IGN writes: "Videogame publisher XS Games announced today a new arcade style air combat videogame, Rebel Raiders: Operation Nighthawk, for the Nintendo Wii. Developed by Kando Games, Rebel Raiders: Operation Nighthawk is set in a futuristic universe. The player assumes the role of a brave and grizzled pilot, leader of the elite resistance military unit "Ghost Squadron". At the player's command is a group of brave but inexperienced fighter pilots that only the player can lead into battle. The objective: to save mankind from corruption and turmoil at the hands of the Union of World Nations. At stake, is the fate of the world -- victory is the only option.
A single player game that uses both the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to control a player's aircraft, Rebel Raiders: Operation Nighthawk features ground shaking weapons, non-stop combat and thrilling special effects. The game's 34 unique missions can be navigated with 23 different fighter planes, allowing the player to fly at amazing speeds and create spectacular explosions. By commanding the Ghost Squadron, completing missions and defending the front line, the player earns points for a chance to fly top-secret planes with devastating weapons. Players have to demonstrate they have what it takes to become a true Rebel Raider."
James Maddox writes:
"I paid no attention to Rebel Raiders when it first came out for the PS2 and the PC, so my bias toward the game is relatively fresh and unaffected. Flight sims of the past aside, picking up the controls for RR at first had me thinking "This could be cool," but after a few hours into the title, the handling had me wanting additional options that never manifested.
Obviously, there are good and bad aspects to this game. For instance, the idea of this being a great Wii port gets ground in the dust rather quickly, as no real utilization of the Wii's unique control potential exists outside of using the nunchuck's balance feature to guide your aircraft.
The wand is merely used for its buttons. "A" slows down your plane, the trigger gives you a thrust in speed, and the D-pad allows you to reload your infinite ammo.
For my console, I use a cordless sensor for my Wii, and after selecting which window I wanted from the Wii Home screen, I turned the sensor off and was not hindered in the slightest during gameplay."
Rebel Raiders is a barebones package with no multiplayer or anything else to lend it any lasting value. There are a decent number of unlockable planes, but they're all minor variations on four basic types and have no significant impact on the gameplay. If you're looking for some air combat on the Wii, you'll be better served by picking up one of the marginally superior games in the genre. This one should have stayed in 2006.
WorthPlaying writes: "Ever since I first booted up Ace Combat, I've reserved a special place in my heart for flight combat games. Among the more exciting sensations in all of gaming is that of pushing a super jet to the very limits of human endurance, along with the adrenaline rush that comes with twisting, looping and diving in order to lock onto an enemy and fire off a missile. Unfortunately, Rebel Raiders: Operation Nighthawk for the Wii can't deliver any thrills whatsoever, and you are left with a soulless waste of effort, a game that would have been better left forgotten by the annals of history.
The story in Raiders is your typical generic farce: An evil government creates worldwide totalitarian regime, and it's up to a rag-tag group of rebels to rage against the machine. It's essentially the cut and paste Star Wars/Ace Combat rip-off, but with absolutely zero depth. I'm willing to forgive an unoriginal story in a game when it's at least presented in a convincing manner, but Raiders isn't even trying. The script is terrible, with the dialogue appearing to have been run through a Babelfish translation and stuck directly into the game, and the delivery of the lines is so unconvincing that you begin to wonder if Kando just recorded the table reading of the script and used that as the final version. Furthermore, every character in the game is completely unremarkable, and you don't develop any sort of bond to anyone in the universe. This is likely because all of the game's personalities are conveyed via static image during missions, and everyone is referred to by call sign rather than by name. The result is that you're left really not caring about these rebellious spirits, and you kind of wish they would just hang it up so that you could end this atrocious mess of a game."
