Lethal Skies II

Flight Journal, Feb 2004 by Marks, Bob

Not all flight games need be complex analogs of real flight. There is much to be said for the simple pleasures of flying around and watching stuff explode; Sammy Studios knows this. In Lethal Skies II, the player becomes a pilot for a UN-like, multigovernmental entity who flies against a rival bunch of very bad people. These very bad people are obviously well-funded; they fly around in exotic, UFO-like aircraft, while your character is relegated to flying a stable of well-modeled, real-life aircraft.

Actually, the backstory is as unimportant as it is uninteresting (made more so by the bored-sounding voice that narrates); what you want to do is fly around and destroy things. Most modern jet fighters are represented; the F-16, F-22, a spread of Sukhois and even an A-IO Warthog are among the aircraft that are offered up as flyable steeds. The thing is, they all seem to fly the same to me. Whatever; it's all in good fun-and fun it is. Three different views are offered: the standard arcade "chase" view, a HUDonly view and, in a nod to realism, an incockpit view. I found myself enjoying the almost cinematic feel of the game-everything from the incockpit shaking to the after-mission playback that showcases daring exploits that look as if they were taken from "Top Gun."

When Lethal Skies II first arrived, I handed it to the unofficial Flight Journal "Virtual Pilot" console game guinea pigmy 11-year-old son. We played a bit together, talking about real-life capabilities and the shortcomings of the depicted aircraft. I'm all for anything that gets fathers and sons talking about anything at all, so I was thrilled to have Lethal Skies II in our house. Two days later, he was still playing it. Considering the short attention span of most kids these days, that alone is high praise indeed. -Bob Marks