You may recall that back in September 2007 it was reported that Tom Clancy's Air Combat existed, and it was a flight combat sim game from Ubisoft.

Well, that game's now been renamed and re-revealed as Tom Clancy's HAWX, which is heading to PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. You can see the first screens here.

HAWX is a flight combat game set in 2012, spinning the familiar near-future yarn that world powers have become increasingly reliant on private military corporations - to the extent that corporations have increased their foothold in the power stakes which in turn has brought the globe to the brink of conflict.

So... players get to leap into the cockpit of some 50 planes for aerial dog-fighting. HAWX has a fully co-op campaign that supports up to four Top Gun wannabes, and on top of that a 16-player multiplayer versus mode is packed in, in which air combat prowess is rewarded with virtual cash and points to unlock new firepower.

It's a Tom Clancy title, which naturally means cutting-edge in-game technology features - in this case in the shape of something called ERS (Enhanced Reality System). According to IGN, the ERS includes "radars, incoming missile detection, an anti-crash system, damage control system, tactical map, information relay, weapons trajectory control and allows players to give commands to their AI squadron".

In connection with ERS is Assistance Mode which, if turned on, is described as having a similar effect on piloting as turning on assists in a racing sim.

You can fly these unfriendly skies this Fall.

Courtesy of CVG

Apr 3, 2008