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Aside from the usual machine guns and missiles, one of the greatest assets at your disposal in H.A.W.X. is the assistance system. When activated, the game plays in a traditional third-person view, the camera following tightly behind the thrusters of your fighter craft while you bravely steer your way through the danger zone. Deactivated presents a more distant third-person view, one which is rarely seen in games of this style. Targets are automatically locked for easy tracking and chasing, so the camera focuses on the target regardless of where the craft is pointing. This is initially a very disorienting experience that will take even seasoned flyboys some time to get accustomed to. Once a firm grasp of this mechanic is acquired, the game becomes very interesting. Deactivated assistance mode also allows for the input of breakneck maneuvers in chaotic dogfights, some of which feel almost unbelievably agile in the Tom Clancy battlezone.



Despite all the fancy technological advances of these futuristic flight systems, some elements feel out of place. The Enhanced Reality System can be very helpful in guiding players to their targets, but luckily, it can be deactivated for those who prefer a little more spontaneity in their airborne battles. Dodging missiles is disappointingly simple; the autopilot alerts the player of a missile lock on, providing plenty of time to pull off panicked maneuvers which almost always succeed in shaking the projectile. I think context-sensitive maneuvers that work better from certain angles of attack or particular aircraft would have been more realistic without sacrificing fun, but perhaps the developers were more focused on the accessibility of the gameplay.

Despite a few gameplay problems, H.A.W.X. has been built with replayability in mind. Progress unlocks new armaments and fighter jets, each one having its own set of strengths and limitations. The real cream of the crop, like many recent Clancy games, lies in the online modes. There’s an eight-player deathmatch for the competitive gamers, which is a a lot more fun than fighting the AI dullards littered throughout the campaign. Cooperative play is perhaps even more fun, as you and a buddy can take to the skies and blast your way through the entire campaign mode.



H.A.W.X. is also no slouch when comes to pleasing the superficial player. The roar of jets and peppering of gunfire all come together for an excellent aural experience in the skies, while detailed terrain in urban environments and the lustrous shine of aircraft models keep things attractive on a visual level as well. The developers utilized satellite imagery to recreate the terrain, and seeing landmarks in cities like Washington, D.C., certainly adds to the excitement during gameplay. The entire package delivers the goods, for both casual and hardcore lovers of aerial combat. A bit more depth and variety in the missions would have probably allowed Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. to climb to much higher altitudes, though.


Review Scoring Details


Gameplay: 8.0

Despite the initial struggle, the game controls very nicely and offers excellent combat scenarios.

Graphics: 8.0

Great textures, smooth models, and sharp skylines.

Sound: 9.5

Sounds even better than it looks, crisp and powerful with lots of punch.

Difficulty: Medium

Some challenges feel a bit contrived, but things are generally balanced.

Concept: 8.0

A great start for an extension of the Clancy franchise, H.A.W.X. says “I can do this, and I can do it very well.”

Multiplayer: 8.0

Great deathmatch mode for online dogfights, and some tasty co-op thrown into the mix. Very entertaining.

Overall: 8.0

Tom Clancy’s H.A.W.X. excels at nearly everything it tries to do, and provides great replayability for long-term flyers. An improved campaign will make the sequel a true beauty.

The PS2-to-arcade-to-PSP port is entitled Tekken: Dark Resurrection, and could be best described as the Tekken Tag of the current generation. No tag feature is present (the tag battle fad seems to have ended with most other gimmicks). But Tekken Tag was like Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 in that it brought nearly every character from the series together for one big brawl.



Dark Resurrection does the same, featuring around 30 playable characters. The list is comprised of the original Tekken cast (Paul, Nina, Heihachi, etc.), more recent additions like Eddy Gordo, and a few rehash characters that look different and tell a different story, but have moves that are identical to another iron fist contender (Christie, etc.).

Arcade Perfect

I remember the time when my console dream came true: Saturn and PSone were released, and we could finally obtain an arcade-quality gaming experience at home. For the next decade I wanted to see the same thing happen for handhelds. Finally, the fighting game master achieves what no other has: portable arcade perfection.

Dark Resurrection plays, controls, and feels just like its arcade and console counterparts. The competitive sense and unnerving urgency to win are completely intact. Fighters are big and detailed, covering most of the screen (just as they should). Every move from Tekken 5 is back. Their executions, both physical (gameplay) and visual, are flawless. You'll jump into this game, pick your favorite character and, literally seconds after starting, be able to say, "That's Tekken." Not a port of Tekken. Not a handheld version of Tekken. This is, unwaveringly, 100% King of Iron Fist Tournament.

