irtight Games was formed around the core team behind the Xbox’s Crimson Skies, so it’s not completely surprising that they’d build upon that experience and deliver another game built around flying. What started out as a “What if a game like Crimson Skies had on-foot segments?” experiment blossomed into what would later become Dark Void. But rather than just bolt standard third-person shooter segments to an arcade flight sim, Airtight came up with something that they hope will set it apart: a vertically oriented cover mechanic.

What’s that? Well, it’s really about as simple as it sounds. As Will, a pilot unlucky enough to get sucked into the Bermuda Triangle and transported to “the Void,” players find themselves in the middle of an epic battle. On one side are the resistance fighters, the Survivors, who are scrambling to prevent the evil aliens (the Watchers) from invading the Earth. No pressure.

What they may lack in numbers, the Survivors make up for in resourcefulness and determination. Some clever members have been able to reverse engineer some of the Watcher tech and use it to their advantage. Eventually, Will is able to harness some of that power in the form of a rocket pack. At first it only hovers, allowing Will to slow his descent and surprise enemies from above. Eventually, he can soar into the skies and take on UFOs on their own turf.

Oh yeah, back to that vertical cover. At certain point in the game, Will can scurry up towering structures, grabbing onto ledges and surprising enemies from below. Jumping from point to point, he can fire upon those unsuspecting baddies, knocking them loose and watching them plummet to their doom. If he takes on too much fire himself, Will has to work to regain his grip—with players jamming on buttons. Players will have to think quickly and sort out the potentially disorienting perspective, leaning in and out of the way.

During the demo, we were particularly impressed with the game’s animations—Airtight did a great job of conveying the sense of speed (and helplessness) that must accompany rocket-pack flight. Upon taking off, Will’s body jerks and shakes in the air, and his limbs are pulled this way and that. Dark Void is another game with an everyman-style main character, and it only makes sense that Will isn’t completely graceful out of the starting gates.
Airtight wasn’t showing a whole lot of the game, but what they did show looked fantastic. We only spied one Watcher type in action—a spindly looking robot thing with a squishy alien center—but the company promised that was only a tiny slice of the menagerie. The area shown blended stark stone canyoDark Void
Airtight Games was formed around the core team behind the Xbox’s Crimson Skies, so it’s not completely surprising that they’d build upon that experience and deliver another game built around flying. What started out as a “What if a game like Crimson Skies had on-foot segments?” experiment blossomed into what would later become Dark Void. But rather than just bolt standard third-person shooter segments to an arcade flight sim, Airtight came up with something that they hope will set it apart: a vertically oriented cover mechanic.

What’s that? Well, it’s really about as simple as it sounds. As Will, a pilot unlucky enough to get sucked into the Bermuda Triangle and transported to “the Void,” players find themselves in the middle of an epic battle. On one side are the resistance fighters, the Survivors, who are scrambling to prevent the evil aliens (the Watchers) from invading the Earth. No pressure.

What they may lack in numbers, the Survivors make up for in resourcefulness and determination. Some clever members have been able to reverse engineer some of the Watcher tech and use it to their advantage. Eventually, Will is able to harness some of that power in the form of a rocket pack. At first it only hovers, allowing Will to slow his descent and surprise enemies from above. Eventually, he can soar into the skies and take on UFOs on their own turf.

Oh yeah, back to that vertical cover. At certain point in the game, Will can scurry up towering structures, grabbing onto ledges and surprising enemies from below. Jumping from point to point, he can fire upon those unsuspecting baddies, knocking them loose and watching them plummet to their doom. If he takes on too much fire himself, Will has to work to regain his grip—with players jamming on buttons. Players will have to think quickly and sort out the potentially disorienting perspective, leaning in and out of the way.

During the demo, we were particularly impressed with the game’s animations—Airtight did a great job of conveying the sense of speed (and helplessness) that must accompany rocket-pack flight. Upon taking off, Will’s body jerks and shakes in the air, and his limbs are pulled this way and that. Dark Void is another game with an everyman-style main character, and it only makes sense that Will isn’t completely graceful out of the starting gates.
Airtight wasn’t showing a whole lot of the game, but what they did show looked fantastic. We only spied one Watcher type in action—a spindly looking robot thing with a squishy alien center—but the company promised that was only a tiny slice of the menagerie. The area shown blended stark stone canyons with exotic-looking alien tech. There were plenty of spires to avoid while in the skies (or to lure pursuing UFOs into).

The rocket pack looks like it’s going to give gamers tired of the same-old shooter experience something new to play around with. At one point, Will faced a group of Watchers grouped behind cover on a bridge. In this situation, it usually becomes a pace-stalling case of “wait for the guy to pop up and shoot his head.” This time around, you’re a character with more options. In seconds, Will shot into the air, whipped around the bridge and fired at the newly exposed enemies. That fresh take on combat is exactly what the genre so desperately needs.

The game is still early in development, but we walked away more than impressed. Crimson Skies was a lot of fun, and we’re confident that Airtight can deliver something that’s worth playing. ns with exotic-looking alien tech. There were plenty of spires to avoid while in the skies (or to lure pursuing UFOs into).

The rocket pack looks like it’s going to give gamers tired of the same-old shooter experience something new to play around with. At one point, Will faced a group of Watchers grouped behind cover on a bridge. In this situation, it usually becomes a pace-stalling case of “wait for the guy to pop up and shoot his head.” This time around, you’re a character with more options. In seconds, Will shot into the air, whipped around the bridge and fired at the newly exposed enemies. That fresh take on combat is exactly what the genre so desperately needs.

The game is still early in development, but we walked away more than impressed. Crimson Skies was a lot of fun, and we’re confident that Airtight can deliver something that’s worth playing.