
	Platform PSP Genre Simulation Publisher TBA Developer Kuju Entertainment ETA TBA
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Pilot Academy

Of all the different genres of games that make it to handheld systems every year, the one that is least often seen is the flight simulation. A lot of this has to do with technology having been too limited in the handheld market to make a decent go at such a game, but now with the most recent portable game systems to hit the stores, the idea of a handheld flight sim isn’t nearly as far-fetched as it once was. That being said, the gang at Kuju Entertainment are bringing the genre to the PSP with their upcoming title, Pilot Academy.

Starting players out with some training missions, the game will get users used to the basic controls of some of the aircrafts that will be at one’s disposal. Once this is out of the way, Pilot Academy will open up, giving players a number of options for what they can do. One can go the more aggressive route, and hop in the cockpit of a fighter plane, and go blow things up, or they can fly a highly maneuverable plane to take on stunt courses, and for those who want a steadier, less hair-raising session, they need simply to grab themselves a commercial airliner, and have at it.

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With this wide variety of missions, it’s clear that Pilot Academy will have a vast array of planes available to players coming from all eras of aviation history. Players will have everything from World War I bi-planes, to Allied WWII planes, to Cold War jets, jumbo jets, and even crop dusters. As players complete more missions, additional planes become available. There is no official word yet on the exact number of planes that players will be able

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to choose from, but with these flying machines coming from so many different points in history, it looks like Kuju is doing their best to give players lots of choice in this matter.

When players aren’t in the mood for the Pilot Academy’s single-player missions, they will also have four multiplayer modes available to them that can support up to eight people. However, thus far, deathmatch is the only mode to be confirmed.

With the sheer lack of games solely focused on flying planes around in the handheld market, Kuju could be on to something with Pilot Academy. What we really need to know now is whether they want to make this game lean more towards a heavy duty simulation, or are they aiming for a somewhat more arcade-like experience a la Aerowings. Only time will tell.

Mr. Nash

(September 18, 2005)