Lethal Skies II Hands-On

Sammy is perhaps best known these days for its anime-inspired Guilty Gear X fighting games, but the company's done plenty of other types of games in the past, and it continues to work in different genres even now. Take Lethal Skies II, an upcoming flight combat game featuring a variety of flyable real-world jets and what seems to be some intense and action-packed supersonic shooting. The game is the sequel to a well-received futuristic flight combat game from last year, and it features noticeably improved graphics and accessible flight models. We had a good time trying out the various jets in the game, using their missiles and cannons to rip apart enemy bombers and fighters.

The playable demo of Lethal Skies II featured a number of different flyable real-world jets, including the F-16, F-14D, F/A-18E, Mig29, and Su27. We tried most of these out, and while we detected some differences in their handling and speeds, we mostly noticed differences in their weapons loadouts, and especially in their appearance. These are some good-looking planes. Their flaps, landing gear, and air brakes are all fully articulated, and the planes sound authentic as well. The game is pretty easy to control. It's difficult to send a plane into a stall, and using a combination of air brakes and afterburners allowed us to easily get behind the tail of our enemies, the perfect place from which to blow them out of the sky.

The first campaign mission we tried already had our base under attack by a squadron of stealth bombers in the middle of a rainstorm. We scrambled before the bombers hit our airstrip, got them in our sights, and then peppered them with rockets and machine gun fire. For some reason, the bombers' fighter escort showed up shortly thereafter, and we fought alongside several allied jets to take these bad guys out.

Lethal Skies II is about three-quarters finished, and it's slated for release this fall exclusively on the PS2. The game's graphics are already looking good, and the planes' handling is solid. We hope the campaign will offer plenty of excitement to match, as well as some replay value for good measure. We had a good time playing Lethal Skies II, and we look forward to bringing you more on the game.