The Assistance-Off camera angle seems awkward at first, but after you get comfortable, it can make a world of difference in out maneuvering enemy target locks and incoming missiles. The angle can make it difficult to see exactly what you are flying towards; making targeting ground enemies excessively difficult. The mode is primarily for engaging air enemies, which it does exceedingly well. The ability to slam on the brakes and turn the plane for a 'drift' turn is incredibly rewarding, as you out fly the opposition and turn the tables Top Gun style. The stall and recovery process makes for some interesting near-deaths, as your plane plummets toward the ground. It can take a decent amount of practice to learn, but you will wonder how you went so many missions without it when you begin nailing more aggressive maneuvers. The game lacks variety across the board. The game itself provides only the campaign or versus modes, with versus offering Team Deathmatch as its only mode.
The missions mostly boil down to the escort or protect variety, despite the constantly shifting locations. Thankfully, the dangling carrot of increased ranks and unlocked planes and weapon load outs, through earned experience points, combined with strong gameplay keeps you engaged. Those gamers who enjoyed driving their wives crazy with the voice commands in End War will be happy to know that similar controls are available here, though they never feel as fast and easy as using the controller. The game world looks stunningly beautiful, but it comes somewhat at the expense of the vehicles. For the vast majority of the game, enemies so far from you that they are nothing more than a yellow diamond on your screen, indicating the danger in the distance. When you do get close enough to get a good look at them, they zip by dizzyingly fast. In most cases, your missile lock finds the enemy before they can really take shape. The clever missile-cam provides a nice glimpse of your targets before they explode, but they reveal them as generic looking hunks of metal.
This only really becomes an issue because, most times, you are looking at your own bland hunk of metal soaring through the skies. The vehicles are decent enough, but do not hold up in comparison to the landscapes you are flying over; which look good enough to make you want to buzz them for a better look. The stunted versus mode is limited to a four-versus-four Team Deathmatch. Your offline ranks and experience carry over to versus modes, as with other Tom Clancy games. There are Support Elements, like repair or radar jamming, earned as you increase your kill streaks, which are fun but do not quite make up for the generally dry online play. Soaring through the air at each other is fun at first, but you quickly get the feeling that you are all just a bunch of dogs chasing each other's tails. A little creativity in the online modes would have gone a long way to making this a must-own title. Despite a few shortcomings, H.A.W.X. is a solid title that will satisfy anyone looking for a new jet fighter game and the co-op play is sure to tie over friends looking for something new to plow through together.
