Last week we got a sneak peek at Indeeo Games’ recently released line drawing game, AirStrike Defense [App Store]. Featuring three modes that the game hops between with each mission, AirStrike Defense asks players to control ships and/or planes in a variety of different combat scenarios.
Regardless of which unit type you’re controlling, both naval and air forces are maneuvered by drawing lines originating from the ship or plane. Both are capable of boosting their speed for a brief period of time, and handle much differently depending on the unit. For instance, massive battle ships move and turn extremely slow, while smaller ships move much faster, and your jets move even faster.
Gameplay is structured through a series of mission, each with slightly different objectives. Some naval missions ask you to navigate a fleet of battleships through an ocean full of mines, or avoid bombers trying to sink your ships. Air missions involve bombing enemy ships, and there’s a combination mode where you’re managing your air offensive while protecting your naval fleet.
The sea missions are fun, but I found the various bombing missions to be the most enjoyable by far. As you progress through the game, you’ll need to take out entire fleets of enemy battle ships with your bombers and your performance is graded by your overall bombing accuracy. Achieving a high accuracy score is easier said than done, as it takes quite a bit of skill to precisely drop bombs on enemy fleets filled with a variety of ship types that all behave differently.
Where things went south for me was when AirStrike Defense has you managing both bombers and ships at the same time. Instead of having everything take place on a single screen, you hit a button in the top left corner that switches in between the screen with your air forces bombing the enemy fleet and the screen with your fleet avoiding the enemy bombers. It’s confusing and disorienting constantly switching back and forth between both battles to manage all your units at once.
While I wasn’t crazy about the combination missions, AirStrike Defense does a great job at mixing up the objectives enough to keep gameplay fresh. The line drawing controls work great, and there is a ton to work towards in the game as you slowly get access to different types of ships and planes. AirStrike Defense is definitely worth a look if you’ve enjoyed line drawing games in the past, and want something a little more involved than Flight Control and similar spinoffs.
App Store Link: AirStrike Defense, $2.99
