Time to get sky high
From the old N64 Site. by Dan Chubaty
The Game:One of the N64's first launch games. Pilot Wings 64 is a flight sim, in which you pilot one of three vehicles through various tests and situations to become a true pilot.
Gameplay:Pilot Wings has always been about the joy of flying rather then destruction and violence, it could be compared to that of a flight simulator on PC, although not as complicated. The goal of the game is to pilot each of the three main machines (Gyro copter, Rocket belt, and the hang glider) through tests and challanges. They range from flying through wings, blowing up targets (using the gyro copter's missles), or reaching a certain alttitude using the hang glider. The tasks's start out extremely easy but quickly become daunting. After you successfully complete one of the tess you are graded on various things, such as time taken, landing, or how many rings you flew through, you then get a score out of 100, you need to complete each of the tests to be able to accumulate enough points to earn a badge.
Although the focus may be on completing the tasks that are presented to you, it is also a hell of a lot of fun to just fly around and take in some of the awesome scenery.
Visuals:Although dated when compared to games today, Pilot Wings 64 has some very nice visuals indeed. The landscapes seem to go on forever as you look into the horizon, with minor fog and pop-up which really doesnt affect anything. The textures are varied enough but sometimes look bland or blurry. Pilot Wings 64 also bosts some great weather effects such as snow and cloudy skies, it all creates a very rich atmosphere
Audio:Probably the worst part of this game is the music, it is mostly pretty annoying, and would be more fitting in an elevator, except for the hang glider theme, which is very soothing. The sound effects aren't all to special either, they get the job done but arent really spectacular. You hear the wind whisp by and the propeller on your gyro copter is nice
Control:Of course each of the three vehicles has it's unique abilities, so they obviously have they're own control schemes. The game does a good job of using the analog stick to it's fullest, as the hang glider is really touchy. All in all the controls are layed out very nicely and responsive when needed.
Replay Value:Pilot Wings excels in replay value, the main challenges keep you busy and allow you to go back and perfect them if you want. If you achieve gold badges on all of them you unlock bonus events such as: Human Cannon ball, Bird man, Sky diving and more!, each of these also has they're own set of challenges to complete. The lack of a two player mode hurts a bit, but is quickly made up for by the other addicting elements.
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