Review
Here is the basic rundown of what you have to do in Air Combat. You have to stop a terrorist organization from either hijacking military planes or taking over government bases by taking to the skies. When you start out, you only have a few fighter jets to choose from, but as you get deeper into the game, you will be able to buy more from the money you make after a successfully completed mission. There are a lot of different aircraft to choose from and you will have to consider your next mission in making your choice. Each plane has different purposes and strengths and weaknesses; some are more suited for specific missions.
For example, if you're about to take out an oil refinery or a terrorist base, you'll need a speedy jet with fierce firepower. If the mission calls for you to sneak up on unsuspecting enemy aircraft and ground forces, logic should tell you to go with something that has a cloaking ability. Escort missions require the use of a heavily armed plane that can fend off enemy fire. It's up to you to make all these choices, which gives Air Combat a great feeling of depth.
The missions are equally impressive with lots of variety and level design. You are required to bomb oil rigs and refineries, defend large cities and important ambassadors, stop enemy aircraft by engaging in dogfights, and go undetected in stealth missions. Additionally, the game moves in a fairly nonlinear fashion. Once you complete a certain mission, three different scenarios might open up. Which one you choose is entirely up to you, and this will change the course of the game until the very end.
The only thing really wrong with Air Combat lies within the graphics. While they are not terrible or anything, Namco's texture use is questionable. There are a lot of repetitive, bland textures used here and there are lots of seams in the polygons. You can hide some of the glitches by switching to a different camera view (either first person or a third person view) but no matter what, they problems are apparent.
Still, Air Combat is a very solid air combat game. There are lots of planes to choose from, a wide variety of missions, and immersing, action-packed nonlinear game play. Even if you're not a big fan of this type of game, you should probably go ahead and give it a try. It is a lot of fun and highly addictive.
Graphics 
While the textures are nice and colorful, there seem to be a lack of them and redundancy starts to rear its ugly head. There are also a lot of texture glitches, such as seams, that really detract from the overall look. There are also a few CG movies that are very nicely done.
Sound 
The soundtrack is pretty rockin' and the sound effects sound like they should. Explosions and fire effects sound great and the minimal voice acting is decent as well.
Enjoyment
With its non-linear game play, action-packed missions, and impressive range of jets, Air Combat is a highly enjoyable and fun game.
Replay Value 
There is a good amount of replay value here because of the nonlinearity. You can go back and take different paths and complete missions that you didn't see the first time through. There are also some hidden surprises waiting for you.
Documentation
The manual tells you everything from how to control the game to the technicalities of how to rate each plane.
