort went. Other than that, it's pretty good.

Final Verdict

Warhawk is a very strong PS3 title and is probably a must-own for those who like online gaming. It isn't as mind-bogglingly fast as a title like Resistance: Fall of Man, and doesn't seem to be as slow as Halo feels at times. I'm not saying this is a "Halo Slayer," but if you own a PS3, you should get it. The nice thing about it is that you can either download it for $40 or you can buy it in stores for $60 and get the free Bluetooth headset. Either one is a steal for this game. I give Warhawk 8.5 out of 10.