F/A-18 Operation Iraqi Freedom Demo

War has changed a lot in the last century or so, since technology now allows for very advanced weapons that do not really require soldiers, although they are still used for safety measures. While drones and nuclear bombs can certainly do the job from a safe distance and cause a decent amount of destruction, fighter jets are still quite popular, especially in the case of the US forces.

F/A-18 Operation Iraqi Freedom aims to depict the aerial conflict between the United States and the Iraqi army during the recent war that took place in that part of the world, although this time around you do not have to play as a foot soldier down in the sand. Alternatively, you take the role of a fighter jet pilot and go on a variety of missions throughout the Middle East, at the end of which there is always something to destroy and blow up.

As it might be fairly obvious from the title, the plane you get to control is the famous F/A-18 Hornet, which is renowned for its speed and combat prowess, especially in the hands of a good pilot. In order to take full advantage of its capabilities, however, you must do your best in order to learn how to cope with the immense speeds and the sensitive controls, otherwise you risk not being able to properly put your arsenal to work.

As with every game of this type, the actual flight model is very important, since it defines the overall atmosphere and makes the difference between an arcade and a realistic title. In this case, however, the choice is left up to you, because the game offers the option to adjust the realism level and switch between three possible modes. While the arcade mode is definitely fun as well, the difficulty of the missions can only be truly appreciated using the maximum realism settings.

The biggest flaw of the game is the fact that the singleplayer missions and the campaign are very badly implemented and they barely make any sense most of the time, not to mention the fact that the objective are repetitive. On the other hand, you do get to admire some nice views and landscapes, thanks to the satellite imagery used to render the environments.

In case you truly are a fan of the genre and you enjoy piloting airplanes no matter what, F/A-18 Operation Iraqi Freedom can be a good title to try out, if only to see the legendary aircraft in action. As far as anyone else is concerned, the game is rather flawed and unimpressive, especially since the missions are boring and nothing really captivates you throughout the campaign.