One or two dud missions and an uneven story do little to dull the shine of 2026's most breathless, invigorating action game.

Let's chase 'em off, Rex! Two more missiles arc toward a hapless enemy F2-A, droplets peppering my windshield as I skim past a glowering grey cloud, dulling the distant explosion. Visibility is garbage . No kidding, Tasha. The Endurance is being targeted . Uh-oh. Tonitrus Spear arriving in two minutes! They've got a high-output laser and a broad-range jammer. Sounds like a bad combo. The cockpit rattles as I climb, an insistent red flash warning me my Tomcat's icing up. But I can see the laser, and soon after the airship it's emerging from. It's in my sights. I've got this.

Wait! There are are two lasers! I have no longer got this. This is suddenly in an entirely different postcode. Even as one falls, the overlapping chatter in my ears gets busier still. Take both of them out or the carrier will take a Spear strike. Move. Don't think. Quickly now. 45 seconds.…