We spent some time with 'em earlier this week and both can be summed up with two words: old-school. 1942 plays just like the original, vertically scrolling shooter set in a highly fictionalized World War II-esque setting. Your plane carries screen-leveling bombs, enemies approach by the dozen in adorable, easily shot patterns and the bosses are huge, impractical vehicles that we probably still couldn't build today.
We soared through the first mission with a co-op buddy and found the bullet-infested action familiar, but classically enjoyable. Dodging countless projectiles while returning fire, shredding thousands of enemy planes in the process will always provide a rush, no matter how basic the gameplay. On top of the super-clean HD visuals, Joint Strike adds its namesake attack that uses both players (locally or online) to deliver a deathblow. One is a lightning lasso that connects both planes, vaporizing anything in between - very nice. Expect millions of bullets, planes and Game Over screens when it touches down this summer.
