Project Wingman

Project Wingman is an indie arcade-style combat flight action game developed by Australian[1] studio Sector D2 and published by Humble Games. It was released on December 1, 2020 on Microsoft Windows.[2] The game features two game modes: campaign and conquest. Campaign mode follows the story of the war set on alternate Earth between the Cascadian Republic and Pacific Federation through a silent protagonist named Monarch, a mercenary pilot. Conquest mode has the player conquer Cascadia in rogue-lite game mode by conquering territories, buying new planes, and recruiting allies.

Project Wingman
Developer(s)Sector D2
Publisher(s)Humble Games
Producer(s)
  • Abi Rahmani
  • Matthew Nguyen
Artist(s)Abi Rahmani
Writer(s)Matthew Nguyen
Composer(s)Jose Pavli
EngineUnreal Engine 4
Platform(s)
Release
  • December 1, 2020
Genre(s)Combat flight simulator
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

The gameplay of Project Wingman is mostly inspired by the Ace Combat series of games, in which the player can choose among several fighters to participate in battles against air, naval and ground targets. Most aircraft are based on real-life models, with their names and designs slightly altered to prevent copyright infringement. The game also supports virtual reality and hands on throttle-and-stick (HOTAS).[3]

In the game's campaign mode, the player engages in 21 combat missions, and in each mission, the game encourages the player to pick right aircraft and weapons for the job.[4] Prior to each mission, the player receives an in-game briefing detailing story events, expected composition of enemy forces, and mission success parameters before choosing one among the available planes and loadout to sortie. All planes include flares that can be used to disperse enemy missiles, but more advanced planes include the possibility to choose an AOA (Angle of Attack) module instead that allows supermaneuverability.

In the game's conquest mode, the player participates in a territory capture game, with each mission getting more difficult than the previous one as the threat level of enemies gradually increases while obtaining resources to build an army to support the war effort.

Completion of missions provides the player with an in-game currency that may be used to purchase other aircraft. The player starts the game with trainer variants of the F-4 Phantom II and MiG-21 jets.

Synopsis

Setting

The game takes place on an alternate Earth afflicted with a worldwide cataclysm centuries ago that uncovered a valuable geothermal energy resource called "Cordium" but also created multiple exclusion zones across the planet. In the year 432 AC (After Calamity), the Pacific Federation, a multi-national order, has control over the Cordium deposits across the Ring of Fire. In recent years, tensions between Federation member states have escalated to the point where the Cascadian Republic (a member state located along the western coast of North America) declares independence and starts an armed rebellion. Several private military companies such as the Sicario Mercenary Corps are hired by Cascadia in their war against the Federation.

The player controls the game's silent protagonist with callsign "Monarch", who is a member of the "Hitman" team of Cascadian pilots employed by Sicario, which also include two other pilots with callsigns "Diplomat" and "Comic"; and Monarch's weapon systems officer "President". Other members of Sicario include Sicario's primary AWACS operator with callsign "Galaxy" and the company's leader with callsign "Kaiser", who is also a pilot and leader of the "Assassin" team.

Plot

After finishing their contract with the Creole Republic, the Sicario Mercenary Corps is hired by the Cascadian Republic in their war of independence against the Pacific Federation. The Federation forces gain the upper hand in the early stages of the war, to the point of capturing the Cascadian capital city of Presidia; but by the efforts of Sicario (led by Hitman Team), the Cascadians turn the tide and reclaim most of the country's territory while surviving two encounters with the elite Crimson Squadron, composed of the Federation's top aces. Hitman's distinguished achievements in battle result in its pilots, especially Monarch, gaining notoriety amongst Federation and Cascadian forces alike.

During the war, Hitman runs a mission on an offshore Federation-controlled research facility to uncover intel on their projects. However, Frost, a rogue mercenary from a prior war in Oceania, pilots an experimental superfighter from Icarus Armory's titular "Project Wingman" in an effort to stop the mercenaries; she is defeated, but survives with the combat data retrieved by Federation scientists.

During a subsequent mission to liberate Prospero, Cascadia's main economic hub, the Federation bombards the city with Cordium-enriched cruise missiles in an attempt to halt the rebel forces' advance. The warheads trigger an underground Cordium chain reaction that destabilizes the Ring of Fire, ravaging most of the Pacific Rim in the resulting tectonic event. With the country in ruins and their sensors damaged, Hitman withdraws from the battle. They re-encounter Frost, leading a group of bounty hunters intent on eliminating Hitman, whose true identities have been leaked to the public; the leak compromises Hitman's safety as mercenaries. They eventually shoot down Frost and the bounty hunters for good before reconnecting with the remnants of Sicario. As they plan on fleeing the country, the Cascadian government offers Sicario a deal to keep them fighting.

