Aero Fighters 2

Aero Fighters 2[lower-alpha 1] is a vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up arcade game released in 1994 by Video System.[1][2]

Aero Fighters 2
Developer(s)Video System
Publisher(s)SNK
HAMSTER Corporation (PS4/Switch/Xbox One)
Designer(s)A. Ōkawara
Katsuyuki Yamamotoya
Hiroko Yokoyama
Composer(s)Hiroyuki Itou
Norie Aoki
Soshi Hosoi
SeriesAero Fighters
Platform(s)Arcade, Neo Geo AES, Neo Geo CD, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Release
Genre(s)Vertically scrolling shooter
Mode(s)
Arcade systemNeo Geo MVS

Gameplay
Gameplay screenshot.

The game is played with two buttons, with the A button firing projectiles from the plane and the B button launching a special bomb attack which uses a bomb from a limited stock of bombs.[3] Power projectiles can be obtained by destroying buildings and armored enemy planes. There are two types of Power projectiles: "P" Power projectiles, that increase the plane's firepower by one level, and "F" Power projectiles, that increase the plane's firepower to the maximum level instantly. The maximum level only lasts for a limited number of shots. When certain ground enemies and buildings are destroyed, money bonuses appear which give a set number of points based on how fast you destroy them and how quickly you collected the bonus. When the player reaches the end of the stage, the player has to face a boss ship. There are ten levels. Once those levels are beaten, there is an intermission. Another ten levels beaten at a higher difficulty will result in the game ending.

Characters
CountryPlayer 1Player 2
United StatesRobo Keaton (F-117)Captain Silver (A-10)
JapanHien (FSX)Mao Mao (F-15 Eagle)
O.N.U.Ellen & Cindy (F-14 Tomcat)Spanky (Northrop YF-23)
FranceSteve/Angela (Dassault Rafale)N/A
United KingdomN/ABobby (FRS.2)

Reception

In Japan, Game Machine listed Aero Fighters 2 on their September 1, 1994 issue as being the seventh most-popular arcade game at the time.[20] The game was met with generally positive reception from critics.[6][21][22][23] It holds a 90% on the video game review aggregator GameRankings.[4] AllGame's Kyle Knight praised the variety of ships and backgrounds, sound, level designs and gameplay but criticized its replay value.[5] GamePro's Captain Squideo gave it a generally positive review. While citing some issues with slowdown and an absence of sound effects for the player's jet, as well as a general lack of originality, he considered it an overall enjoyable shooter with fun weapons, huge bosses, and "crisp" controls.[7] Next Generation reviewed the Neo-Geo version of the game, stating that "Players with any skill will beat the game on the easy or normal level in under an hour. The higher levels offer more challenges, but not new ones."[12]

Hobby Consolas's Manuel del Campo praised the graphical design of stages and enemes despite the small size of the player's plane, music, playability and ship varietry but criticized the lack of variety with sound design and "wow factor".[8] Joypad's Benji regarded the Neo Geo CD version to be dissapoiting, stating that "we found ourselves in front of a game which would have been all the rage (although!) On Neo cartridge five years ago. Because even soundtrack side, for CD, the result is trivial."[9] MAN!AC's Ingo Zaborowski commended the visuals but criticized the music for being inappropriate and unmotivated, comparing the game with both Raiden II and Twin Eagle II.[10] Mega Fun's Martin Weidner visually compared the title with Last Resort and Viewpoint, criticizing the music, slowdown during gameplay and lack of additional options.[11]

Player One's Christophe Delpierre reviewed the Neo Geo CD version, remarking that the graphics needed more work and criticized the levels for their short length, stating that "In short, Aero Fightere 2, without being bad, still disappoints a little. On Neo CD, we are entitled to expect much better."[14] Like Manuel del Campo, Superjuegos' Roberto Serrano praised the visual design, music, sound design and playability but criticized the occurrence of slowdown when many sprites are displayed on-screen, stating that the sequel far exceeds its predecessor.[15] CD Consoles' David Taborda commended the audiovisual presentation and playability but criticized its creativity on display and slowdown during gameplay but he nevertheless regarded the title to be a good game.[16] Computer+Videogiochi's Maurizio Miccoli reviewed the Neo Geo CD release, praising the gameplay, longevity and presentation.[17] VideoGames' Gabe Soria stated that the graphics were similar to those of the original Aero Fighters and compared the sound design with Apocalypse Now but commended its playability but noted it was neither new nor special.[19]

Aero Fighters 2 has been met with mostly positive reception from retrospective reviewers in recent years.[24][25] Nintendo Life's Dave Frear praised the Nintendo Switch version for the addition of hi-score and caravan modes, selection of planes, enemy variety, action and multiple endings.[13] In contrast, however, Pure Nintendo Magazine's Justin Sharp commended the visual presentation and two-player mode but criticized the short length and lack of replayability.[18]

Notes
  1. Also known as Sonic Wings 2 (Japanese: ソニックウィングス2, Hepburn: Sonikkū~ingusu 2) in Japan.

