Rise of Glory

People scared of flying in a modern jet plane may be in the minority due to the increasingly sophisticated safety measures installed on the vessels, but it’s hard to argue with them when it comes to World War 1 biplanes.

Prone to breaking up if banked too sharply and initially at risk of shooting its own propeller off while firing (handy, when you’re a thousand feet in the air), the ‘magnificent men’ who flew these experimental contraptions very rarely made it back down to solid ground in one piece.

Thankfully, Rise of Glory isn’t half as unforgiving on the pilot as the real-life planes it models, instead taking the form of an arcade shooter with forgiving physics and an extra dose of action.

Back in the cockpit

If the title sounds familiar, then you’ve most likely heard of the original iOS version of the game - the Pocket Gamer Gold Award-winning Skies of Glory.

Indeed, Rise brings nothing new in terms of features or gameplay to that title, so if you've already played it then there’s not much point picking this one up as well.

If not, then welcome to the most unpopular World War in gaming. Despite the planes being based on real models - your Fokkers and Sopwith Camels are present and correct - the 12 mission campaign doesn’t dwell on historical details, instead taking you on a whistle-stop tour of fictional scenarios based loosely on what biplanes were doing at the tail end of the ‘War to End All Wars’.

Likewise, the physics and control of the craft fall firmly in the arcade camp, with loop-de-loops and a magical ‘engine boost’ buttons sitting alongside helpful aiming reticles and extremely simple landings. You can stall, but you’ll have to go out of your way to do so.

This accessibility may grind the synchronisation gears of the sim fans, but it makes for an instantly satisfying experience.

The dogfighting against enemy craft often ends up as an exciting aerial duel, thanks in part to some tight, customisable accelerometer controls, a very handy rudder slider, and some decent AI.

Stalling Rise of Glory’s flight, however, are the mission designs, which space out the waypoints to such a degree as to force the player to hold down the ‘boost’ button for minutes in order to reach the next battle, lest they want their hair to turn grey in the interim.

Making these long trips even harder to take is the level of detail on the ground.

While it’s laudable that the overall look of the battlefield changes from level to level, staring at flat, basic land rolling away in the distance doesn’t half get tiring.

Outside the campaign, it’s also disappointing - but not entirely surprising - that the excellent multiplayer has had to be gutted to fit the game onto the new platform, meaning that the option to play custom games of Capture the Flag or Team Deathmatch ends up being limited to just AI pilots.

These issues don’t stop the meat of the game - the dogfighting itself - being as enjoyable as it was when it first appeared on mobile screens, but they will scare away a good proportion of players all the same.