When it comes to heart-exploding jet action, Namco's Ace Combat series has had the genre cornered for years. But for some, even Ace leans too far to the flight-sim side of things, forcing you to bank, yaw and obey the restrictions of your plane. That's where Heatseeker comes in. Its no-nonsense approach to blasting jets out of the sky should have no trouble courting adrenaline-soaked gamers even if they've never piloted a virtual jet in their life.
Real-world sorties involve quick strikes against a few key targets. Heatseeker's missions throw wave after wave of enemy jets at you, each flying in perfect formation until they break to take you down. To fend off this unrelenting mass of metal and missiles, you've been granted unlimited ammo and a cache of top-secret weapons that range from multi-targeting rockets to smart bombs. These weapons can be assigned to any jet in your ever-growing fleet, so no one plane really dominates the sky. That also means there are no unique weapons for each plane, so your craft of choice may end up being a matter of personal preference.
If the infinite ammo wasn't cool enough, there's also a Burnout-style impact cam that shows your missile carving a path through the air, right into the enemy jet. However, this camera yanks you out of the action for a few seconds, potentially causing you to lose your place... just like in Burnout. But, for a game that emphasizes explosions and even more explosions, the impact cam definitely gives you an up-close view of a shredded enemy fighter.
