Red Bull Air Race: Come Get Your Wings
by xx96791DEATHxx, HSM team writer & videographer
Air races. If you are a racing fan and haven’t had the chance to see this in person or on the television, please do. My husband introduced me to this sport a few years ago and I was hooked from the moment they said, “smoke on.”
In the past, I have enjoyed watching hydroplane racing and offshore powerboat racing; now I include air racing. We’ve had the opportunity to attend several air shows, performed by both the Navy’s Blue Angels and the Air Force’s Thunderbirds. As the skies over the oceanfront of Waikiki serve as the location for their exhibitions, so we get to enjoy watching a Red Bull Air Race off the south shore of O’ahu.
The racing circuit of this sport encompasses the globe. Whenever above the waters of cities such as Detroit, San Diego, Perth, London, Rio de Janeiro or Dubai, they entertain us with a spectacular display of quick reflexes and nerves of steel. The competitors pilot an aircraft with a wingspan of less than 25 feet and attain speeds of 250- 265 mph while pulling multiple G forces. The Red Bull Bol Chow chopper is currently the only helicopter certified to perform aerobatics such as barrel rolls and loops, and with the Red Bull Skydiving team jumping in mid air from plane to plane, Red Bull is living up to its slogan by giving us wings.
Flying virtual aircraft is something that I really enjoy and have a difficult time putting the controller down for. I can spend hours racing at the Sodium2 Velocity race tracks or using the hovercraft to demolish those pesky bots at the Salt Shooter space. It can be a jet or helicopter in Activision’s Battlefield 3, the Ace Combat series from Namco Bandai or going old school with the planes from Ubisoft’s Blazing Angels. It’s in these types of games that I can escape and be transformed into a sky pilot, or – dare I say it – a sky walker.
Don’t get me wrong – there are days were I attempt to want to walk over to the bookshelf and grab the Spyro game that is calling to me. The same goes for that collection of Mary Tyler Moore DVDs I was lucky enough to receive as a Christmas present. Neither of the two are yelling loud enough.
One day while watching a race I had a dorkepiphany and exclaimed this needs to be a video game! Being the “research genius” that I am, (and this being before I knew of Home), I proceeded to discover that the only game out there was on the RedBull web site. I am not a huge fan of using a keyboard to play video games other than poker or Facebook chess, and that’s just having to use a mouse. That being said, I thought the game was a little like Gotham City Impostors: cute to play, but I did not find it having any replay value.
To say I was elated to discover that Red Bull had real estate here on Home would be an understatement. I had a blast playing Flugtag. I enjoyed the layout of the place and with a dance area and music near by; it felt like a nice area to spend a lazy afternoon. The Air Race offered you a couple choices in planes and one course to fly. I eventually climbed up to tenth on that leader board with a time in the upper 40’s. That was then. We now have the “new and improved” space – Red Bull Air Race, version 2.0.
Arriving at the new space I was caught off guard by the number of people I saw. The only time I remember seeing this many was when the Grey Gamers hosted an event here. You still spawn by the helicopter that teases you with a ride you will never have. The plane that flies overhead is a great initial attention-getter. I brought out my camera to get the pictures I needed for this article and quickly discovered there was a great amount of emphasis placed upon the attention to details.
I don’t mean the kind of attention to detail as making sure the sand has the right hue or by placing boats on the water. I’m referring to the kind of detail where they use clove hitch knots to secure the railings. The boats are chipping paint. The palm trees are ever so slightly swaying in the wind. Every piece of fabric in the space is torn. Is that rust I see on the lobster cages? The water has small waves with reflections that mimic the land. The boats were creaking. They went so far as to place moss on the wood by the waterfront.
I am really impressed with the developers of this space for taking the time to make it as realistic as possible. The music/dance area had been relocated to this location and it is now in a cabana style, walk-up with a bar lacking in chilled Red Bulls. They have placed additional ottomans down by the water’s edge and you can sit with friends and watch as a plane knifes through the gate. All this attention to detail for a place where most people who arrive just head off to the planes.
The planes still fly as I remembered. The addition of the gauges in the lower right was a welcomed site. I did have to invert the flight controls to accommodate my odd style of flying. They added a new plane, which is considerably faster than all the rest but has a weight problem. One very noteworthy thing new to the game was having the screen going dark as you began to blackout from pulling too many g-forces, and my television screen had no shortage of that. The new tracks are challenging and are fun to fly. I missed playing this game after being away for a while. I’m hoping in the future they consider adding different locations as opposed to just different track layouts.
"I'm coming for you"
The rewards you receive for your dedication are something I am taking a liking to. I can see using the clothes in a future video or photo shoot. A complete list of the rewards for this game can be found at Alphazone4. You can access the threads on the Sony Community Forums to find out more information and better flight lines can be viewed at YouTube.
I cannot find any fault that wouldn’t be considered nitpicking. I had fun flying the planes, and spending the afternoon at this space is something I look to doing again soon. I had a great time meeting new folks at the dance area along with watching people glitch the place. I encourage everyone to attempt the game. Not only do you get free swag, but you get a chance to be a competitor in the Red Bull Air Race.
- Attention to detail
- You can access the other Red Bull spaces
- Useable reward items
- No sand fleas
- Would like to see planes taking off the runway
- No Bathroom
- No landing pad for a Homeling space ship
January 21st, 2012 by Susan | 5 comments
Susan is a team writer for HomeStation Magazine, co-founder of the award winning media group-AvatardProductions, a PlayStation MVP and a Home Guide. PSNID SCEA/xx96791DEATHxx-SCEE/oXx_EnIgMa_xXo. An avid PlayStation Home user, she is most often found setting land speed records at the Sodium 2 velocity racetracks, sitting at the Pier Park or playing with the R/C vehicles at Acorn Meadows Park.
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Great review Susan, I haven’t gone to the newer version of this space yet but your description makes me want to check it out. I did like the original game they had here, so I guess I will have to go check out the new one.
Thank you Burbie, This was fun to write and I am still enjoying playing the game, going for all the rewards…
The Air Race was my first game and first space I “favorited” in Home, so I have quite the fondness for it. I was really glad to see it got a revamp, and while I’m less pleased at the revamp its sister space -- Red Bull Beach -- received, they did right by this one. It’s been around a very long time, and I’m glad it’s been updated. It certainly deserved it.
I love the Flugtag and the Air Race areas…Plus it’s just a nice relaxing space….I’m thinking of buying the pilot outfit…
i cant wait to get back on home and rule the skies during my absence i have discovered my skills in the cookpit of a f-14D super tomcat