Our team is tirelessly delivering iPhone game reviews and we have one that you can't afford to miss. If you like flight simulators, iChromo's Aera will thrill you (in the App Store now). The game sports neat and refined graphics, smooth animation, and responsive controls that come in handy while casual flying or while you duke it out with another aircraft.
Aera contains four planes (three unlockable) with which to traverse the skies over three locations (two unlockable). You can fly your plane in any of several missions: Aerobatic/Solo, Dog Fight, Race, or Free Flight. Aerobatic/Solo tasks you to fly the plane while collecting a specified number of floating objects within a pre-determined amount of time. You'll need to be quick and accurate as you fly through rings and avoid hovering mines as you follow the path of balls to success. Dog Fight pits you against another plane. Shoot him down before he shoots you down. To help you accomplish this, you have guns with unlimited ammunition, as well as a limited stock of rockets. A destroyed enemy will rain bonus boxes upon the land. Snag these boxes to pick up points, rockets, and the like. Race, as you might have guessed, is a timed flight mission where you'll need to avoid the mines if you want to survive. If you prefer to just enjoy the controls or check out the scenery, you can also choose Free Flight to get your fix. You can either play in Campaign mode or Quick Play, choosing from Easy, Medium, and Hard difficulty levels.
The 3D game graphics are very polished and help give depth to the 2D gameplay. Sounds are appropriate, with realistic propeller effects and accurate-sounding crashes/explosions. There is no background music, but the game doesn't feel as though it's lacking, given its goal of pseudo-simulation rather than full-on arcade. The controls are outstanding. Most of the plane controls are handled through the accelerometer, tilting the device to change the plane's attitude. A sharp shake of the device will cause a 180-degree flip. On-screen buttons control throttle, boost (necessary when making steep ascents), firing guns/rockets, and changing camera angles. The placement of the buttons leaves the interface feeling uncluttered, though all possible needs are at your quick disposal. Aera includes detailed tutorial explanations, as well as a walkthrough requiring you to complete certain tasks in order to move on.
Features abound in Aera. The "TimeBack" aspect will auto-reverse time if you nail an object. This give you the chance to try your hand at that section of the game again. Essentially, this gives you the opportunity to continue playing without starting from the beginning of the level. The AppSmile Team was glad to have this helpful feature. If you want to evaluate your flight, you can do so by watching the video replay of your completed mission. No online play exists except for local wi-fi multiplayer. Dual or Capture the Flag mode are your options here. Sensitivity can be adjusted in the Configuration menu. A Prediction line can also be turned on and off here. The Prediction line is a virtual path you will take if you remain at the current altitude and speed.
Aera perfectly marries a flight simulator, side scroller, and arcade flier like no other app in the App Store. We had great fun in especially with Dog Fight mode. If you're goal oriented, you might just like Solo mode the best. in fact, excellent game presentation exists in any mode. Our team can remember too many iPhone game reviews that brought us as much fun. Its obvious that the Aera developers at iChromo spent a lot of time in the details. We will be playing this gem for a long time due to the smooth and entertaining gameplay. Plus, doing so will earn several Achievements such as the aforementioned unlockable aircraft and locations. With a price of $0.99, picking up Aera is a no-brainer for any iPhone game fan. - 30202
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