Product ReviewsBlazing Angels Squadrons Of Wwii (Wii)

Great game if you forego a little realism.

I’ll get right to the point: this is a fun game.

I’ve flown everything from an F-15 on my old Commodore 64 to a TIE Defender through interstellar space. I’ve been in dogfights against the Red Baron, Japanese Kamikaze, and Darth Vader. I like flying. I’m no connoisseur, but I enjoy a little violence in three-dimensional space on occasion.

Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII for Nintendo Wii, quite frankly, is MY kind of game. It’s challenging, but not too hard. I’m not ashamed to admit I need to restart from a checkpoint every once in awhile. Although most of the time it’s because I tend to fly too low and crash into things. Buildings. Ship masts. The Eiffel Tower. That kind of thing.

There is a nice selection of planes, and plenty of unlockable extras. In addition to the standard Campaign mode, you can jump into immediate action in the Arcade mode, or fly with a buddy in the sweet multi-player mode. A better non-network multiplayer flying experience does not come easily to mind.

Like seemingly all Wii games, the controls take some getting used to. One peek at the game manual and I was instantly overwhelmed with the myriad control options. I left the default, Arcade Nunchuck Sensitive, and hoped for the best. I found the controls very intuitive, just like holding your hand out the window of a moving car and “flying” your extended digits. Using the default control options, the Wii remote becomes almost superfluous, being used only for optional controls. All the good stuff is in the ‘chuck.

True flight enthusiasts and sim heads might not be too pleased. Part of what I like about the game is it’s inattention to realism in the appropriate spots. For the most part, you have unlimited ammunition, including bombs and rockets. You need not be concerned about running out of fuel. Take offs and landings are sparse, and (thankfully) easy. Just remember to put the landing gear down!

I believe the game is trying to be original with a weird target-centered camera view option. I find the thing annoying, and don’t quite see the point. It’s much more useful when approaching a stationary bombing target than tracking a rogue enemy ace, but I prefer to find my foes the old fashioned way.

While this game may lack the more realistic and exciting aspects of say, Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe, it also lacks the frustration that too much realism can bring to a game. In my opinion, it’s an even trade. Right now I’m having a really good time flying around knocking Jerries out of the sky without giving a thought to my round count, fuel gauge, or whether or not my wings are going to rip off because I’m in too steep a dive.Read full review...

Most fun to be had in WWII

Blazing Angels is an exceptional game in detail and feel. The downer is in the controls. It would have been far better if the controller fit into the standard steering wheel or better still a custom flight yoke. The other problem is the instructions could have been written far clearer, it is obvious that the lead software engineer wrote the booklet since many things are either left out or are unclear. The prime example is the camera mission. The pre-mission mission is fairly easy. But how do you take pictures in a sand storm? I do love the game the feel of the aircraft is superb as is the combat. I know I seem a little harsh about some of this stuff but the beta testers really let us down on this one. This could have been one of the great games for the Wii with another $100 of R& D but just isn't.Read full review...

Fun Game, Few Gripes

I really like this game, it's fun and addicting.

The best thing about it in my opinion is that you can use the nunchuck as your "stick" and fly the planes that way. There are challenging levels and the game allows for varied missions with both air to air, air to ground and, air-sea combat scenarios. There are additional modes of play that I really haven't tried out since I am still playing the "campaign mode." These include multiplayer, mini campaigns, arcade and ace duel modes.

Things that will be frustrating to the first time user:

1. The "stick" can get "stuck." In other words the wii may lose track of the nunchuck's orientation in space. If you're in the middle of combat in a roll or a loop this can be really annoying since the story ends up with your plane head first into the ground or whatever may be lurking around. Beginners will have to put up with this until they master realizing the situation and adjusting....it takes practice.

2. One mission seems impossible to complete. I must have played the same mission fourty times. Each time I succesfully landed the plane in the midst of obstacles and enemy fire only to wait at the objective without triggering the waypoint. As I'd drive around to try to trigger it I would inevitably die. Not sure if this is a glitch or if I was proceding incorrectly...either way it was highly frustrating.

Aside from those two gripes I love the game. It takes some practice to get good at, but it is a lot of fun. It's also neat to try the different missions with different planes. Par for the wii the graphics are not super but you won't be paying any attention to them as you focus in on German, and Japanese flyboys. Have fun!Read full review...

Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII (Wii)

I love fly around and shoot them up games so this is my kind of game. It would be better if the controls were easier and more responsive. For instance; you use the Numchuck to fly the planes, but the joy stick on it controls the speed. That is right, you have to tilt the numchuck back and forth and up and down to turn the plane. At time it forgets what way is up and you can't seem to get it reoriented. The other thing I'm not great about is you have to complete one battle before you can do another. You can not loose a battle and go one to the next, you have to continue doing the same one over and over... The Good; The graphics are very good and you can shoot the heck out of the bad guys to your heart content.Read full review...

Great graphics. Good fun as well

I am not a hard core gamer. I dont like having to read a novel to learn how to play anything. I just want to turn a game on, jump in and play. I think the graphics, the sounds, and the videos are very good. The gameplay with the Wii control can be picky at times. Meaning you need to turn and twist slowly, else it seems like the wii console can't keep up. Outside of the controllers, which is not a reason to not buy this, I think is a great game. Exactly what I was hoping for. I dont need ultra-complex mind-bending puzzles to solve. Some challenge is nice, and this provides it.Read full review...

Keeps you coming back for more

Of course being an older product the graphics aren't going to be quite as good as something as something put out last week, but I was surprised at how good they were. On my 55" tv it feels like I'm right there in the dog fights or what ever. The game handles well and is easy to become addicted to. I usually don't buy or play flying games but thought I'd give her a go and wasn't disappointed. The game gave me ample experience in the beginning training phase and ramps up as I gained skill. I can't find anything I don't like.Read full review...

Verified purchase:  Yes | Condition: pre-owned | Sold by: samcoeastexllc

My husbands happy

My husband likes to play video games with the best of them, and I was tired of the football etc...so I decided for Christmas I would get him something different...and he is enjoying it very much...not to mention the good graphics...my girls and I like to sit and watch him play because it is like watching an old war movie...and there are alot of WWII facts that are good for the kids as well. It is not an easy game, but that is what makes it fun and sets itself apart from the rest of the games. Did you know that they did not name the Air Force until 1947?? you can play and learn.Read full review...

Angels on the Wii

this game takes a bit of getting used to, as the controls can be configured in a lot of different ways, but none REALLY fit. After some time spent, the game kinda grows on you as your control becomes more intuitive.

the chatter between you and those around you are at first amusing, at length distracting, and during high stress times annoying.

graphics are fine, realism is a good attempt as well.

it's a good $20 game.Read full review...

great game

I love any and all WWII games espesially flyers. This one is great. I love the Wii interface- no cords! It is easy to learn to fly with this game although you don't have quite as much control of the plane as with some other "flight simulators". It does fly well in Arcade mode however and is a lot of fun.Read full review...

Fun game with some control issues

I really like the dynamic nature of this type of game. Even the same scenario plays a little different each time. Perhaps I need to be better, but the control schemes all seem to lack some accuracy. Specifically, because you can roll without losing altitude (you can actually fly sideways) it is more difficult than it should be to align with ground targets. Other than this, I'm finding the game itself addicting and fun.Read full review...