References
  1. "Title Catalogue - NEOGEO MUSEUM". SNK Playmore. 2010. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  2. "Oh! Neo Geo Vol. 27 - ソニックウィングス2". Beep! MegaDrive (in Japanese). No. 62. SoftBank Creative. November 1994. p. 134.
  3. Zverloff, Nick (November 2, 2011). "Aero Fighters 2". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on July 26, 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  4. "ACA NeoGeo: Aero Fighters 2 for Nintendo Switch". GameRankings. CBS Interactive. 2019. Archived from the original on 2019-12-06. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  5. Knight, Kyle (1998). "Aero Fighters 2 (Neo Geo Advanced Entertainment System) - Review". AllGame. All Media Network. Archived from the original on 2014-11-15. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  6. "NEO GEO GAMES CROSS REVIEW: ソニックウィングス2". Famitsu (in Japanese). No. 332. ASCII. April 28, 1995. p. 21.
  7. Squideo, Captain (November 1994). "ProReview: Neo•Geo – Aero Fighters 2". GamePro. No. 64. IDG. p. 168.
  8. del Campo, Manuel (January 1995). "Lo Más Nuevo - Neo Geo: Aero Fighters 2 – Infierno En Los Aires". Hobby Consolas (in Spanish). No. 40. Hobby Press. pp. 112–113.
  9. Benji (February 1995). "Le zapping des tests - Aero Fighters 2 (Néo Géo CD)". Joypad (in French). No. 39. Yellow Media. p. 100.
  10. Zaborowski, Ingo (October 1994). "Spiele-Tests – NG: Aero Fighters 2". MAN!AC (in German). No. 12. Cybermedia. p. 72. Archived from the original on 2019-01-04. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  11. Weidner, Martin (September 1994). "Test Neo Geo: Aerofighters 2 - Video Systems NG-Debut gibt sich technisch noch etwas zurückgeblieben, spielerisch dagegen ist es alles andere als zu verachten". Mega Fun (in German). No. 24. Computec. p. 109.
  12. "Finals - NEO-GEO - Aero Fighters 2". Next Generation. No. 1. Imagine Media. January 1995. p. 94. Archived from the original on 2016-04-11. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  13. Frear, Dave (August 28, 2017). "Aero Fighters 2 Review (Switch eShop / Neo Geo) - Awesome Shmup action". Nintendo Life. Nlife Media. Archived from the original on December 22, 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  14. Delpierre, Christophe (January 1995). "Vite Vu – Neo Geo CD: Aero Fighters 2". Player One (in French). No. 49. Média Système Édition. p. 120.
  15. Serrano, Roberto (February 1995). "Neo Geo CD - Review: Aero Fighters 2 – Vuelo Rasante". Superjuegos (in Spanish). No. 34. Grupo Zeta. pp. 66–69.
  16. Taborda, David (January 1995). "Les Critiques: Aero Fighters 2 - Neo Geo CD". CD Consoles (in French). No. 3. Pressimage. pp. 154–157.
  17. Miccoli, Maurizio (December 1994). "Neo Geo CD - Review: Aero Fighters 2". Computer+Videogiochi (in Italian). No. 43. Gruppo Editoriale Jackson. pp. 72–73.
  18. Sharp, Justin (August 29, 2017). "Review: ACA NEOGEO Aero Fighters 2 (Switch)". Pure Nintendo Magazine. Pure Media, LLC. Retrieved 2020-05-22.
  19. Soria, Gabe (November 1994). "Reviews: Neo•Geo - Aero Fighters 2". VideoGames - The Ultimate Gaming Magazine. No. 70. Larry Flynt Publications. p. 110.
  20. "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - テーブル型TVゲーム機 (Table Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 479. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 September 1994. p. 25.
  21. Schnelle, Mick (April 1994). "SNK - Neo Geo: Aero Fighters 2". Megablast (in German). No. 6. Joker-Verlag. p. 61.
  22. "Reportaje - Clásicos en CD -- Titulos disponibles para el nuevo formato de SNK: Aero Fighers 2". Hobby Hi-Tech (in Spanish). No. 1. Hobby Press. March 1995. p. 28.
  23. "NF編集部にまる - ネオジオゲームㇱインレビュー: ソニックウィングス2". Neo Geo Freak (in Japanese). No. 25. Geibunsha. June 1997. pp. 124–128.
  24. Osange, Elliott (August 11, 2017). "ACA NEOGEO AERO FIGHTERS 2 Review". bonusstage.co.uk. Bonus Stage. Archived from the original on April 16, 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  25. Maciejewski, A.J. (August 12, 2019). "ACA NeoGeo Shoot 'em Ups - Aero Fighters 2 Review". videochums.com. Video Chums. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
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