Accepting the deal from the Cascadians, Sicario leads the rebels against the remaining Federation forces in Cascadia, eventually defeating Crimson Squadron in a third and decisive encounter. Meanwhile, Kaiser assembles an army of mercenaries from across the world using some massive resources provided by the Cascadian government. During the last major battle of the war to liberate Presidia, both sides of the conflict agree to a ceasefire as the battle winds down. However, Crimson 1, now overcome with madness from having to fight against his countrymen and losing his squadron, flies the Project Wingman fighter and attacks Presidia with Cordium missiles against his superiors' orders, causing widespread destruction and shooting down all pilots except for Monarch, whom he challenges to a duel. Both the surviving Federation and Cascadian forces spectate the battle with Sicario SAR rescuing Monarch's downed wingmen. Remaining Federation forces fear their summary execution on suspicion of breaking the ceasefire and the Cascadians swear vengeance on the Federation. Crimson 1 is ultimately shot down by Monarch, ending the war.

After the war, Cascadia held up their part of the bargain with Sicario. Hitman's whereabouts are unknown and they are declared wanted criminals, though it is implied that they have assumed new identities as part of the deal. Having suffered irreplaceably high casualties, and with their reputation irreversibly soiled by the use of Cordium weapons of mass destruction, the Federation faces multiple insurgent movements from other member states, backed by the now-independent Cascadia (which became a haven for mercenaries) among other foreign powers.

Development

Development of Project Wingman began on November 2015.[5] In 2017, Project Wingman was funded though an Epic Games Unreal Dev Grant. Fans donated to the game's Kickstarter campaign, raising AU$ 114,544 and exceeding its goal of AU$ 35,000.[3] Story mode was confirmed by the development team, but cutscenes were not included due to being outside of the Kickstarter budget.[6] Project Wingman′s release date was originally stated for summer 2020 before it was pushed back to early 2021, but the release date was moved to December 1, 2020, due to development proceeding faster than expected.[2]

Composer Jose Pavli created the game's soundtrack.

Reception

Project Wingman received "mixed or average reviews" from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[7] Consumer reception has been much more favorable, with Project Wingman reaching 94% favorable reviews on Steam,[12] and an overall rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars on Good Old Games.[13]

Polygon's Charlie Hall praises the game for its action that can be found in complex combat flight sims with the over-the-top spectacle commonly found in modern first-person shooters. He also states that the game treats players with visual and audio feedback that makes games fun to play.[14] TheGamer's Sean Murray compliments the game's improvement on the Ace Combat formula by allowing players to equip multiple weapons and adding rogue-lite conquest mode but criticizes the lack of variety in missions, saying "Every mission in Project Wingman essentially boils down to 'go here, shoot things.'".[8]

References
  1. https://twitter.com/rb_dev2
  2. Murray, Sean (11 November 2020). "Project Wingman Takes Flight In December". TheGamer. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  3. Hall, Charlie (2 December 2020). "Steam hit Project Wingman looks like Top Gun, plays like a roguelike". Polygon. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  4. Hafer, Leana (14 December 2020). "Project Wingman review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  5. Ballantyne, Nick (2 December 2017). "Project Wingman Interview with Creator "RB-D2" Abi Rahmani - GameCloud". GameCloud. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  6. Trahan, Philip (22 November 2020). "Project Wingman Details Story Mode". Game Rant. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  7. "Project Wingman for PC". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  8. Murray, Sean (8 December 2020). "Project Wingman Review: Ace Combat Who?". TheGamer. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  9. Lopez, Azario (1 December 2020). "Project Wingman Review". Noisy Pixel. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  10. Warman, Dylan (30 November 2020). "Project Wingman Review: Indie Ace Combat". ScreenRant. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  11. Belfield, Chris (30 November 2020). "Project Wingman Review". The Indie Game Website. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  12. "Project Wingman Steam Store Page". Steam. Valve. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
  13. "Project Wingman GOG Store Page". Good Old Games. Retrieved 18 December 2020.
  14. Hall, Charlie (4 December 2020). "Project Wingman makes air-to-air combat thrills as accessible as Call of Duty". Polygon. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
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