Blazing Angels 2: Secret Missions of WWII for Xbox 360 Reviews by Gamers

I've always been a WWII fanatic and when they announced BA2 i went crazy.

7.5 Presentation
There's a lot of history here, but not much of a story. The forced sense of brotherhood feels ok. The plane selection and customization upgrades are a nice addition from the last title.

8.0 Graphics
The game has a real sense of depth and atmosphere. The sky, the sun, the smoke, it all looks great, but fighting against red brackets instead of enemy planes detracts.

8.5 Sound
Some of the best sound effects on the 360; some of the most annoying voice acting on the 360; a solid cinematic score. You have to have the good with the bad.

7.5 Gameplay
There's bombing, there's torpedoes, there's dogfighting. But whether you are attacking a base or defending a squadron, you're really just shooting down plane after plane after plane. Where do I sign?

7.0 Lasting Appeal
The single-player campaign is average in length. The monotonous gameplay gives you no real reason to go through the campaign again. But then again I am a WWII fanatic so i do it anyway. After the campaign, you'll get a lot of enjoyment from the online modes.

I actually played the first Blazing Angels the whole way through and I think I gave it a 4. This game is a major improvement. The graphics are pretty good, the controls are simple and intuitive, and the missions are fun and varied.

Just like the first game, you have your wingmen with you most of the time. Their voices and dialog are better acted and far less annoying than the original. But even better than your stupid A.I. wingmen, you can play this game cooperatively over Xbox Live. That right there earns this game some bonus points. There are also some competitive multiplayer modes like your standard deathmatch and search and destroy. This definitely ups the replayability and value, and it almost makes it worth a rent if you can con your friends into getting it, too.

There's a neat upgrade system also. You earn Prestige Points for shooting down lots of planes and completing secondary objectives. These points can be used to upgrade your planes with things such as extra armor or more powerful bullets. You can even custom paint your craft, though it doesn't give you a whole lot of options in this department.

My biggest gripe about this game, much like the last game, is that you'll end up replaying a lot of stuff that you shouldn't have to. For example, a lot of missions start you off a few miles away from your objectives, and your wingmen just blab at you for a few minutes before the mission really starts. If you die, you have to sit through all that boring cråp all over again, and since it's not a cutscene, you can't skip it. There are checkpoints throughout the levels, but sometimes they are WAY too far apart, and you'll end up replaying a half-hour of what you just did. I found this to be extremely frustrating, and I'm sure most people who play this game would agree.

Bottom line, this is pretty much the only option on the 360 for fans of flying games (except the original BA), and while it's not great, it should satisfy you.