F/A-18 Interceptor

F/A-18 Interceptor is a 3D combat flight simulator developed by Intellisoft and published by Electronic Arts for the Amiga systems in 1988.

The game that allows the player to man a F/A-18 Hornet, in addition to the F-16 Fighting Falcon, was programmed and designed by Bob Dinnerman.

For many of us, this was our first time encountering a 3D simulation, and it was what set the standards for this new genre. At that time, the Amiga was still relatively new (the Amiga 500 was released less than 1 year before). Commodore 64 and other 8-bit systems were still the most popular platforms. Seeing a 16-bit 3D flight simulator was a shock for many users.

The game is set in the premises of the San Francisco Bay area with notable landmarks present in-game such as the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge, and Alcatraz Island. It was pretty cool being able to see these, and honestly, I spent more time just looping around these areas having some fun with the air flips rather than completing the missions.

The 6 missions range from scout and recon missions to dog fights in the air and even include a scenario where you have to guard Air Force One. The tasks are well rounded off and diversified so that the player doesn't have level after level of continuous missile spamming. Each mission requires a specific strategy to complete, and the braindead spamming of the fire button won't always work. I did feel like the 6 missions weren't enough, but they were impressive nonetheless as I kicked in hours and hours of playtime on them.

Your combat plane is equipped with a badass weapons system to uphold the freedom in your airspace, from AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles to a Gatling gun, all builtin for the sole purpose of raining hell on your enemies. If they retaliate, your trusty defense system of flares and chaffs will quickly give you a safe haven to retreat to. In my eyes, nothing in-game trumps the sidewinder missiles, truly a beautiful piece of work.

Technically speaking, the game was perfect. It was not too difficult, but at the same time, it provided a good level of realism. Dinnerman was able to create a fluid 3D experience also on unexpanded Amiga. For the lucky owners of a 512K expansion, there was also a Top Gun inspired soundtrack. Amazing!

But one of the best aspects was the sound. A lot of development time was devoted to the synchronization of the action with the sounds.

The result was fantastic, the game really puts you in the mood to do some heroic flying, some players even hooked their Amigas onto the Stereo at home, that's how good it was!

F/A-18 Interceptor is a legendary title. At that time, it convinced many people to purchase an Amiga, today it is an absolute joy to fire up this classic once again.