One of the best mobile arcade games just got better.
UPDATE: Added new screenshots.
I’ve always been a big fan of the top-down airplane shooter game ever since I first played 1942 (thanks, Deluxe!) at local arcades when I was a kid. Siberian Strike has been a well known game on the mobile scene for years. It would have been easy for Gameloft to simply port over some of the existing versions. Luckily, they didn’t.
Rather than using sprite graphics, the new Siberian Strike is fully 3D! It’s the same top-down view, but in a fully rendered 3D engine, and it looks damn good. The game is just as crazy as the originals, with massive waves of enemies, crazy power-ups, and huge bosses to defeat. The levels I played were very fast-paced, and a lot of fun. I also really liked the cheesy voice acting and anti-soviet intro to the game. Gave me a good chuckle.
Another really cool new aspect of Siberian Strike are the new 3D levels that take a behind-the-plane view as you fly over, under, and around obstacles while destroying targets. To clarify what I’m talking about, think Starfox64. The level that I played took place in a crumbling icy canyon, and it was pretty intense. This was a nice break from the more frantic standard style of play though, since you’re simply auto-locking onto targets and tapping the Fire button.
The biggest sell to me on the new Siberian Strike is the inclusion of wifi co-op multiplayer! I can’t wait to play this with my bro when we get our hands on the game. The biggest thrill of the original arcade versions was hopping on with a friend, and attempting the usual “you cover the left side and I’ll cover the right side” strategy. Multiplayer games have had some trouble on the iPhone, and really hope Gameloft pulls this off, as I wasn’t able to test this during my time there.
Siberian Strike features about 24 different levels of play, as well as 3 different planes, unlockable paint jobs, 4 difficulty levels, and both accelerometer and touch control. It should be released in about a week, and you’ll be able to check out the review right here when it is!
