Warhawk

 What can I say about warhawk? It's a remake of the 1995 PS1 version. In the PS1 version you only piloted a warhawk on various missions and what not. Simple really, from what I've heard it was once a renowned game. What happened to it? I had no idea it existed till this new remake appeared and I read some info about it. Ah well if you're looking for an exact remake then this isn't want your getting this remake is actually a type of war game, it's purely online and there is no single player game. Think of this game like Star Wars Battlefront minus the star wars and the AI. It is very similar to that so if you enjoyed any game like Star Wars Battlefront then you just might enjoy this one.

Graphics- 8/10
The graphics in this game are great. It manages to have just enough detail to everything without slowing down the gameplay, so for people out there worrying about lag and frame rate then don't worry about it, the only way you can have a possible framerate problems is when there is too much going on in the game. For example 10 tanks in one single small place but I personally have not encountered anything like that. The reason for the 8 and not a 9 is because the game uses cartoonish graphics that suit the game well but many people might find detracting and just might not like. I personally like the graphics style but at times I find it a bit too bland. One of the best things about the graphics is the sky it is very realistic, when you get on a warhawk (airplane) you can fly through clouds and even use them for cover, I don't know about you but I have never played a game that allows the use of clouds like this.

Story-1/10
Red army VS. Blue army that's all there is to it. No explanation at all. And to be honest none needed.

Music and Sounds-5/10
The sound effects in this game are great everything sounds like it should sound. The thing that sucks about the game is the music, you literally have ONE song and that's only in menus. I don't know about you but this really just detracts from the game and make it less enjoyable. Thank heavens for the PS3's new update that allows this game to play Custom Soundtracks. ^^ If it wasn't for that I probably wouldn't have played this game very long.

Gameplay-9/10
This game is a blast! Once you get used to it that is, this game has one hell of a steep learning curve and you will die a lot if you're the type that cannot lose in a game or must win to find enjoyment then head just run away from the game now. As I mentioned before the game is purely multiplayer and if you are new to it you will get your ass handed to you on a silver platter. I was lucky and I played the demo a lot so I got really used to the controls and ended up beating everyone on the demo (I had nothing better to do while I waited for this game to be delivered to my house) so when I started the actual game I was fairly seasoned, but I still get my ass handed to me a lot.

So one to the meat and potatoes of the game, you have about 6 different modes:

CTF-You must capture the opposing armies flag and take it to your homebase. The catch is that your flag must also be in the base if not you must wait till someone else retrieves it. To retrieve your flag you must kill whoever has it and defend it for an undetermined amount of time. The longer the person had the flag the longer you must defend it. Think of it as capturing a zone (you basically stay next to it for a while until the little bar on the bottom leans over to your side)

DM- Free for all battle while fun for a little big this mode can get boring very fast.

TDM- Two armies trying to kill one another for 30 minutes or less. Whoever has the most points toward the end wins. Simply and straight forward.

Zones-Capture different outpost and keep them defended the more outpost you have the higher your score goes up until one of you either reach the limit for the score or time runs out.

Hero- Two armies against one another every minute a hero is chosen and whoever kills the most heroes wins. Simply and fun or did I forget to mention the hero gets every single weapon in the game and has a hell of a lot of HP.
COL- Collection collect some orbs laying around and bring them to your base, both armies against one another. While fun this game is just kind of bla.

In all of these games you can use vehicles like tanks and jeeps and warhawks, and you could also use turrets and anti air guns. The game is extremely well balanced because everything can take just about everything else out. It's so balanced that if you are skilled player you can take out a warhawk with an assault rifle (takes time). Tanks and jeeps are standard vehicles with basic weaponry while warhawks are like a whole other unit, they have many weapons and can do a lot of things that no other vehicle can do. Downside is they are extremely hard to master from what I've read people who have played this game for over 300 hours still haven't mastered this thing yet. A good warhawk pilot can dominate the field but remember you can take down a warhawk with many different things. You as a foot soldier have many weapons at your disposal from a assault rifle to a flamethrower and everything in between.

Replay Value-10/10 or 1/10
Reason I say 1 or 10 is because it depends on the type of gamer you are. If you love blowing things up and just messing around having fun while not really accomplishing anything then it has loads of replay value. But if you must play a game over and over to get special bonuses like armor and stuff then you will probably not enjoy this. Unless you love getting trophies.

Buy or Rent
I purchased this game off of amazon.com for about $20, it's the best money I've spent in a very long time. If you can get the game at all cost it is worth the $60 price tag. If you aren't sure about the game rent it if you can or play the demo on PSN. Oh and if at all possible try to avoid buying it off of PSN. I am highly against digital distribution and it has it's many negative effects. With the Disc you can play this on any PS3 with any PSN account. While with the PSN version you can only play with the PSN account that purchased the game. On top of that I”ve seen the retail version selling for cheaper then the PSN one. I believe it sells at $30 while the PSN sells for $40. So do me and yourself a favor if you do buy this thing and get the cheaper and superior disc based version. After all if you don't like it you can always sell it.

Overall I give this game a 8/10 lack of music really killed it for me but Custom Soundtrack really made it more enjoyable.