Since 1992 when everyone smelt like Teen Spirit, this series of epic aerial encounters has gone through minor changes. And mostly for the better, although we're still not sure about Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere and the way it had you flying fighter jets through cyberspace.

So every once in a while I get a title and I think "Ahh….man…maybe I should send this to somebody else to handle." and that thought went through my head with Ace Combat: Assault Horizon.  The reason was simple – I didn't particularly enjoy Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation.

Ace Combat: Assault Horizon is the best air combat game of this generation. Project Aces nail the art of aerial action, with intense gameplay, sublime presentation and excellent solo and multiplayer modes.

There was time a few generations back when I loved flight sims, I was at home in the cockpit of an F18 or F16, whipping under the Golden Gate Bridge or taking out SAM sites in some god forsaken plain brown wilderness. Of course that was on an Amiga1200, C64 and various PCs.

The video graphics between and during the missions are excellent detail. Compared to previous Ace Combat games, the control of the aircraft is the most realistic so far. The video subtitles and in flight HUD/ subtitles are tiny, so it is hard to know flight bearings,etc unless you are really close...