Previews

Hands on with Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. on iPhone

A clear and present danger

Hands on with Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. on iPhone

Superior single player action promises to be the wings beneath the wings of Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X., even if limited multiplayer could prevent it from flying higher than an eagle.

Thrilling aerial antics nonetheless put this gorgeous game on the hunt to take the top spot in this highly competitive genre.

Buckling up as former Air Force pilot David Crenshaw, you undertake missions for the Artemis Corporation in contract work for the US government. The rise of private military corporations sees the company supporting ghost recon operatives against the rising threat of terrorism.

It's not the noble fight for freedom, however, as Crenshaw discovers in the course of the game's 13 mission campaign.

While mission objectives are varied, they always centre around combat. Dogfighting is here, but the more complex infiltration and protection tasks that we tackled ensure H.A.W.X. will soar.

One infiltration mission orders you to fly through enemy airspace in order to destroy a series of defencive targets and clear the way for a naval retinue off the city's coastline.

Another scenario involves protecting a ghost recon squad working on the ground. Eliminating enemy forces both in the air and ground secures their advance. You're always guaranteed high-flying action, yet the varied objectives prevent the game from being more than just a series of head-to-head dogfights.

Good thing you're given the equipment to get the job done. More than two dozen licensed aircraft can be unlocked by spending experience points earned in missions, as well as upgrade packs to the game's six weapons including fire-and-forget missiles, air-to-ground rockets, and a basic machine gun.

You're also equipped with a set of flares available for deflecting enemy missiles. Aggressive enemies assure a need for them, a flurry of incoming missiles thwarted by judicious use of anti-missile flares. There's a limited stock provided for each mission, though, which means evasive manoeuvres are as important in staying in the skies as relying on your defensive countermeasures.

Firing these weapons is a matter of tapping buttons in the lower-right corner. You're able to switch among armaments by sliding the 'fire' button left and right, though the machine gun stays fixed as a separate adjacent button.

Of greater interest, naturally, are the movement controls. H.A.W.X. of course opts for tilt controls by default. Pitch and roll are dictated by tilting, but turning relies on pressing left and right directional arrows that appear at the bottom of the screen.

Those arrows disappear when toggling the touch control scheme where a virtual analogue stick provides control over pitch, roll, and turn. The accelerometer option is preferable, although the analogue stick is perfectly usable.

Both schemes utilise the same automatic targeting system. Enemies within range are automatically locked-on, though you can manually switch among visible targets by tapping on the targeting button. Additionally, you can change the camera angle to widen your view of battlefield: cockpit, third-person, and over-the-shoulder views are provided.

The single player campaign looks to be a smooth flight, though multiplayer could be bumpy due to the lack of online competition. Local play via Bluetooth and wi-fi are offered for up to four, but without online support H.A.W.X. will have a tough time being the top gun in the genre. To be fair, local deathmatches are great fun and Gameloft Live trophies do promise replay value.

H.A.W.X. takes off in early December, vying for superiority in the iPhone skies before the expected release of Ace Combat Xi: Skies of Incursion.
Tracy Erickson
Tracy Erickson
Manning our editorial outpost in America, Tracy comes with years of expertise at mashing a keyboard. When he's not out painting the town red, he jets across the home of the brave, covering press events under the Pocket Gamer banner.