Ace Combat 2 (PS1, 1997)
Graphics-7.5 Sound-8.5 Control-8 Challenge-6.5 Story-4.5
Level Design-7.5 Frustration-6/6.5* Fun-7.5 Originality-5
Overall Score-7.5
*High altitude missions
+
Buy new aircraft with money made during missions (you get rewarded based on enemies destroyed and their values as well as your jet’s damage and if you hit any allies or hired any wingmen, you'll want to destroy some secondary targets to make sure that all the new aircraft are made available) - can choose which plane to use before each mission. Can also sell aircraft here
Aircraft have differing stats in 7 categories here (mobility, stability, air to air and ground attack offense, defense, power (speed)), climbing ability) - 3 planes also have a stealth ability (meaning if they fly low enough they aren't detected on the enemy's radar but if they see the plane directly it doesn't matter)
Difficulty options (easy-hard - affects plane costs and damage taken+enemy AI+position of allied and enemy units, picked once before beginning a game)
Mini-map toggle which doesn't pause gameplay (a semi-transparent enemy radar is always on in the bottom left corner and its range changes dynamically depending on how close the nearest enemy is)
TP/FP view toggle and you can see the altitude and speed in both here
Lock on feature which shows how far away the enemy is, Can switch target to lock on to with a button press (AC1)
Can hire a CPU wingman pilot to accompany you for some missions - fourth mission onwards (can't pay for a better one here but they can attack ground targets, still simplistic AI in that you can only give it one order before the mission)
Pretty detailed briefings which let you check enemy planes and how much they're worth going after in advance
Partial control config (novice or advanced controls - latter adds rolling, can't edit the shoulder button config)
Adds a campaign data and personal data menu (aircraft usage percentages, mission performance stats, decoration/rank; decoration/rank, aircraft usage percentages, best times and on which difficulties)
Instant replay of your last kill (can change the camera angle or lock it with circle, no sound though)+ a map view replay of your mission playthrough
Five hidden missions
Two alternate endings based on your actions in missions 19-20 (minor differences between the normal and good endings)
New game+ of sorts ("EXTRA" mode which lets new planes (like the MiG-31, F-15S, EF-2000 and the XFA-27 - 16/24 (8 more than in AC1) planes actually) be handed out at the end of certain missions)
Adds "aces", elite enemy pilots that can be fought to unlock special medals and their special aircraft (some of these aren't particularly elite though)
Voiced assistance toggle (VA and arrows help you navigate towards nearby enemies and avoid missiles)
Unlockable level select (finished Extra mode)
Some interesting enemies (ADF-01 can shoot backwards, stealth planes can disappear off the radar map) and level design (radar jammer in Midnight Assassin (Night-time Pursuit Plane), adds landings after some missions, Geothermal Plant Base where you rely on allied troops' to open a protective dome for a limited time so that you can enter a tunnel and destroy the main target)
? Nice sequenced/psf music though it's only used for a couple of jingles (title, mission briefing)
+/-
Partially non-linear structure (when given the choice between two missions you can only do one of them during a single playthrough (unlike in AC1) and which one you pick doesn't affect the rest of the campaign besides rewarding you with a bit more or less money - the exceptions are mission 19-20 which affect the ending, have to meet certain hidden conditions to unlock the early alternate missions - at mission 14 you choose between two main paths (leading up to sentinel or final countdown) and which one you take affects which mission you can unlock during that path - at mission 16 you can then choose to play it or mission 17 first)
Save in-between missions (8 slots, shows current money, last mission finished, difficulty level, time played and control mode used but not last plane used)
Upbeat 80s/early 90s-style rock/synth rock OST (kinda cheesy but suits the arcade-style gameplay and it's a bit more eclectic with elements of d&b and jazz)
Ammo spent is not a factor in the mission rankings but you will have watch your current fuel levels in some later missions (time taken/fuel spent seems to have a minor effect here)
Limited missile ammo
If you lose a plane then the game keeps going but you lose about 10% of what the plane cost to buy due to the military replacing it automatically (generally better to just reload)
Easy first 4 missions, pretty easy cuckoo's nest mission, easy mission 9 (Swordsmith (Taking Over the Enemy Arms Production Base)) and 12 (submarine base). 19 (jewel) box is kind of easy as well and so are the last couple of missions.
