14 DAY TRIAL // 
Luftarusers started off life as an early Flash game from Dutch studio Vlambeer called Luftrauser, which tasked players with controlling their own plane and taking down enemy vessels, either in the air or on the water.
After a few years spent working on other projects, the independent developer has returned to the small project and decided to make it a full-fledged experience called Luftrausers, while enriching the core gameplay.
Now, that title is finally here, bringing procedural battles, plane customization, and a dynamic soundtrack, not to mention other big surprises. Does Luftrausers take to the sky in style or should it get shot down? Let's find out.
Luftrausers takes a barebone approach to story or plot, as basically you fight in a sort of parallel history World War II in which all kinds of crazy inventions are possible, especially when it comes to the rauser, your own personal flying machine.
You are tasked with flying the plane after being launched from a submarine and taking out enemy fighters, not to mention other gunboats, submarines, or blimps.
While that may sound like a flight simulator, the actual Luftrausers experience is more akin to an arcade bullet hell one, reminiscent of arcade games back in the 1990s. There's one key difference, however, as you aren't heading into a single direction, as your rauser can take you anywhere you want thanks to its high maneuverability.
Customization is key, as there are three major components for your plane: the weapon, the body, and the engine. As you complete objectives and earn more points towards your rauser level, you unlock more components.
These are outlandish to say the least, as while you start the game with balanced items, you can unlock guided missiles, laser beams, or cannons, in terms of weapons. The bodies range from armored ones, to melee-oriented or a special Nuke one that causes you to explode when killed and take out all the enemies on screen. Engines are also quite wacky, including one that allows your plane to stay underwater, another that makes you hover, or one that shoots bullets behind you.
The amount of combinations is quite big and each component comes with its own set of different objectives and goals, so there's a big incentive to try them all, instead of sticking to a tried and true combination.
The procedural flights, which dynamically spawn enemies around you, are quite fun and ramp up the difficulty as you keep a combo going. The system isn't always on point, however, as you can end up with no enemies in your vicinity, thereby losing any combo.
Enemies are quite varied, ranging from regular fighters, to speedy jets called Aces or huge blimps, not to mention the sea-based vessels, like gunboats or submarines. They all pose different challenges and you'll need to choose the best components for your playing style. If you take the battle to them, then you might want more armor and beefier weapons, while those who prefer hit and run can choose faster engines and smart weapons like the missiles.
Playing Luftrausers not only requires great flight capabilities but also knowing when to fire and when to ease off the trigger, as your health regenerates only when you're not unleashing hell on your enemies.
Even so, it's not quite perfect, as there are some hectic situations when the action experiences slowdowns and the interface takes some time getting used to. Using a controller is also a bit tricky, as the prompts don't change in the interface.
The presentation of Luftrausers may make it look like yet another pixelated indie game, but in motion it's actually delightful and has a great charm despite using just a few different colors. The visuals are straight up arcade and really match the whole feel of the experience. What's more, you can unlock different color palettes that transform the whole thing.
The soundtrack is also one of the game's strongest features. While there's a single actual song while playing, the different components you choose for your rauser add new elements to the track, often transforming it into a whole new beast. It still manages to capture the epic feel of your adventures and you'll often try to survive for as long as possible just to continue hearing it.
Conclusion
Luftrausers is a stunning example of a modernized arcade game: tough but fair, with a great amount of customization and dynamic gameplay (plus soundtrack). If you've been looking for a great arcade bullet hell experience with plenty of new elements to make the gameplay feel fresh, then you can take to the sky in Vlambeer's latest title.
