The Unconverted

DEVELOPER: SEGA AM1 YEAR: 1994 GENRE: FLIGHT SIMULATOR

Nick plays Wing War and other lost games

■ Sega’s Model 1 board occupies an odd space in the company’s history – it was clearly a revolutionary arcade board and home to some classic games, but it often tends to be overlooked due to the low number of games that actually ran on it. Wing War, AM1’S only game for the board, is even odder in that it actually supports another revolutionary but rarely utilised piece of Sega arcade hardware: the R-360 cabinet, capable of simulating the full motion of the aircraft. However, the game was more commonly found in twin sit-down cabinets.

Wing War gives players the simple task of shooting each other down to progress through a tournament. You have access to eight aircraft, including classic biplanes, modern fighter jets and attack helicopters, each of which is equipped with machine guns and a limited supply of rockets. It’s also possible to deploy plumes of smoke to thwart incoming missiles and each craft also has access to unique special tricks, such as corkscrew loops or double tail spins, used for both movement and evasion. There are two modes of play. The simpler of the two is Dogfight mode, in which players fly through an environment on rails and control is handled much as it is in Space Harrier, with each player alternating between attack and defence phases. In Expert mode, you gain full control of your aircraft, including use of the throttle that is disabled in Dogfight, and must fight in a limited but open 3D space with ground obstacles.

Though Wing War never made a transition to consoles, that’s not to say there were no plans to bring it home – though too visually primitive for the Saturn, the untextured polygon graphics would be a perfect fit for the more limited capabilities of the 32X. Work was definitely started, as M2 found the prototype data for the conversion while working on Sega Ages: Virtua Racing in 2019, but the project was quickly abandoned once the commercial failure of the Mega Drive add-on became apparent. If Wing War is ever likely to come home, it’s as part of this range.

■ This particular helicopter fires six non-locking missiles at a time, with the smoke trails indicating the V formation in which they travel and explode. ■ In Expert mode you have freedom to fly around the environment, dodging between the cranes if you desire, but you can never escape your adversary. ■ This timer gauge tells you how long you have left in your current phase – we’re just about to turn over the phase from attacking to guarding. ■ The bottom-right zone on the HUD is reserved for short-term information – warnings to take evasive action, or the always-welcome hit confirmations.