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Game Info

Cover art of Aerial Assault

4.3 / 5

1 vote

Platform
Game Gear
Genres
Action
Developers
Shimada Kikaku
Release date
June 5, 1992

Summary

Aerial Assault rolls you into a fast‑paced side‑scrolling shooter on the Game Gear, where you pilot a high‑tech combat craft as a Freedom Fighter. The game pushes you through four hazard‑filled levels, each ending with a distinct target – from the soaring Vinsk battleship to a CB‑53 bomber, a mysterious "El" and two cliff‑side fortresses.

Enemy encounters feel surprisingly varied: jets, choppers, submarines, jeeps and even parachute‑dropped bombs swarm the screen, and destroying certain spinning fighters, tiny helicopters or mines on the final stage grants a power‑up that can boost or even dial back your firepower. The three difficulty settings (Easy, Normal, Hard) are a genuine gatekeeper – the Easy mode simply won’t let you finish the campaign.

Critics were split: Electronic Gaming Monthly’s four reviewers gave the Game Gear version a lukewarm 4‑5‑5‑5 out of 10, calling the action repetitive and lacking intensity, though they praised the decent graphics. The games database highlights the range of weapons – homing missiles, 3‑way explosives and speed or shield upgrades – and even notes a two‑player Gear‑to‑Gear cable mode for head‑to‑head dogfights.

Storyline

Aerial Assault drops you into a near‑future 1999 where the N.A.C., a militaristic organization, has unleashed a colossal laser emitter called EL. The device threatens to strip away the ozone layer over the next decade, and the N.A.C. launches an all‑out offensive that overwhelms the world’s defenses. You play as the mysterious "Freedom Fighter," a pilot with no official ties, who breaks away from the enemy’s own ranks to strike back.

Alongside a small band of renegades, you lead a counter‑attack against the terrorist group’s massive aerial fleet. Bombers, cargo jets, and fighter planes are blasted from the sky as you chase them through lightning‑charged ozone storms, bubbling lava fields, and even the fringes of outer space. Though outnumbered, you wield the enemy’s own techno‑weaponry and fight for one thing above all: freedom.

Your mission is to halt the N.A.C.’s laser, protect cities from relentless bombing, and ultimately dismantle the mega‑sectors they’ve claimed. Each victory chips away at their dominance, giving humanity a chance to survive the looming environmental catastrophe.

Edited by Maya Carter

Game Screenshots

  • Screenshot 1 of Aerial Assault

Multiplayer

Game modes
Cooperative