Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+ Reviews
Ace Combat Horizon Legacy Plus is exactly what you want from the series: Ace Combat on the go. This new version isn't essential if you have the original 2011 release, but if you've never bought the game, the new Amiibo support and other features make the Plus edition the one to own.
Even with its issues, Assault Horizon Legacy provides a solid Ace Combat experience on the 3DS. Yes, the game may have landed on the small screen. When it comes to the overall gameplay experience, however, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+ delivers a solid spike on Nintendo's portable console, just like make-believe, volleyball savant Tom Cruise.
Although this version of the game changes very little and only really adds in a bit of Nintendo fan service, the quality of the original still shines though in Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+. A true example of how the 3D effect can enhance games, with both a compelling narrative and gameplay structure, and plenty of reason to take back to the skies after finishing.
Bandai Namco's Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ on Nintendo 3DS flies high at times, but often lacks fire power in other areas.
Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ won't set your world on fire like another remakes well, but when it comes to staying in the air and doing a great deal of damage, it's a few good afternoons well spent – especially if you're a fan of the original games.
A plus sign doesn't always mean better
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy Plus will definitely appeal to aviation aficionados who happen to game as well, but not to many other gamers. Either way, the "Plus" feels like a misnomer—the title doesn't offer enough new or entertaining features to justify a full-price purchase point for a four-year-old marginally average game.
"Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+" is a more than solid addition to the series, granted you to didn't take to the air when the game was originally released in 2011. Amiibo features and improved controls and visuals aside, there's not enough to warrant another purchase. However, if you're feeling for some solid aviation-fueled drama on your new 3DS, this is your only choice.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy + is never an offensive game. I actually enjoyed much of my time with it. Especially finding out it wasn't as complex as I had imagined the series to be, but in that same vein, maybe it should have been a bit more complex. After hitting the two hour mark, I seemed to have seen everything the game had to offer as far a variety, and the new additions to the game don't seem to be enough to get people to double dip and purchase it again.
This title won't win any awards for ingenuity, but it will provide any gamers who like to casually call each other "Ice Man" and "Maverick" with plenty of bonehead blowin' up fun.
Fans of the Ace Combat series are destined to be disappointed with Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+. Aside from some small control additions and swanky new amiibo support, the aerial combat game is largely unchanged from Bandai Namco Games' initial 3DS release in 2011. The flying itself is decent, and greatly enhanced by the game's outstanding soundtrack, but ultimately Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ feels like nothing more than a poorly-disguised cash-grab.
It's a little hard to grade this one. On the one hand it's an genuinely entertaining dogfighting sim on the Nintendo 3DS - a genre so rare that its only competitor is its predecessor. On the other hand re-releasing the exact same game and selling gimmicky Amiibo miniatures unlocks as the major new addition is... well, it's not exactly adequate. This kind of feature would be a $5 DLC add-on elsewhere.
With only a few minor additions, it's hard to recommend Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+ to anyone but the most diehard of fans.
Altogether, these changes don't really add up to a hugely compelling argument for Assault Horizon Legacy+ over its original version. The core game, while not particularly exceptional, remains a solid, enjoyable experience that benefits from the simple fact that there really isn't anything else like it on 3DS.
If you haven't played Assault Horizon Legacy and you have a New 3DS, this is the version to get. The additions aren't major, but this version is the definitive one, as long as you own a New 3DS. If you don't own Nintendo's shiny new handheld or played the 2012 edition, hold off because there isn't anything new for you here.
Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy Plus is an enjoyable and engaging entry in the series, and in the combat flight-sim genre. For returning players however there is very little new content here to warrant a purchase, unless you're absolutely desperate to pilot a Samus Aran airplane in a fictional war. For those new to the title who are looking for something slightly different to go with their New 3DS, there's a lot to recommend here, though it sadly all feels like a bit of a missed opportunity.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy + is an exhilarating portable combat flight sim with some fun tweaks for New 3DS owners. Thrilling mechanics, plentiful missions and robust unlocks make it the Top Gun for genre fans who own the system.
Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy+ is a great way for Ace veterans to relive a classic on the go, provided that they didn't already buy the original release in 2011. There's just not enough here for entice anyone to double-dip or shell out the full price if you aren't a sim-junkie. While the publisher should be chided for releasing an iteration as rushed as this, they are lucky that the core package was already decent to begin with.
A tidy tester for your New 3DS' excellent head-tracking 3D, but there's too little for old hands to grasp onto. Even if you're a first timer flyer it's hardly a direct hit.
Ace Combat Assault Horizon Legacy+ is a minor and slightly cheeky update - despite Nintendo planes and amiibo support it's certainly not worth a double dip for those with the original. It does serve as a handy reminder to those that ignored it first-time around, however, and it's an entertaining arcade experience that does its job as throwaway action fun. It's the sort of title that one can revisit every once in a while, just to fly through the skies and pretend it's the '80s and that Top Gun is cool. Often silly but always enjoyable, it's certainly worth some air miles for new recruits.