Customer Reviews

Crimson Skies

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(27)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Crimson Skies is a superb blend of action, comedy, camp, and noir. Do you like Indiana Jones? Do you like James Bond? How about Casablanca? How about the classic Private Eye stories full of mobsters and dames? Crimson skies is a flying game backed by a superb action-adventure story line, and yes it's worthy of comparison to the above. Note: I don't have XBox Live, so this review is entirely based on the singleplayer. That said, I love this game enough to give it 5 stars for singleplayer alone. Live is the super atomic icing on the cake. And I'll try to keep this pretty much spoiler free.

The story(10/10): You are Nathan Zachary, a former playboy who met unfortunate circumstances (along with the rest of the nation) and is fighting his way back to the top. Along the way, you form a rag-tag band of air pirates as you explore this strange quasi-America and unravel a mysterious plot.

The immersion factor(10/10): Amazing. From the moment the intro cutscene pops up, you're going to be completely immersed. Segments like this do tons to push the story, and you're going to love savoring every moment of them. You're quickly thrown into the fray as you hop into the pilot seat. This game makes you remember why you always wanted to be a plane/ bird/ pilot/ superhero/ mobster/ pirate/ (you get the idea) as a kid.

Controls(9/10): The first "level" is a mini-tutorial that's quick and fun. Controls are super natural and goals are (almost) always extremely clear, so you have tons of time to enjoy flying and rarely have to spend time wondering about objectives.

Value(9/10): The singleplayer is long enough to please and worth every moment. I'm not even finished yet, and I would be 100% content if the game was only as long as I've played to. Very nice. There's not much replayability aside from collecting more tokens or exploring more areas, but for some (like me) it'll be more than enough to warrant a few more games.

Overall: This game is FUN. The story needs to be a movie yesterday. The controls can be picked up instantly, but there's plenty of room to grow in skill. The gameplay ranges from frantic dogfights to free-form exploration. Yes, you will find yourself just skimming a lake to see the water splash on the camera, or buzzing through a canyon to test your skills. The combination of graphics, control, and gameplay combine for what may be the best flying experience ever. Sure, die-hard sim fans will gripe about the realism. But do you ever really want too much realism in an action-adventure? I think not.

Bottom line (9.5/10): I think this game is going to start showing up on a couple "Top games of all time" lists. Not THE top game, but definately not far.

Even though most other reviews have already said it, it bears repeating: this game is great online! The game types are: dogfight, team dogfight, capture the flag, keep away (a sort of tag-like game), team keep away, and wild chicken (a game similar to capture the flag, but with only one flag).

The downside to live is that you're dependent on the number of other people online. You can always find a dogfight game going on, but it's harder to find a keep away or wild chicken game going on at 7 on Sunday morning.

The single player mode is good, but repetitive. There's only so much flying and shooting you can do before you get tired of seemingly doing the same thing over and over again. You can get into AA guns and fire from the ground or from vehicles, but overall this doesn't add too much in the way of variety. The storyline is pretty ridiculous (not in the good way like odd world), and it lacks any sort of complexity.

Overall, I really wouldn't recommend buying this game unless you have x-box live. It's got the great microsoft-title graphics (ala brute force or halo), so it's definately worth renting for that by itself. But if you don't have the challenge of playing other people online, this game's playability is pretty thin.

My six years old is a budding ace on this (better than me at this point, I fear). The learning curve is perfect, with lots of encouragement, relatively frequent autosave points and a very simple UI. There's no death (pilots parachute out) and, like a good Pixar movie, the jokes work on many levels, so kids and adults alike will find it clever.

And the biggie: it's great fun, and looks amazing. The Xbox is thin on games that are appropriate for kids, and Crimson Skies is a very welcome arrival. Highly recommended.

Xbox owners, allow me to introduce you to the game that will make you forget all about MechAssault. Mech-what? MechAssault. You know, the first-party game that kicked Xbox Live multiplayer onto your radar. Yeah, that one. Well, now you have Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge, the next Microsoft title that will turn your console online and your smack-talking into high gear.

