We store cookies, you can get more info from our privacy policy.
Wii

The Sky Crawlers To Retail for $29.99

by Neal Ronaghan - December 18, 2009, 12:54 pm EST
Total comments: 12 Source: Press Release

Xseed's upcoming air combat game for Wii is coming out on January 12, featuring an innovative control scheme and reversible box art.

Xseed's The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces, a Wii-exclusive title, is heading to stores on January 12 for a retail price of $29.99.

The Project ACES team, of Ace Combat fame, is developing the title, which features a unique control scheme that has players use the Nunchuk as a flight control stick and the Wii Remote as the throttle.

Based on the Japanese novel series and recent animated film, The Sky Crawlers puts players into the shoes of a rookie who has just joined the titular group of pilots. The story is told through voiced animated cut-scenes and sequences during battle.

XSEED Games Confirms Ship Date for The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces

XSEED Games is pleased to announce today the North American ship date for the upcoming Wii™ exclusive release, The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces. The Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces will start shipping to retailers across the country January 12th, 2010 for the suggested retail price of $29.99.

The somber story of a world that needs war to survive, based on a novel series by Hiroshi MORI and adapted into an animated film directed by Mamoru Oshii and released by Sony Pictures in the US, is told with a combination of animated cut-scenes and voiced in-game sequences during battle. Players take on the role of a rookie pilot new to the combat pilot group known as the Sky Crawlers. Dog-fighting simulation and flight is mirrored by a unique gameplay mechanic; players hold the Nunchuk™ in the right hand as the flight control stick, tilted to roll, pitch, and yaw, while the Wii Remote™, acting as the throttle, is held in the left hand and is tilted up to accelerate and down to decelerate.

The Wii exclusive air combat game was developed by the Project ACES team of Ace Combat fame and is rated T for Teen. The retail release comes with reversible cover art so that fans of the animated movie may flip the cover to reveal the same front boxart as the Japanese release. Fans are encouraged to visit the newly launched official site at www.skycrawlersinnocentaces.com

Talkback

Sweet, I already have this pre-ordered, so I feel like I have an extra $10 in my pocket.

StratosDecember 18, 2009

I'll probably be picking this up a lot sooner now, like with my first post-holiday splurge versus a month or two down the road.

I wonder if this will help boost sales from people curious about the game. I know the story is niche but the gameplay could pull in more players.

EnnerDecember 18, 2009

That is some mean pricing there. I guess the licensing and development costs were low enough to support such it. Also, yay for reversible cover art. It's a useless extra, but I welcome it.

Mop it upDecember 18, 2009

If I'm not mistaken, sales of Rune Factory Frontier (and Little King's Story too?) had a relatively good boost when the price was reduced to $30. Could this be the reason they chose to launch this one at $30?

KDR_11kDecember 18, 2009

Dragon Master Spell Caster was considered a total failure because it used the Nunchuk like a flightstick and the responsiveness was arse...

I know Aaron (megabyte) didn't have much bad to say about the controls when he played it back in September. Because of the low price, this is on my radar now.

There are three control levels, which should make everybody happy.

James has a final version of the game and thinks the controls are fine, after an initial learning curve.

BeautifulShyDecember 19, 2009

Very nice price. It is going to be hard picking between this,No More Heroes:Desperate Struggle and Tatsunoko VS Capcom.

ShyGuyDecember 19, 2009

I'm looking forward to Crimm's review.

greybrickNathan Mustafa, Staff AlumnusDecember 21, 2009

I would be willing to pay for a base that has a sphere inlaid inside of it with a nunchuck hookup at the top of the sphere. In this way, if the game were to use wii motion plus, you could effectively have a cheap flight stick. If they wanted to get really fancy, the nunchuck hookup that would keep the wiimote attached to the base could also pass information through to a nunchuck attached to the side of the base, allowing for extra control.

I don't know if this would work out very well with the level of sensitivity that the wii has, but a solution like this would be cool.

NinGurl69 *hugglesDecember 21, 2009

Charging less for a late localization?  Why, XSEED must be the Anti-Activision!

Got a news tip? Send it in!
Advertisement
Advertisement