Dark Resurrection's speed and consistency of the gameplay are equal to any other version available. The inexorable result is that the replay value is also equal to the other versions. Which, if you have a real-life competitor, is a perfect 10 to every Tekken fan. Unlike the vast majority of PSP titles available, this one allows for multiplayer game sharing. In other words, you can play it against your friends even if they don't have a copy of the game. My belief has always been that, if someone gets the chance to experience a game first-hand, they're more likely to go out and buy it (that's why demos are so successful). Chances are this will lead to more PSP owners who purchase Dark Resurrection.



If Beauty Is Only Polygon Deep...

...Then it's a good thing Tekken's polygons have a lot of depth. PSP graphics generally range from decent to impressive, but these are unreal. Environments are vulnerable to your attacks. Chips of pavement are broken off the ground after dishing or receiving a painful slam. Any object in the background – say, hold coins – will be kicked up and tossed around as you battle across the area. Fighter detail is immense, matching the quality of many PS2 games.

New Blood

Two new characters are introduced in Dark Resurrection: Lili and Dragunov.
Lili is big on kicks and light punches, elbows, and back slaps. Her moves are stiffer than most of the female fighters, and that's probably due to the developers' desire to make her as different as possible. Newcomers could be impressed, but the hardcore crowd is bound to see through her faux originality. She's a decent character that offers a lot of moves to learn. But when I control her, I don't feel like I'm in the next evolution of Tekken. I feel like I'm charge of a rehash. Unfortunately, as far as character development is concerned, this series hasn't seen any innovation since the third edition was released nine years ago.

Dragunov suffers a similar fate. As you could’ve guessed, his new moves give you something else to master. His moves are generally potent but stiff; like Bryan but more low-key. I wasn't looking for another lightning-quick character – Tekken has enough of those. But when creating new characters, why not look to Tekken’s own past innovations, or the innovations of others within the company (Soul Calibur)? It sure beats scraping together two new characters based on fighting styles that aren't as interesting as those already featured in the series.



Bonuses...Resurrected!

Although the versus combat has been and continues to be Tekken's bread and butter, the series is also known for its interesting bonuses.Dark Resurrection ends each character's story mode with a CG movie (the exception being Panda, who ends in artwork, and Xiaoyu, who ends with an anime sequence). Watch movie clips at any time via the theatre mode. Tekken bowling is back, along with a command mode where the game tells you to perform specific moves against a lifeless opponent. It’s more of a “let’s see if you can do this right” kind of mode than anything else.



Review Scoring Details


Gameplay: 9.0

Unbeatable, arcade-perfect fun in the palm of your hand. Tekken: Dark Resurrection is overflowing with depth. There are tons of characters to master (if you haven’t already on a previous platform) and several interactive stages, as well as the exact speed and unparalleled feel of the other Tekken games. The PSP’s D-pad is not as good as the one on the Dual-Shock 2, but it shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes to get used to the difference. Or you could just use the analog thumb pad, which allows for just as much precision in performing rolling moves as you had in the arcade.

Graphics: 9.5

Amazing! A PSP fighter has never looked this good. Dark Resurrection is not as detailed as the PS2 and arcade versions (which run on more powerful hardware), but that hardly detracts from what Namco Bandai has accomplished with the PSP. The characters and backgrounds are overflowing with realism – fluid animations, interactive environments, perfect collision detection, and a non-stop frame rate. That last piece alone is worth a million praises. Tekken just wouldn’t be Tekken if it were slow.

Sound: 8.0

A great collection of catchy and entertaining music tracks. Sound effects remain unchanged.

Difficulty: Medium

…Or “cakewalk” if you’re a Tekken master, or “overwhelmingly hardcore” if you’re new to fighting games.

Concept: 7.5

Dark Resurrection doesn’t move mountains with new ideas (there aren’t any presented outside of two, barely memorable characters). But it’s just like the game says – it is the king of the iron fist tournament. And the king of handheld fighting games.

Multiplayer: 9.3

No online multiplayer, but you can play the game with a friend locally using only one game disc. Needless to say, this is the wisest decision Namco Bandai has made. Now everyone can enjoy the masterpiece that is Tekken: Dark Resurrection.

Overall: 9.1

After more than 10 years of arcade mastery (and 10 years of dreaming of an arcade-perfect portable adaptation), Namco has finally brought the game to a handheld powerful enough to reproduce Tekken’s unrivaled fighting engine. As always, you won’t discover the game’s true beauty until you’ve played it with a friend. But like NFL Street, the handheld single-player experience is perfect for perfecting your moves, which you can then use on any version of the game – PSP, PS2, or arcade.


By Louis Bedigian, www.gamezone.com