For those of you unfamiliar with the franchise, Crimson Skies is essentially "Indiana Jones" meets aerial combat, only the alternate universe isn't overrun with Nazis but with power-hungry gangs who fly tricked-out planes and are so trigger-happy that Al Capone would blush. With creative scenarios, a focus on action and engaging characters, you'll be sure this game is headed for the silver screen. But Indiana Jones this is not, neither in medium nor in pacing, and as a result, Crimson Skies at times can feel a bit slow and imbalanced.

Part adventure and part dogfighter, Crimson Skies places you in the anti-heroic cockpit of Nathan Zachary, an air pirate who's out for revenge and, if it happens to come his way, a little fortune and glory too. Along the way, hell meet a lady (or two), discover a nature-be-damned plot against the civilized world (a la "Wild Wild West") and embark upon an intricately weaved tale of his own.

Unlike "Indiana Jones," though, Nathan takes to the skies rather than a mine cart and relies on his trusty plane-mounted artillery rather than a bullwhip. And that, my friends, is where Crimson Skies grabs you by the joystick and gets your arcade-loving heart a-fluttering. Forget about flight sims, because Crimson Skies is arcade flying at its finest. From barrel rolls and Split S's to air braking and upside-down 180s, this game would make any pilot rethink the laws of gravity. The controls are easy to both learn and master, too, which means novices and pros are separated only by their ability to plan ahead and remain dedicated to the game, not by their familiarity with the instruction manual.

The arcade goodness doesn't stop there. Unlimited primary ammo? Check. Heat-seeking and cluster-bomb secondary weapons? Check. Dozens of airborne enemies swarming at once while terrestrial turrets fire on you with unfathomable power? Check. Yes, Crimson Skies seems to have it all. But not quite.

Each "level" is a virtual landscape that encompasses some serious real estate. The first, for example, is a small but tall island where you get comfortable with looking up, down and around for enemies. The second level is a wide-open desert so expansive you'll be thankful the Xbox has a built-in hard drive. Subsequent levels include an interpretation of a 1930s tech-savvy Chicago and other era-appropriate settings, and each presents some unique expansions of the basic gameplay.

The objective in each level changes depending upon your progress in the story, but invariably each level involves completing four to six "subgoals," most of which amount to mini-games that break up the dogfighting. Several levels ask you to get out of your plane and man a turret, for example, be it to protect an illegal stash of taxis or to defend your Zeppelin "base" from incoming fighters. Other subgoals involve switching planes to complete an objective or winning a race to win cash, which, once you fly another plane and thereby "unlock" it, can be used for upgrades or to repair your current craft in mid-mission.

Yet while each of these levels has slightly different subgoals, the actual gameplay behind those subgoals remains static from level to level. A turret battle is a turret battle is a turret battle, no matter how different the aircraft you're trying to shoot down. Yes, the scenarios will literally leave you sweaty with their frantic pace, but after three or four turrets you'll play through them just to get it over with and move on to the next dogfight rather than play them for enjoyment.

In the long run, of course, that ultimately speaks to the quality of the dogfights. And there's really no other way to say it: you've never played a dogfighting game this good. There's just something about the combination of tight controls, intense speed and a fully 3D environment. Air Force Delta Storm had the speed and dimensions, but its handling was too sim-like to let you stay in "hot pursuit" for very long. Lethal Skies II had the speed and environments, too, but the AI was so challenging that the only thing in hot pursuit was your PS2 controller headed for the TV screen. Crimson Skies, though, strikes such a perfect balance of speed, control, level design and challenging-but-not-impossible AI that you truly feel like you're an alternate-1930s-universe pilot.

Still, there's nothing like knowing you're hunting (or being hunted by) a human opponent, and Crimson Skies comes complete with some outstanding split-screen, system-link and Xbox Live multiplayer options. What's interesting about the split-screen with three players, though, is that it divides the screen in thirds horizontally, which makes for great lateral visibility but horrible up-down visibility. It's a unique treatment, but I've got to question the use of this technique in a game that relies so heavily on both horizontal and vertical sighting. But naturally, if you don't play with three players total, this is a moot point entirely.

