Proxy Air Force Reviews

great game really enjoyed it on steam deck 100 percented it got all achievments given this game 5 outta 5 if you got steam deck get this game

Proxy Air Force is exactly what it looks like - a poor man's 1942 with an iffy geopolitical-war plot, the kind of simplistic, no-frills, ultra-low-budget affair usually reserved for freeware websites and built-in game selections on dodgy clone consoles. There is exactly one plane to choose from, no options to speak of, and the assortment of enemy aircraft and structures to take down is not particularly varied, either. Gameplay is a simple one-button affair, and, with some skill and a generous heaping of luck, the entire thing can be completed in around half an hour. At times, even 80 British pence seems too hefty of a price to pay for it, considering one might expect something similar to be available for free. And yet... ...and yet, despite all the aforementioned shortcomings, Proxy Air Force is not a BAD game. In fact, it is rather an enjoyable one, while it lasts. Despite its bare-bones simplicity and criminally slim content ('Various Types of Enemies' is unironically listed as a key feature on the game page), it does manage to conjure up the atavistic thrill its sort of old-school shoot-'em-up is known for, as the player blasts their way through three handfuls of (short and admittedly somewhat repetitive) levels, swerving for power-ups and extra lives, the better to take on whatever stands between them and ultimate victory. From a technical standpoint, certain small details also show some care has been put into making this a worthwhile product; the music, in particular, is quite good, though a little too modern and crisp-sounding to truly convey the retro 16-bit feeling the graphics and gameplay are clearly going for - in that particular respect, Proxy Air Force is closer to the sort of old-school-meets-new-school hybrid game publishers would put out early into the 32-bit era, when they were not yet sure just how much the new home-gaming machines could handle. All in all, this game does just about enough to justify its low asking price. Admittedly, in an ideal world, this would have been a free game; even still, while there are countless vastly more sophisticated and rewarding titles of the same genre available on this very platform, this small, unassuming yet undeniably charming entry into the indie vertical-shooter library will likely amount to 80p well spent for most old-school gaming fans.

A functional but quite baisc vertically-scrolling shoot-em-up. I've tried the developer's platformers and top-down horror games, so I was curious what they would do with this genre. It deserves a neutral rating but, since Steam doesn't have that, I can't really recommend it because there are better games out there for the same price. Proxy Air Force has responsive controls and plenty of enemies and powerups. You could almost call it a twist on the bullet hell subgenre. Seems like there are dozens of bullets on screen, too many to dodge them all. To comensate, the game gives you a generous lifebar and fairly regular health refils. What this means, though, is the game doesn't require as much skill as most shoot-em-ups. There's a little strategy to positioning yourself to avoid the most destructive enemies and making sure you last until (and pick up) the next health item. It is accessible to casual gamers because of this but doesn't have the complexity, the pacing variations, or the overall excitement that classic shmups do. The game won't take you more than 45 minutes to complete, like as not. With almost no story and overall simple gameplay, y0ou aren't likely to replay it many times. One other thing that annoyed me: sometimes you will see a "Warning" on the screen, and a wave of fighters will fly up behind you. There are fairly tight spaces between them, and they aren't always in the same position. You have to memorize to position yourself for each wave, or you'll likely die. If it had been fewer but more maneuverable fighters (like in Phelios) or it indicated where the ships were going to fly in, it wouldn't be so bad. The game is still quite beatable. Proxy Air Force is a mediocre game, mildly interesting. I'm not saying you should absolutely avoid it, especially if it's on sale, only that you should know what to expect and that you, like the game, could do better. It will be interesting to see if the developer hones their shmup development with future games.