Afterburner II


Title		Afterburner II
Game Type	General Action
Company		Sega/Code C/Argonaut, 1988
Players		1
Compatibility	OCS
Submission	Pretentious Nickname Profiled Reviewer

Review
               GAAAAAAACK!

 Where the Amiga release of Out Run depressed me, Afterburner II made me
angry. So angry, I wanted the programmer's heads. Luckily for them, that
was well over a decade ago, so I've calmed down somewhat.

 Before playing the Amiga version, I'd believed the Sega Master System
version to be the worst. One quick run at the Amiga version and I
realized I'd been wrong. The AMIGA version is the worst I've played.

 The controls are horrible! It's tough to maneuver your F-14 where you
want it! There's little impression of speed while using your 'burners,
and your Vulcan machine gun is constantly firing! It's just not like the
arcade!

 The graphics are also horrible. The enemy planes show little detail, much
like your own. The aircraft carrier from which you launch is drawn roughly
twice the size of your plane, which is pretty tiny!  The ground below you
gives little impression of height or speed, and overall, the game has a
very cheap look to it.

 For me, the biggest letdown is in the musical score. The signature tunes
like "Final Takeoff" and "Afterburner" have LONG been some of my favourite
video game tunes, most of which have been run through a blender for the
Amiga release. I had to play the game with the music OFF for a while so I
could at least ATTEMPT to be objective about the game play.

 Game play is pretty bad, to be frank. Afterburner II offers me little
incentive to play past the third level (where you are reloaded and
refueled). Enemies and missiles come seemingly out of nowhere, with
little warning or chance to react. Your plane is difficult to maneuver,
and overall the controls are very choppy.

 I had to play the Amiga version a few times before writing this review,
simply to make sure I'm being objective. Am I trashing Afterburner II
because it's not as good as the arcade, or am I trashing Afterburner II
because it's a bad game?

 Well, because it's a bad game. Personally, I wouldn't waste money, time,
or effort on this one.







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