Crimson Skies has the standard Dogfight, Flag Heist (Capture the Flag) and team-based modes, but our personal favorite here at DailyGame is the hilarious and addictive "Wild Chicken." This mode is sort of like Stayaway in Midtown Madness 3 with a bit of capture-the-flag base-defending flair. None of the game modes is a stinker, and every one runs smoothly online. Even with 16 people playing at once.

One of the most comical details of "Wild Chicken" is watching the feathers fall from your newfound "wingman" and act like a contrail, and it's details like this that make Crimson Skies feel as believable as an alternate-universe-with-tricked-out-planes videogame can. From blinking landing lights and animated flaps to deformable trucks on the streets of Chicago, Crimson Skies delivers Big Time in the graphics department. For Pete's sake, how many times is an Xbox editor going to say "Best. Water. Ever."? Well, apparently one more, because this game's got it. It's also got damage-sensitive "animations" and a framerate that never wavers.

Then why, oh why, must the non-dogfighting waver as it does? This game is fun. It's a blast. I'd even say it's the most enjoyable non-FPS on Xbox Live. But its development team was apparently so focused on making an outstanding dogfighting game that the "other" gameplay elements in Crimson Skies are a step or two behind. On their own, the turret scenarios and races are just fine, but taken with the rest of the outstanding gameplay mechanics, the game can feel a bit unbalanced and slow.

But pop in another controller or log on to Xbox Live, and all those issues fade into the horizon. If you have an Xbox Live account and/or at least one friend in the world, Crimson Skies is the next great multiplayer experience on Xbox. If you're a hermit or otherwise socially challenged, the game still has something for you, with an adventuresome story and entertaining dogfights that are the stuff of arcade dreams. Just don't go into the game expecting the End All, Be All of gaming. Crimson Skies is fantastic, but it's a little gameplay balance short of legendary.

Let me just say that Crimson Skies:High Road to Revenge is a great game.It's up there with Halo,and others.It's one of my top five favorite games.

SINGLE PLAYER:
You are Nathan Zachary,a pilot for the infamous Fortune Hunters.You are out to get revenge on someone.I am being blunt to keep from spoiling the plotline.
It might actually be worth it to go out and buy the original Crimson Skies,so you know what's going on in the storyline.Especially since the original is only about $10.00 here on Amazon.
SCORE:8/10
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MULTIPLAYER:
Split-screen is okay,but for some real action,go on Xbox Live.It is a lot of fun (on Live).Without Live,it's still an good game,though.
You can play Dogfight, (Deathmatch) Team Dogfight,(Team Deathmatch) Wild Chicken,(try to keep the Chicken and return it to the base) and others.
The game is developed by Day:1:Studios,so if you play MechAssault,you'll feel right at home with Crimson Skies.
By the way,my Gamertag is TurboCircuits...
SCORE:10/10
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GRAPHICS:
Truly amazing.The water in the game is very realistic,and if you fly low to (the water) it'll splash on the camera lens.
The graphics are very detailed.It's hard to explain,you'll have to see it for yourself.
SCORE:11/10
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CONTROLS:
The controls are very simple.If you have played MechAssault,you'll catch on pretty quick.
The controls are like this:
Right Trigger:Fire main weapon
Left Trigger:Fire secondary weapon
SCORE:9.5/10
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SOUND:Very good.The explosions are realistic,along with the gunfire sound effects.Very realistic.
SCORE:10/10
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FUN FACTOR:
This game is a lot more fun on Xbox Live than it is offline.Just think:
Your plane is on fire and another player is on your tail.You see a plane depot up ahead,and fly in.You exchange your old,beat up plane for a new one with full health.The other persone is eating your dust.
You just into a gun turret,fire a missile,and direct it straight into an enemy's face.This is one of the hundreds of things that can happen of Live.
SCORE:10/10
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Buy Crimson Skies:High Road to Revenge.You won't regret it.
TOTAL SCORE:10/10

Gamertag:TurboCircuits

I originally bought this game because it offers two free months of xbox live with it. This alone is a great bargain if you really want to try out xbox live without purchasing the $70 kit. I began playing it, and it was a whole lotta fun. I've become extraordinarily bored by first person shooters, because it is what the Xbox library is dominated by. Everyone's making first person shooters because they saw how successful halo was...Well, here enters Crimson Skies.

