Eye of the Hawk

Despite these relatively simple requirements, HAWX is a lot more complex than it needs to be a lot of the time. The HUD is cluttered with more windows than a glass refinery and the default mouse and keyboard control system is formidably laid out. Really; it scares us how many buttons there are. We're sure fingers weren't meant to stretch that far.

As a flight combat simulator that sits firmly in the arcade genre, HAWX could have got away with being a far more simple and streamlined game than it actually is. Not that that's a complaint though; it's rather gratifying to see a game aspire to be more than it needs to be.

All the game really needed was a decent camera and a lot of explosions, but instead Ubisoft has built a role-playing mechanic into the game, as well as series of interesting UI tweaks.

The RPG side of things is achievement based and built into the missions directly. Taking out targets earns you a small XP boost, with more threatening opponents being worth more experience than ground troops. Completing each mission objective earns you a medium amount of XP too, while fulfilling certain conditions is worth a lot more.


Some achievements even have unlockables directly linked with them too. Downing your millionth enemy with a JSA missile will get you a new medal, XP boost and a new weapon layout if you want it. As we said before the story is dry and drably put together, with the most awfully pseudo-futuristic cutscenes ever, so the process of upgrading your character soon becomes the most important thing, especially since your current rank is made visible in multiplayer and co-op matches. You can even earn XP in online matches too, which is a nice way to give the multiplayer game an aim for those who don't like the singleplayer.

Who cares about Artemis PMC when your next bombing run might bag you a new plane to impress your friends with? Nobody, that's who!

Speaking of planes and weapons, there’s a huge variety of both on offer in HAWX, though you only start off with the bare minimum. As you progress through the game you steadily unlock more and more wings and different types of weapons - air-to-air missiles, and bombs with larger payloads, for instance.


There are tankbusters, heat-seekers, drop-bombs, heat flares and under-wing miniguns that seem intended more for ambience than practicality. Actually bring an enemy down with bullets is both difficult and pointless when you’ve got an illogical amount of missiles in store. Playing on Normal difficulty you seem to start each mission with at least 300 missiles, somehow.

Not that the game is easy though as, even on Normal, you’re often heavily outnumbered and forced to take on vastly superior foes. Some of the levels, particularly the Air Force One level, are almost masochistic at points and the fact that you can’t save your progress mid-mission doesn’t help things. The reliance on far-spaced check points means that the game can often become infuriatingly repetitive.

Still, if you find yourself having problems with specific missions or areas then you can always take your flights and fight into the online arena. HAWX has got both a sturdy multiplayer mode and a co-op mode. It’s the latter that shines out, if you ask us as, although there’s nothing wrong with the rudimentary control you can exercise over your CPU allies, chatting over voice com to a human wingman is much more satisfying. And geeky.