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I have been looking for a good flight simulation with things to blow up, and after passing up on Wing Arms and ThunderStrike 2, I decided to pick up Black Dawn (despite the fact that Soviet Strike will be out in a couple weeks.) It's one of the few games I've purchased for the Saturn that I enjoy playing (Nights is too short, and not as good as Ecco, All the fighting games are boring, no matter which angle they are from, and Tomb Raider is the best game I've played on the Saturn because it is fun, the graphics are slick, the story is deep, the action is there, it seems original, and it is long and well thought out.).

Here is my review:

Graphics:

Well, I hear that the graphics are better on the playstation, but I think they are very good for the saturn. You can actually see the enemies from a distance, the terrain is nice, and the frame rate is excellent. There are 4 views to choose from, and while the chase view looks great, the cockpit view is the easiest to play from. There are a variety in the types of vehicles you go up against (or that help you.) I am satisfied by the graphics, but my biggest criteria was that the frame rate be good and the enemies be decipherable. Blowing up helicopters looks cool, and that's important too. There seems to be no cut-scenes or other eye-candy, which would be nice, but that doesn't effect game play.

pop-up isn't noticable, and the fog effect is used well. Sometimes when you are too close to a building, you can see through it, but that doesn't happen often.

Sound:

The music is average (not distracting or annoying, and not catchy.) The sound effects are pretty well done, with the voice of your co-pilot aiding you ("get the hell out of here!") and some decent machine gun and explosion sounds. I'd say the sound works well for the game.

Control:

The control takes some getting used to, but becomes second nature after a few hours of practice. I had a hell of a time passing the first mission, and playing on "Sissy" helped me get used to things. There are some options, but complete tailoring of the controls isn't one of them.

Gameplay:

Basically you rescue some hostages and blow up some primary targets. You are given room to roam, and there are loads of things to shoot at. This is the reason I like this game. While it doesn't give you the total carnage feel of "Smash TV" you do get to blow lots of targets up, and they aren't all mindless, though there strength generally lies in their numbers. I wanted a game were I got to zoom around searching for targets, lobbing some missles (or rockets, or napalm, or Nukes) at the targets and looking for the next, while enemy fire surrounds from all sides, and this game definately gives you that. I find the game difficult on the Normal setting, which in my opinion is very welcome as most games today have either zero challenge (Nights for example) or are near impossible without a reason to keep playing (Galactic Attack.) Some might think the game is repetitive, in that all you do is kill kill kill, and rescue someone here and there, with no real plot central to the whole game. I think that is the case with all types of games in this genre, but I have been waiting for this type of game for a while. You feel like you are in a helicopter. Movement seems real, and I find myself leaning back and forth while playing to avoid incoming missles without knowing it. If you want plot, go buy and RPG, but if you want to blow things up and dodge enemy fire with the multidimensional control of a helicopter, this game is a blast.

Overall:

I think this game is fun to play, while not outstanding. It's a game I will want to keep in my library, because the occasional break from reality to blow up enemy helicopters is really stress relieving. The control responds well, and the graphics and sound are good enough for me (in fact, they are the best I've seen, but that doesn't say much.) It seems very realistic, and fun to play, in my opinion. I'm so sick of one on one fighters with little to them, that this game is a breath of fresh air (although no where near as incredible as Tomb Raider.) The only improvements I could think of would be to have a central plot, add some intermissions now and then so the goal seems more worthwhile, and make the explosions louder (like Batman Returns on the Sega-CD.) This game breaks no new ground, but I think it is fun to play, and I got my $50 worth.

Score:

8/10