Your speed automatically goes back to around the middle of the bar when you're not breaking or accelerating
Stalling mechanic at high altitudes (quick maneuvers or slowing down too much while at a high altitude) - can get a bit annoying
Can't see enemy plane HP
No hidden missions to unlock between missions 9 and 12
Only two wingmen to choose from here
No plane can lock onto multiple targets at once (see Galaxy Force 2 or Panzer Dragoon)
The replay feature isn't available in some missions
No unlockable planes for the last few missions in normal mode
Your assistant/co-pilot doesn't tell you which direction to go when you can't see the next target on the map - can't upgrade it
-
Some control/interface issues/oddities (you're not told what a wingman's salary is until after the mission, somewhat worse overview of a mission before playing it (one overly zoomed out map view and an overly zoomed in 3D view of one target at a time), can't compare a new plane's stats to what you currently own in the shop, can't review the mission briefing map or objectives during a mission, the game spams the "pull up" message when you're not even close to crashing but doesn't warn you about stalling (makes you fall towards the ground nose first) until it's too late, can't make the HUD semi-transparent, can fly through an enemy plane or into a currently exploding enemy plane without crashing, target switching has a minor problem in that it won't necessarily switch to the next nearest target or the one you just pointed towards after shooting at your first but the next in a group of nearby targets with a predetermined order, can't change the advanced controls so that yawing/turning is mapped to left and right instead of L2/R2))
The beeping while locked on to a target can get annoying (can lower sfx separately but not this particular sound)
Briefing VA lags behind the actual text (even moreso if you speed up the text)
Improved but somewhat dated looking 2D explosions
Pretty generic story told through scrolling text (there could've been more context given to the conflict with characterization of both sides or at least the ace pilots)
Only two different weapons (machine gun and missiles)
No plane customization (visual or otherwise) and CPU wingmen don't become better over time
Still kinda repetitive (usually find and destroy target(s) or destroy all enemies, some escort missions and one protection mission, some nighttime and ravine missions, a couple of tunnel segments)
The machine gun is almost useless vs flying enemies since it's much harder to line yourself up to hit with it unless you're fighting bombers or helicopters
Some trial & error (if you miss unlocking a plane during a certain mission then the game skips it and you can't unlock it in a later one - happened with the MiG-29 for me)
No radio communications with the enemy or with your allies during missions (Wing Commander)
Some planes kinda suck (A-4?, F-117 Stealth?) and some are meh (EF-2000 can be skipped for the F/A-18E)
No giant boss planes like in AC1 but the ace pilots can be considered mini-bosses
13+ seconds of waiting (death cutscene+loading) each time you die
No 2-Player VS mode or co-op mode (AC1 had a vs mode)
Somewhat mundane last 3 missions besides the cruise missile chase (since the fortress tunnel segment is a repetition of a previous mission)
Notes:
-Took the Operation A path in the late game and got the good ending
Level Design-7.5 Frustration-6/6.5* Fun-7.5 Originality-5
Overall Score-7.5
*High altitude missions
+
Buy new aircraft with money made during missions (you get rewarded based on enemies destroyed and their values as well as your jet’s damage and if you hit any allies or hired any wingmen, you'll want to destroy some secondary targets to make sure that all the new aircraft are made available) - can choose which plane to use before each mission. Can also sell aircraft here
Aircraft have differing stats in 7 categories here (mobility, stability, air to air and ground attack offense, defense, power (speed)), climbing ability) - 3 planes also have a stealth ability (meaning if they fly low enough they aren't detected on the enemy's radar but if they see the plane directly it doesn't matter)
Difficulty options (easy-hard - affects plane costs and damage taken+enemy AI+position of allied and enemy units, picked once before beginning a game)
Mini-map toggle which doesn't pause gameplay (a semi-transparent enemy radar is always on in the bottom left corner and its range changes dynamically depending on how close the nearest enemy is)
TP/FP view toggle and you can see the altitude and speed in both here
Lock on feature which shows how far away the enemy is, Can switch target to lock on to with a button press (AC1)
Can hire a CPU wingman pilot to accompany you for some missions - fourth mission onwards (can't pay for a better one here but they can attack ground targets, still simplistic AI in that you can only give it one order before the mission)
Pretty detailed briefings which let you check enemy planes and how much they're worth going after in advance
Partial control config (novice or advanced controls - latter adds rolling, can't edit the shoulder button config)
Adds a campaign data and personal data menu (aircraft usage percentages, mission performance stats, decoration/rank; decoration/rank, aircraft usage percentages, best times and on which difficulties)
Instant replay of your last kill (can change the camera angle or lock it with circle, no sound though)+ a map view replay of your mission playthrough
Five hidden missions
Two alternate endings based on your actions in missions 19-20 (minor differences between the normal and good endings)
New game+ of sorts ("EXTRA" mode which lets new planes (like the MiG-31, F-15S, EF-2000 and the XFA-27 - 16/24 (8 more than in AC1) planes actually) be handed out at the end of certain missions)
