Avatar Squadron (X360) (2010)
Developer: Raoghard

Review by Faididi and Co.

Royal Avatar Force

Story: Average

British humor goes on the attack in this zany story. Beano, a talking biplane, must save the world from the forces of the villainous Dr. Weevil, a big, pink helicopter. There are lots of bad puns in the dialogue, none of them terribly funny.

Gameplay: Average

A side-scrolling space shooter, Raoghard's Avatar Squadron supports up to 4 Players at once on a shared console (no online networking). With your X360 avatar riding in the cockpit, Beano and any fellow craft (if you have avatar friends tagging along) will fly through 12 levels filled with hostile planes, blimps, and tanks. The heroes share the same pool of lives, although running out isn't a big deal, because the heroes can always retry any level they've reached, and earning extra lives isn't difficult.

Another distinguishing feature of Avatar Squadron is the ability to recover after being hit. Beano goes down with a single scratch, but if you mash a button quickly enough before he crashes, he returns to feeling fine. This is a fun, simple way to preserve lives while adding more tension to the action, and why no other space shooter has done this before is a wonder.

The weapon design perfectly fits the cartoon atmosphere. By default, Beano is armed with a slow-firing pop machinegun, but there are 6 silly special weapons, such as a giant hammer that squishes bad guys to the front and a pinball launcher that fires oversized bouncing orbs. The most creative of the special weapons include the magnet, which allows Beano to capture and convert enemy tanks into friendly drones; and the giant bomb, which can cause massive destruction but must be carefully towed lest it prematurely detonates.

Unfortunately, the game's weakest point is its stage design. All the levels play the same, with a straight, constant path and identical-looking scenery. Only some of them end with bosses, which is a pity given that the bosses actually behave differently from one another. Worse still, the first level doesn't allow Beano to use the recovery ability, nonsensically making the beginning of the game the most difficult.

Controls: Above Average

Beano handles responsively enough. Moving around and using the different weapons are all easy to do, but the recovery lock-out during the first level is bizarre.

Graphics: Above Average

The comic book-like visuals come with simple textures, but that doesn't prevent the smoke trails and the bomb blasts from being nicely animated. There's also something strangely eye-catching about the big, pink helicopter.

Audio: Average

The audio work is a mixed bag. The explosions crunch out loudly, and the shifting engine sounds for Beano are a great touch, but the music can grate on one's nerves. Except for a single scene in the middle of the game, all the levels come with Richard Wagner's Walkürenritt (Ride of the Valkyries) in the background. Would adding one or two more level tunes hurt?

Overall: Average

Avatar Squadron is all right for a 4-Player space shooter. Although it can benefit from having more compact levels and a greater variety of music, those problems don't ruin the fun to be had with its whimsical special weapons and its friendly recovery ability. Fans of the genre won't be disappointed with this game, but others may want to stick with Microsoft's Aegis Wing, which is a free 4-Player space shooter that features online as well as shared-console multiplayer support.