AFTERBURN

About

"Afterburn" is a single-player simulation game with stellar mechanics and amazing visuals. The game features easy-to-learn controls, daily mini-campaigns, and an endless mode for arcade-style action. With simple aircraft setup and quick installation, it offers vibrant visuals and competitive leaderboards for an engaging experience.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

89%

Audience ScoreBased on 471 reviews

graphics37 positive mentions

story12 negative mentions

Afterburn features phenomenal graphics for a game under 100mb, providing a smooth flying experience focused on dogfights.
The game is easy to pick up and play, making it a great option for quick gaming sessions, while also offering challenging gameplay that encourages replayability.
The daily leaderboard and procedurally generated missions create a competitive environment that keeps players engaged and coming back for more.

The game has a very limited amount of content, with only six missions and a lack of variety in enemies and environments, leading to repetitive gameplay.
Mission 6 is considered extremely difficult and frustrating, often feeling unfair due to overwhelming enemy numbers and lack of player upgrades.
There is no background music, and the sound effects can become monotonous, detracting from the overall immersion of the game.

story
152 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
7%
86%
8%
The game's story is minimal, focusing primarily on fast-paced action across six missions, with little to no narrative or character development. Players engage in repetitive dogfights against waves of enemies, culminating in a particularly challenging final mission that many find frustratingly difficult. While the gameplay offers a satisfying challenge, the lack of a compelling story or variety in mission objectives leaves some players wanting more depth and content.
- “Definitely recommend this game as an indie gem, and while you may not play it for 100 hours, you definitely will sink in a few hours at the very least to get past mission 6.”
- “It's definitely very frustrating at first, but the feeling of getting better and beating a mission that had you struggling for hundreds of attempts is incredibly satisfying.”
- “The missions keep getting harder but also keep increasing the level of pure joy!”
- “Ah, and the only goal to work towards is some leaderboard score that resets daily: no campaign, no story, no boss battles, nothing that might justify the full price or even a tenth of it.”
- “No story, no dialogue, cut scenes or any of that.”
- “But beyond mission three, you've seen everything this game has to offer.”
graphics
88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
55%
3%
The graphics of the game are praised for their impressive quality given the low file size, featuring a low-poly aesthetic that evokes nostalgia for classic arcade titles. While the visuals are simple and sometimes blocky, they effectively support fast-paced gameplay and provide a fun, vibrant experience without overwhelming the player. Overall, the graphics are considered polished and suitable for a casual arcade dogfighting game, making it accessible even on lower-end PCs.
- “The graphics are phenomenal for being a game that takes up less than 100MB of hard drive space.”
- “Amazing game, the controls are really smooth, the visuals are great for a game that can run on regular PCs, and overall it's a really entertaining arcade fighter jet game.”
- “The graphics have a high enough polygon resolution and polish not to look like this game's pixel-dragging ancestors from the 80's/90's (think Sega's Afterburner series), whilst keeping the poly-count low enough that the gameplay stays blisteringly fast.”
- “Graphics are not much different from FA, simplistic, low-poly, and minimum requirements.”
- “Apparently 'vibrant visuals' means an acid trip of motion blur and chromatic aberration (can be turned off but bleh).”
- “The sounds of the ammo and explosion are just thuds, no background music, not that great artwork, handling is okay but that's about the only good thing I can say about this one!”
gameplay
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
47%
49%
4%
The gameplay is characterized by its engaging mechanics and intuitive controls, offering a mix of arcade-style dogfighting and addictive action. While some players appreciate the simplicity and fun of the mechanics, others feel that the depth and content could be improved, leading to a repetitive experience after the campaign. Overall, the game provides a satisfying experience, especially for fans of fighter jet games, but may not meet the expectations of those seeking more complex gameplay.
- “Great arcade dogfight action, with slick graphics and controls and addictive gameplay.”
- “Gameplay is really fun, and it's easy to just drop into the action.”
- “The gameplay is extremely fluid, and the controls are intuitive, though the inability to remap them can be an inconvenience to some.”
- “They aren't very fun anymore, they have a whole big story that doesn't really mean anything, and the actual gameplay is really not that great...”
- “There's maybe 4-5 hours of gameplay here, and it's a little on the high side in terms of price for that.”
- “Gets pretty repetitive after completing the campaign due to the high score-based gameplay.”
music
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
53%
14%
The game lacks any background music or a proper soundtrack, which many players find disappointing, especially given the potential for enhanced immersion. While the sound effects for weapons and explosions are decent, the absence of music leaves a void that players often fill with their own playlists. Overall, the consensus is that the inclusion of music would significantly improve the gaming experience.
- “Great for when you just want to put on some power music and blow stuff up.”
- “While it might not have music or any proper soundtrack to speak of, I'd say one of the biggest strengths is being able to put your own playlist on and sit down for a 30-45 minute session.”
- “No music and a minimal FX soundscape allows you to put on your own jams in the background to fit your mood or just chill out and play quietly.”
- “There is no music.”
- “Not including music with the game was to me a big disappointment.”
- “But the lack of music really bothers me.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Players generally find the game to be simple and fun, allowing for quick sessions that enhance its replayability. However, some users express a desire for even more replayability options to further enrich their experience.
- “Simple, fun, play whenever, doesn't take much time, lots of replayability.”
- “Something that would be nice is more replayability.”
- “Something that would be nice is more replayability.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the humor in the game to be a highlight, particularly enjoying the comedic moments when AI characters collide or engage in absurd antics, such as cargo ships crashing. Despite some frustrations with movement mechanics, the amusing interactions and unexpected explosions keep players entertained and willing to replay missions for the laughs.
- “You don't get time extension rewards when enemies crash into each other or the ground, but seeing two cargo ships ram into each other is still funny.”
- “Though the movements are not as good as we've seen in Furious Angel, as they occasionally crash into each other which hurts the score, I don't mind doing the mission one more time. Plus, it's always hilarious seeing AI snuggling each other and explode.”
- “It's always hilarious seeing AI snuggling each other and explode.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players express a strong emotional connection to the game, highlighting feelings of nostalgia and excitement reminiscent of the "Top Gun" experience. This emotional engagement enhances their overall enjoyment and immersion in the gameplay.
- “Don't mind the emotional nostalgic rant.”
- “Made me feel like I was in Top Gun every time I played.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is praised for its excellent optimization, allowing it to run smoothly on a wide range of PCs. However, players should be mindful of fatigue, as it significantly impacts performance. Overall, it offers a fun experience without demanding high-end hardware.
- “If your PC can play any games, it can handle this one as it's so well optimized.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and unfulfilling, often feeling that it rewards monotonous gameplay rather than skill or strategy. The repetitive tasks, such as flying a cargo box that drops mines, contribute to a sense of frustration rather than enjoyment.
- “Essentially only rewarding a tedious playstyle with high scores.”
- “[Cargo] tedious flying box that drops flying mines when you fly by.”
- “Essentially only rewarding a tedious playstyle with high scores.”
stability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is praised for its excellent stability, running smoothly without bugs and requiring minimal system resources. Its clean art style and intuitive controls further enhance the overall experience.
- “It's totally stable and bug-free, and it doesn't require a powerful system.”
- “It has a nice clean art style, runs great, looks nice, and has intuitive controls.”