It's a third person shooter in a sense. It is more a dogfighting game than a flight simulator (it hardly simulates anything close to reality, which is a good thing!). Single player consists of an almost GTA-like storyline...There's a main plot, but you can go off and do your own thing (to an extent), too. As you go along, you earn tokens, and money, which are what you need to upgrade your planes. The single player experience makes this game rent-worthy, while the multiplayer (like so many other games) is what makes this a keeper.

If you don't have xbox live yet, that's fine. The game comes with an activation code that gives you two free months. You take 5 minutes to sign up, then you're off! You pick quickmatch, which automatically searches for an open game of the type you desire. You get in, and you pick your plane. Everyone checks in, and you're now beginning your first xbox live experience. You may be playing dogfight or team dogfight (equivalent to deathmatch or team deathmatch), flag heist (capture the flag), keep away or team keep away (you grab "the booty," and everyone else tries to kill you- basically kill the carrier). Or you might be playing the best of them all...Wild Chicken. This is a game much like football, but with a chicken. You start out on your team's side, and everyone rushes to the middle of the map where there's a chicken falling from the sky. The goal is to take the chicken to the enemy's base, through a set of four goal posts. You earn seven points for every chicken-score, and 1 point for every kill. Sound fun? You have no idea.

Instead of looking just in front of, to the sides, and behind you, you have to be aware of above and below as well. While this may seem obvious, you cannot truly understand its significance until you play. Because it has a light learning curve, the game is easy to pick up. This allows it to be a great party game, or just something you play by yourself. The single player is fun, but nothing compared to multiplayer.

*For those without xbox live: the game is a lot more fun in multiplayer if you have the headset (you can purchase it alone for about $30). the headset made all the difference for me, and got me hooked on xbox live.

ENJOY!

I preordered this game and received it the day it was released. Let me say this - WOW. I have been playing flight games since the days of the old Apple II, and I am a former Navy Pilot myself. This game far exceeded my expectations and the live play is astounding. If there is a clipping problem, you won't notice it whatsoever. The live play is seamless and faster-paced than MechAssault. The flight controls do not have as steep a learning curve as some have previously said. My 8 year old daughter was up and running in minutes.
The game's true appeal is variety. Even if you don't have Xbox Live, this game still holds virtually infinite replayability. The premise is simple: you're an air pirate in a post-depression world. (use your imagination) The controls are very responsive and the flight-dynamics are extremely well done. While it is true that the programmers have eliminated low-velocity stall, any pilot can tell you that stall is nothing you want in an entertaining game anyway. Stall sucks, simply put.
If you have Xbox live, this is the game to have. More players are allowed to enter each game than you were allowed in MechAssault, and this makes for a more chaotic battle. I have to give this game 5 stars for its overall graphic detail and as I mentioned earlier, the infinite replayability.

This game is ok single player but really shines on multiplayer with XBOX live. The maps are big and graphics are great. I've never once noticed any framerate problems which is unbelievable for such large maps and fast speeds. The new downloads take this game to a solid 5 star. I don't care much for the indoor maps like caverns and lost city. From the different maps to different planes stationary guns and secondary weapons this game rocks. For the price this game is must own.

Crimson Sky is another good game for the X-box that keeps the consoles owners busy as they await a slew of new and innovative games including Fable and Halo 2. Crimson Sky is what we would expect from a recent X-box game. The graphics are amazing, none of the environments leaves any detail untouched. The games graphics, however, are it's best feature. The game play suffers slightly due to two major factors, weak flight characteristics, and a lack of compelling need to use the variety of planes offered to you. The levels and missions are great though, and most are pretty varied, although some require you to engage in trial and error to figure out which parts of a zeppelin to shoot at.

The flight characteristics are fun in that they are intuitive and not over complicated. However the game's dog fighting becomes a simple game of constantly turn until you have the enemy in your sights. You can use your airbrake constantly in level flight with no consequences of slowing down too much and plummeting to the earth. Occasionally I found you could enter what I can only describe as a flat spin, but I was never sure if this came totally from use of your airbrake and turning too tightly, or impacting an enemy. It also only seemed to occur in certain planes.