Adds "aces", elite enemy pilots that can be fought to unlock special medals and their special aircraft (some of these aren't particularly elite though)
Voiced assistance toggle (VA and arrows help you navigate towards nearby enemies and avoid missiles)
Unlockable level select (finished Extra mode)
Some interesting enemies (ADF-01 can shoot backwards, stealth planes can disappear off the radar map) and level design (radar jammer in Midnight Assassin (Night-time Pursuit Plane), adds landings after some missions, Geothermal Plant Base where you rely on allied troops' to open a protective dome for a limited time so that you can enter a tunnel and destroy the main target)
? Nice sequenced/psf music though it's only used for a couple of jingles (title, mission briefing)
+/-
Partially non-linear structure (when given the choice between two missions you can only do one of them during a single playthrough (unlike in AC1) and which one you pick doesn't affect the rest of the campaign besides rewarding you with a bit more or less money - the exceptions are mission 19-20 which affect the ending, have to meet certain hidden conditions to unlock the early alternate missions - at mission 14 you choose between two main paths (leading up to sentinel or final countdown) and which one you take affects which mission you can unlock during that path - at mission 16 you can then choose to play it or mission 17 first)
Save in-between missions (8 slots, shows current money, last mission finished, difficulty level, time played and control mode used but not last plane used)
Upbeat 80s/early 90s-style rock/synth rock OST (kinda cheesy but suits the arcade-style gameplay and it's a bit more eclectic with elements of d&b and jazz)
Ammo spent is not a factor in the mission rankings but you will have watch your current fuel levels in some later missions (time taken/fuel spent seems to have a minor effect here)
Limited missile ammo
If you lose a plane then the game keeps going but you lose about 10% of what the plane cost to buy due to the military replacing it automatically (generally better to just reload)
Easy first 4 missions, pretty easy cuckoo's nest mission, easy mission 9 (Swordsmith (Taking Over the Enemy Arms Production Base)) and 12 (submarine base). 19 (jewel) box is kind of easy as well and so are the last couple of missions.
Your speed automatically goes back to around the middle of the bar when you're not breaking or accelerating
Stalling mechanic at high altitudes (quick maneuvers or slowing down too much while at a high altitude) - can get a bit annoying
Can't see enemy plane HP
No hidden missions to unlock between missions 9 and 12
Only two wingmen to choose from here
No plane can lock onto multiple targets at once (see Galaxy Force 2 or Panzer Dragoon)
The replay feature isn't available in some missions
No unlockable planes for the last few missions in normal mode
Your assistant/co-pilot doesn't tell you which direction to go when you can't see the next target on the map - can't upgrade it
-
Some control/interface issues/oddities (you're not told what a wingman's salary is until after the mission, somewhat worse overview of a mission before playing it (one overly zoomed out map view and an overly zoomed in 3D view of one target at a time), can't compare a new plane's stats to what you currently own in the shop, can't review the mission briefing map or objectives during a mission, the game spams the "pull up" message when you're not even close to crashing but doesn't warn you about stalling (makes you fall towards the ground nose first) until it's too late, can't make the HUD semi-transparent, can fly through an enemy plane or into a currently exploding enemy plane without crashing, target switching has a minor problem in that it won't necessarily switch to the next nearest target or the one you just pointed towards after shooting at your first but the next in a group of nearby targets with a predetermined order, can't change the advanced controls so that yawing/turning is mapped to left and right instead of L2/R2))
The beeping while locked on to a target can get annoying (can lower sfx separately but not this particular sound)
Briefing VA lags behind the actual text (even moreso if you speed up the text)
Improved but somewhat dated looking 2D explosions
Pretty generic story told through scrolling text (there could've been more context given to the conflict with characterization of both sides or at least the ace pilots)
Only two different weapons (machine gun and missiles)
No plane customization (visual or otherwise) and CPU wingmen don't become better over time
Still kinda repetitive (usually find and destroy target(s) or destroy all enemies, some escort missions and one protection mission, some nighttime and ravine missions, a couple of tunnel segments)
The machine gun is almost useless vs flying enemies since it's much harder to line yourself up to hit with it unless you're fighting bombers or helicopters
Some trial & error (if you miss unlocking a plane during a certain mission then the game skips it and you can't unlock it in a later one - happened with the MiG-29 for me)
No radio communications with the enemy or with your allies during missions (Wing Commander)
Some planes kinda suck (A-4?, F-117 Stealth?) and some are meh (EF-2000 can be skipped for the F/A-18E)
No giant boss planes like in AC1 but the ace pilots can be considered mini-bosses
13+ seconds of waiting (death cutscene+loading) each time you die
No 2-Player VS mode or co-op mode (AC1 had a vs mode)
Somewhat mundane last 3 missions besides the cruise missile chase (since the fortress tunnel segment is a repetition of a previous mission)
Notes:
-Took the Operation A path in the late game and got the good ending