After a twenty-year nap, the Sonic Wings (or Aero Fighters, depending on how old you feel) series returns with Sonic Wings Reunion. The idea of reviving a classic 90s shoot-’em-up sounded promising – until you actually play it.
Gaming Heaven
There’s a certain nostalgic charm buried under the mediocrity. You get eight pilots right from the start, including Whity the dolphin, for those who always thought marine mammals deserved more time in military aviation. Each pilot has a unique aircraft and attack pattern, which gives a slight illusion of variety. The grounded real-world settings – New York, Japan, and so on – at least make a change from the usual neon alien planets, and the controls are smooth enough that when you crash, you can’t really blame the controller.
Gaming Hell
Unfortunately, that’s where the excitement ends. The gameplay is about as generic as they come: you move up, shoot things, collect glowing power-ups, and drop bombs when it all gets too much. The visuals are serviceable but painfully dull, and the soundtrack feels like it’s been borrowed from a 1995 lift. There are only two modes – Arcade and Training – which makes the £24.99 price tag feel less like nostalgia. Even the story, if you can call it that, is a confusing mess of nonsense dialogue that adds nothing but white noise.
Final Judgement
Sonic Wings Reunion isn’t terrible – just terminally uninspired. It’s the gaming equivalent of reheated leftovers: technically edible, but not something you’d pay restaurant prices for. Die-hard fans might appreciate the throwback, but everyone else should wait for a discount… or just replay literally any other shooter from the past thirty years.