The variety of aircraft given to you is a nice change from other games, and each does have it's own special characteristics. Unfortunately, the game only respects firepower and armor leaving speed and maneuverability on a much lower level. There was never any reason to take out the lighter armed aircraft since most levels forced you to face numerous enemies armed with heavy guns except to complete the race courses. The game offers you three light, fast aircraft, but if you only need them to complete the races, why bother offering three? It was also difficult to use speed to your advantage since the game only let you gain maneuverability through lowering your speed. Maneuverability and speed are not always mutually exclusive in aircraft and perhaps in a sequel, maneuverability needs its own stat line in the plane selection screen. In addition, the nature of most missions let you get away with hoping into an AA gun. There were few times when you couldn't simply jump into a gun, take minimal enemy fire as you vanquish them from the skies. On the other hand, it is great fun to try and hit an enemy plane from an AA gun that lets you control the flight of a missile.

The final drawback to the game is the story line. It's a mixture of playboy pilot meets sci-fi western movie. The main character is always smooth, but the game doesn't provide a good setup for these moments, they just sort of happen and like a train wreck, you just can't look away even though you almost want to. Also, a zeppelin that turns into a spider like device makes you reminiscent of Kevin Kline and his mechanical spider from Wild Wild West. The story is not sold well by the voice actors who keep their acting to the level of caricature and come across as stiff and a little unbelievable. I'd swear George Lucas directed the cut scenes.

The level design is superb although there are a few sticky points such as having to shoot certain zeppelins at certain spots and the recurring theme of having to sneak into an open door gets a little worn. Despite that, the levels are beautifully done and well balanced. The game seems non-linear even though it is, and perhaps a more open feel to the game could be provided in a sequel. A missing weapon from the game was some sort of flak type weapon. Also, the ability to target the nearest enemy or the enemy right in front of you would be nice, and the ability to due specific damage to the aircraft such as destroying it's weapons would be a nice touch. The various special maneuvers are fun and more useful than in other games as are the special weapons on the various aircraft. The scenery seemed static though and it would be nice to see more effects of the weapons on the land or buildings such as glass breaking or damage that gets repaired as you play the level. Adding a bomber plane would be nice too to take out targets on the ground without having to dive in with guns or rockets.

Overall, this is a good game that needs just a little something more to make it great. I highly recommend this game to anyone looking for an action game with a RPG component to it or anyone who enjoys air-to-air combat.

I think there has been some confusion as to what this game is. At least by reading the reviews that I have seen on here so far. This is not a simulation game. It never tries to be or even hints at it which isn't a bad thing. This game is more of an arcade shooter. Comparing this game to Microsoft's flight simulator is like comparing Steel Battalion to Mechassault. With that said this game is a lot of fun. The environments are done very well. The planes look great they even show the elevators and flaps moving as you hit the brakes or go into a turn. Damage is also displayed on your plane with smoke and fire pouring out of the engine. There's a great variety of planes and hopefully more coming with downloadable content. The control is very tight. My only complaint is that I would've liked to have been able to control my speed a little more but the simple brake and turbo control scheme works well enough and fits with the arcade feel. The single player mode is done well enough. It will keep you playing all the way through. If it only featured single player I would still recommend it but only as a rental. The real joy of playing this game is XBOX live. There are a few options:
Dogfight - all out fragfest
Team Dogfight - all out fragfest with teammates
Flag Heist - Basically capture the flag
Wild Chicken - This one is a lot of fun. Basically there is a chicken that you try to get and bring back to your base. Your team receives 7 points for getting the chicken and 1 point for every plane that is shot down. This is definitely my favorite because I've played the other modes a thousand times on other games.

As far as recommendations go:
If you like arcade flying games or are looking for something to pass the time for a weekend but don't have xbox live then I would say go and rent this game. You'll have a good time. If you have xbox live then you're really going to enjoy this title. Lets just hope that they are a little quicker to add content then they were with Mechassault.