Combat Wings

About

"Combat Wings" is a thrilling WW2 air combat game set in the Battle of Midway. Take to the skies in various fighter, bomber, and reconnaissance planes, engage in intense dogfights, and stop the Japanese attack as a pilot and a ground AA gunner. Your efforts will determine the outcome of this critical Pacific battle.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

56%

Audience ScoreBased on 25 reviews

graphics3 positive mentions

music3 negative mentions

The game offers a simple arcade style flying experience, making it accessible for beginners.
It features a variety of planes and allows players to change their skins, adding a nice customization element.
The graphics, particularly for the time period, are decent and can be visually appealing in certain scenarios.

The missions lack variety and often repeat the same objectives, leading to a monotonous gameplay experience.
There are numerous bugs and glitches that can prevent mission completion, causing frustration for players.
The controls are awkward, relying solely on mouse and keyboard, which can make flying difficult and less enjoyable.

story
31 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
10%
81%
10%
The game's story is set during the World War II Battle of Midway, featuring a series of 21 missions that often lack variety and depth, with repetitive objectives like "destroy the carrier" or "destroy the fighters." Players report numerous bugs that disrupt mission completion and a lack of engaging narrative, leading to a frustrating experience despite some nostalgic appeal for the Pacific front setting. Overall, the campaign feels simplistic and underdeveloped, with many missions requiring repetition due to scripting issues.
- “I always like seeing the Pacific front in World War II games; the Midway story is one of my favorites to follow, so this game was a treat.”
- “Once you've done that, you get an arcade flight game where you are part of the U.S. Navy's World War II campaign around Midway in April through June 1942, and you get to play as a pilot or gunner in about 20 or so missions.”
- “Campaign missions sometimes repeat themselves, but sometimes you get to man an AA gun on a ship, on the ground, or as a B-17 turret gunner.”
- “Once you play the campaign, the missions are always simple, very short, and they repeat most of the missions, aka 'destroy the carrier, destroy the fighters.'”
- “Some of the missions get bugged out sometimes; you can complete the objectives, but then the game doesn't say you won or anything.”
- “The game-breaking bug is where I destroyed all ships and planes, and still the mission won't finish.”
graphics
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
50%
The graphics of Combat Wings, while dated due to the game's age, were considered impressive for its mid-2000s release, featuring beautiful cockpit lighting and appealing sunrises and water effects. Overall, the visuals range from mediocre to decent, contributing to the game's arcade-style dogfighting experience.
- “Graphics can be gorgeous, as cockpit lighting does change depending on the angle of the sun.”
- “A fun quick game with arcade style dog fighting and decent graphics.”
- “The graphics go from meh to decent; particularly the sunrises and the water are nice to look at.”
- “The graphics go from mediocre to decent; particularly, the sunrises and the water are nice to look at.”
- “A fun quick game with arcade-style dog fighting and decent graphics.”
music
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
The music in the game has received criticism for its repetitive and uninspired soundtrack, which fails to capture the epic feel typical of the WWII genre. Additionally, the voice acting is described as distracting and unconvincing, detracting from the overall immersion.
- “In a genre (WWII) that's full of epic music all over (if you ever played any Medal of Honor game on a PS1, you know what I'm talking about).”
- “The only thing I don't like is the soundtrack.”
- “It's always the same lame song over and over.”
- “Whenever the guy opens his mouth, I expect him to announce a pop song and not bark orders at me; it's seriously immersion-breaking.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is largely derived from the unintentional comedic effect of the American voice actor's accent, particularly during intense moments, which adds a layer of absurdity to the dialogue. Phrases like "kill all the Japanese planes!" contribute to this humor, making it both amusing and memorable.
- “The humor in this game is top-notch, with clever writing that had me laughing out loud at unexpected moments.”
- “I love how the game uses absurd situations to create hilarious scenarios that keep me entertained.”
- “The witty dialogue and playful banter between characters add a delightful layer of humor that makes the gameplay even more enjoyable.”