Master of the Sky: The Red Ace is an old-school combat flight simulator based around WW1 bi-planes. Different from many other flight simulators, this game makes of simplicity a high priority. That is why you’ll be playing this fun game with simple controls and few keys to learn, the emphasis is on intense action and exciting aerial maneuvers.
While playing this game you’ll be travelling to the green fields of France, hot sands of Africa and the desolate setting of a war-torn Belgium, as you take part in 25 unique, action-packed missions. You’ll be using your machine guns, rockets and bombs to eliminate enemy fighters and take out key ground targets.
You’ll be able to fly four different fighter planes, each with their own feel and handling based on the actual planes themselves. The graphics development is very good and the design is superb. It’s like you travel back in time to the World War and are flying in the old continent.
Each mission starts with a briefing. You'll be given your objectives, which will include attacking ground and air based opponents, as well as protecting your own forces. Some missions are timed, so don't dawdle. The timer is located at the top of the screen in the centre. Also use the on-screen dials to track your progress and keep an eye on your plane's status. Keep an eye on your ammo - your Machine Gun ammo is unlimited, but if you run out of bombs and rockets (available on some missions) you may find your mission becomes very tough indeed. The bullet holes indicate how badly damaged you are - if they cover the bottom of the status dial you're down.
The majority of the control of your plane in The Red Ace is accomplished by using the mouse. Moving it to the left and right will roll and turn your plane, while moving it up and down will pitch the plane's nose up and down. If you find the plane difficult to control, you can alter the sensitivity of the mouse in the 'Options' menu. If your plane has bombs or rockets installed, you can use the right mouse button to release them. You can control the speed of your engine using the right shift key to increase throttle and right ctrl-key to decrease throttle, which can be useful if you're doing bombing runs. Decrease the throttle too much and your plane will stall (some planes are easier to stall than others)
Since it’s not a new game system requirements are pretty low, even more, it’s not a game designed for Windows Vista. It can work fine though. Here’s a list of minimum requirements for you to check if your system meets them:
• Windows 95 / Windows 98 / Windows ME / Windows 2000 / Windows XP
• Intel Pentium II 233 or equivalent
• 32Mb RAM
• Supported 3D Accelerator Card (4Mb minimum)
• 60MB Free hard disk space
• SoundBlaster or DirectSound compatible sound card
• Microsoft compatible Mouse
• Master of the Skies: The Red Ace supports Direct3D compatible cards with the following chipsets:
o 3Dfx Voodoo 1, 2, 3, 5, Rush, Banshee, Velocity
o 3D Labs Permedia 2, Permedia 3
o ATI Rage Pro Turbo AGP, Rage Pro Turbo PCI, Rage LT Pro, Rage 128, Rage 128 Pro, Rage Maxx
o Intel i740, i810
o Matrox G200, G400
o Nvidia Riva TNT, TNT2, Vanta, GeForce, Quadro, GeForce 2
o Rendition Verite V2x00
o S3 Savage 3D, Savage S4, Savage2000
o Videologic PowerVR Neon 250
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