Developer: Invictus Games Ltd.
Publisher: Black Shell Media
Platform: PC
Tested on: PC
Dustoff Heli Rescue – Review
Dustoff Heli Rescue: the title says it all. It’s a game where you can be the hero, rescuing soldiers in need. Who doesn’t like that? Don’t be fooled though, being a hero is tougher than it seems. You’re often exposed to danger, and you might not make it back, but that’s just part of the job. Let’s hope you make it back alive this time.
Story
When it comes to the storyline, Dustoff Heli Rescue is very straightforward. Fellow soldiers are in the hands of the enemy or stranded somewhere behind enemy lines, and you are their last hope of being rescued. With your helicopter you’ll have to find them and evacuate to a nearby friendly base, back into safety. Also stolen supplies or vehicles have to be taken back to the base, and thus you’ll have your hands full flying your helicopter around. Even though the storyline is next to nothing, it is just enough to get you going in each level. As the game is more about the action, rather than a fun story, we didn’t mind that it was such a basic one.
Graphics
The game is made in a voxel style. This causes everything, and certainly your fellow soldiers, to look rather chunky, yet it looks quite appealing at the same time. The backdrops are beautifully made and make for a fun alternation of scenery. You’ll be flying in all kinds of weather, which means the backdrops use very different color palettes. In stormy weather, you’ll see a color scheme that is mostly grey, while you will in other missions be able to enjoy a beautiful sunset or just simply bright, sunny weather.
The amount of detail is also very enjoyable to watch. As far as you can see, everything is properly worked out, and you can even see other rescue operations in the distance, at the same time you are doing yours.
While the game is made in 3D, you will only be able to fly in 2D. you can’t go into the backdrop, but only go left and right, which is ok, but somehow a bit of a shame as the game looks so nice. Also, it’s sometimes difficult to see whether or not that one tree or rock is in the background or on your actual track, which might cause you to crash a few times.
Sound
Throughout the whole game there is energetic music that will get you straight into combat mode. There isn’t a lot of variation, but it certainly does the job and never really becomes bothersome. Other than that, you’ll also hear the noise of your rotating propellers, the firing of bullets or rockets and the occasional -incomprehensible- message through a walkie-talkie.
Gameplay
Dustoff Heli Rescue is an action game that has such simple controls, you’re up and going in no time. To fly your helicopter, you’ll only need your L and R keys, thus it can’t really get more simple than that. The goal is to rescue all soldiers in need, or pick up vehicles or supplies in enemy territory. As simple as that sounds, it is a work of precision sometimes, as there are many narrow passageways you’ll have to fly through. When meeting enemy fire, you’ll have to take cover, while also trying to shoot them. You can choose to play on the automatic setting or the manual setting, and while the automatic one is of course a simple option, the manual setting makes the game quite a bit harder instantly, as you have to aim with your mouse, while making sure you don’t crash while focusing on the shooting. If you choose the pro control mode instead of the amateur one with which you start off, also the flying itself becomes quite a bit harder. With some practice, you’ll be fine, but it seemed to us that the controls run more smoothly in the amateur mode.
Finding your fellow soldiers is quite easy, as they usually carry a red flare. After you pick them up, you’ll have to bring them back to your base, and pick up the other ones waiting to be rescued. The more levels you play, the better helicopter you unlock and the better ammo you’ll have. The better helicopters are easier to fly with and don’t lose their balance that easily, and another great advantage is that they can carry more soldiers, so you won’t have to go back to the base as much. However, it might sometimes be wise to go to the base before your helicopter is completely full, as your health and ammo will automatically be fueled up when you land there. When carrying vehicles or ammo, you’ll have to be careful with trees and rocks and so on, as your cargo is hanging beneath you, and thus can easily get stuck behind a tree, causing you to lose your balance and crash.
When out in the war zone, you’ll have to be careful to be quick, yet make soft landings, since when you land too harshly, your helicopter will get damaged, which makes it more difficult to fly. Also the weather, mostly the wind, has a huge impact on your flying, so it is wise to check the way the wind is blowing, before you lift off. Luckily, when you shoot enemies, you sometimes get ammo or health in return, even though you still have to go pick it up. What you can also pick up are dustoff signs, of which there are five in every level. They are hidden in places that are difficult to reach, which makes it quite the challenge to get them all. Nonetheless, you don’t get anything in return, so we’re not quite sure why they are even there.
Even though you’ll have to shoot a lot of enemy buildings, vehicles and canons, you always disable your enemies, rather than killing them. When you destroy their base, they will just run off in panic, which is quite a funny sight at times.
Every level is timed, and depending on the time in which you finish it, you will earn a bronze, silver or gold medal, or simply none if you’re really late. In the beginning, you often won’t grab gold, but once you unlock the better helicopters, you can easily start these levels again and finish with a better time, giving the game quite a bit of replay value.
There are only twenty-five levels at this moment, which is not that much, certainly when you get the hang of it. Even though the replay value is quite high, you will finish this game quite soon, thus it would definitely be nice if the developers came up with more levels.
Conclusion
Dustoff Heli Rescue is a game that is very easy to learn, yet is quite challenging nonetheless, as you do have to be quite precise with the controls. The backdrops look absolutely beautiful and are very varied and colorful. Overall, it’s a really fun game to play but while there is quite some replay value, there are only twenty-five levels, which is just not that much. Nonetheless, we did enjoy this child-friendly game quite a lot.
No Comments