Aces of the Luftwaffe - Squadron (PS4)

Every shmup has a gimmick. From the lesser involved mechanics of games like that of "Space Invaders" to deeply applied mechanics of games like Rising Star's "Akai Katana" you'll find each game within the genre contains either a unique spin on shoot'em ups or borrows mostly from others that they take inspiration from. In the case of Handy Games' "Aces of the Luftwaffe - Squadron" the developer does a bit of both. Through character radio interactions that build upon a story being told they create a World War II era shooter that goes well beyond the realm of the given theme, and the traditional shmup setup. As the last part of the title suggests you are a part of a squadron. A squadron consisting of four named pilots who each contribute to the fire fight at hand against a Nazi regime of sci-fi proportions. The fight has Mark, Melissa, John, and Steve all facing off against the enemy as they follow the fight to the US in an attempt to turn the tides of battle. Each pilot in the closely knit squadron comes complete with their own unique fears, ailments, and personality quirks that sometimes conflicts with the missions that are given. They either temporarily drop out of formation, become afflicted with negative status effects, attack other allied pilots or even fall asleep behind the cockpit. This gimmick adds a level of challenge to the already challenging fight. A fight which also carries with it side missions that will have you doing everything from escorting friendly aircraft to taking out specific targets, or even rescuing civilians among other things. Each chapter within the limited tale will have you taking on several missions in total as you upgrade your squadron's skill trees via gained skill coins ultimately affording you a more sustainable crew with added benefits to boot.

Plot-wise, "Aces of the Luftwaffe - Squadron" is a lighthearted shoot'em up adventure with a somewhat comical cast of cartoonish contributing characters, and a very dark war torn premise. It features a scenario in which the Germans are taking the fight of World War II directly to America, but does so on less than foreboding terms. Through the wacky ensemble of squadron pilots, and their consistent radio banter we get to witness how well they are able to keep it together as they pilot their way through waves of German aircraft to face off against the ultimate evil axis that comes in the form of several bosses who each pilot an "Ace of Luftwaffe", or rather a German machine of mass destruction.

As the gamer, and pilot of pilots, you can choose to engage each chapters' sub-set of missions alone, or in local co-op company with up to three other contributing players. In solo you fly the entire squadron with your pilot of choice selected at the main menu. Each pilot has base perks in the form of elemental resistance and other things such as shields, repair, health, etc. Mark, for example is the base damage dealer. His skill tree which can be upgraded with skill coins that are earned for successfully completing missions and side missions will benefit him and his team with increased damage and ammo options. Melissa on the other hand is a mechanic that helps the team out when not in first position by increasing the squadron's rate of fire among a couple of other things. It goes without saying that all pilots have their assist roles, and first position abilities accordingly. They also have what I like to call "quirks". In some missions specific pilots will drop out, or hinder mission progress through an ailment, fear, or conflicting personality trait. While they are dealing with their issues you, and the rest of the squadron have to keep it together. In solo play this is easier done as you control all pilots in a group. In co-op though this becomes a matter of team effort and support especially when there are four players playing as the individual pilots.

Every mission, regardless of objective, affords the squadron four tries or deaths. In the co-op sense each pilot death takes away one of the four lives, but will allow for a co-op pilot to return on the final life in order to assist. Once those deaths occur it is "Game Over". Between start to finish, or Game Over, you are given a variety of differently themed objectives or missions. Each requiring a different approach to stage completion. Sometimes the side missions are cut and dry having you only destroy targets, or surviving to the end. Other times you'll be tasked with lingering over civilians or depot drops to fill up a meter, and complete that mini-task. Other times still you will have to do escort missions in which protecting a friendly pilot is the goal. Of course that friendly pilot has their own health meter that must be minded as they can take damage just as your squadron can. Speaking of health the main squadron's health is in a surrounding ring form. The other pilots have a lesser health bar, and are located in a cross formation to the sides, and back of your main pilot. While they can be destroyed more easily in solo play they will return if you survive long enough.

Along with the tasks given you'll also be collecting power-ups which enhance gun fire type as well as medals that drop from downed enemy aircraft. These along with the occasional hidden skill point are what you can expect to find in each given stage. Once a stage is completed your efforts will be tallied up with a leaderboard points score, a medals tally that includes difficulty level bonuses, met or missed side mission status, and XP style leveling. One thing to note is that stages included in the playthrough all have a hidden skill point that can be found or earned. Upon leveling up you'll also earn skill points which can be applied like the others to each characters' skill tree. Upgrading a skill tree is done in tiers, and in order of unlocks. Each character has five tiers of skills that include two abilities (that can be swapped & used when the dial fills in), a couple squadron boosts (that are automatic), and a couple extra health/defense options (which improve upon base stats). Skills each require a set amount of skill points to unlock. Everything that is unlocked contributes in some way to squadron sustainability, and effectiveness. You'll find that you can upgrade skills after each completed stage at the main menu "Skills" listing.

Also unlockable are special pilot aircraft that can be earned as rare drops from the bosses you encounter at the end of each chapter's series of stages. This requires repeat playthroughs, but does add replay value to the fairly limited gameplay that is offered. Other things to note are the statistics, and trophies menu listings that can be found at the main menu. The statistics clues you into your pilot performance, or lack thereof as well as time spent, and other related details. Trophies, on the other hand actually coincides with PSN trophies you will earn as you play, and meet the requirements listed. Most trophies are achievement centered having you do something so many times.

The Verdict ...

For what it's worth I think Handy Games does well in delivering something new, and interesting into a genre that is often over saturated by like-minded creations. The effort put into the squadron mechanics definitely shows. It's actually very competently applied. Going solo in my own playthrough I found enjoyment, and a desire to continue playing. I also sampled the co-op briefly, and found it easy to access even though the other players have to sign-in through the dashboard to be able to play together in-game.  My only complaint, if any, is that I think the character art and comical side of the character interactions could have been done away with and replaced with more serious visuals, and dialogue that would have been better in tune with the World War II theme. Think Wolfenstein, if you will. That having been said it's not bad as is, and the character "quirks" I mentioned actually compliment the character art, and added voice-talent quite nicely. The fact that this is also a story driven shmup instead of a shmup with those traditional highscore modes does steal a bit of the games potential away. A survival mode, score attack mode, or boss attack mode would have been more than welcome. Regardless of my complaints I think this game deserves some recognition. It's good enough to buy, in my opinion. For those of you interested this game releases this coming Tuesday.