Our flyweight flyboy flings feelings of flights of fancy ~

Lloyd Sabin, 29 January 2018

Wings! was a favorite game of mine when I was a teenager on the Amiga, around 1990. I played it to completion more than once, using my Epyx joystick, and thanked the gaming gods that Cinemaware existed to create a game that really scratched my First World War itch. Even then I was fascinated by that war and it’s aviation.

it was more of a fun beer and pretzels game about World War I flyers

Wings! is quite simplistic compared to Wings Over Flanders Fields or Rise of Flight. But it was never meant to compete with sims…it was more of a fun beer and pretzels game about World War I flyers, with three different kinds of missions: patrol/air combat, ground attack/strafing runs, and bombing. I enjoy all three types, and still get a kick out of Wings!

The Kickstarter campaign for this game turned out to be troubled in the end, with many bonus items still not delivered and the usual internet rage spewing forth from angry gamers. I even had to buy my copy twice because I was never given info on how to transfer my copy from one rig to another after contacting the developer.

These things aside, the modern version of Wings! captures the magic and good storytelling of the original and still sets my imagination in motion. The storytelling is very good as is the updated music and the graphics are serviceable if not eyeball shattering. Plus the game can be had for just a few dollars on Steam.

If you are the least bit interested in World War I you will enjoy Wings! And the game is surprisingly lengthy, with 200+ chronological missions pack in. Don’t think twice about picking it up! Enjoy the screenies below.

If I remember correctly this dedication is new to the game, a nice touch.

This sequence was definitely in the original game, touched up a bit here.

Colonel Farrah is back, that old so-and-so. The squadron journal he assigned you to keep is the game’s vehicle for introducing new missions and subplots in your squadron.

Here’s the journal. Simple and effective, some entries have photos included to draw the player in to the era and the assigned missions.

Air combat won’t get any awards but it is fun and satisfying.

During patrols you can get assigned multiple AI controlled wingmen, and occasionally run in to opposing flights of Fokkers of up to eight planes. Albatrosses and Gothas also make an appearance.

As you continue through the game you begin to compete with flyers in your squadron and others.

It is possible to get shot down, and if that happens your chances of survival are almost non-existent.

On the flip side, promotions are also possible if you survive and succeed.

Wings! Remastered is a solid game with surprisingly long legs, especially in this day and age of complex, huge flying sims. If you want to jump in quick and get in to some fun air to air scraps, you’ll enjoy it.

See you next time!

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