Barrel-roll, meet Tail-whip.
It’s rare that I see a game set out its goals so clearly, and then execute on them as well as Rogue Flight does. This is a rail shooter with gameplay inspired by Sega sprite scalers and Star Fox, and a visual style that pulls from classic 80’s and 90’s anime. From the Japanese opening theme song to the high speed gameplay, Rogue Flight knows exactly what it wants to be.
The story revolves around a fight against a sentient AI that has driven humanity to the verge of extinction. After the discovery of a prototype fighter, you are sent on an impossible mission to strike back against the core of this AI swarm and secure a future for the human race. Depending on what route you choose, a variety of different endings will play out. Do you attack the enemy supply lines? Go straight for their fleet? Or intentionally run yourself dry on fuel to do both? The more you do in Rogue Flight, the more opportunities will open up for you. For example, the new game plus option doesn’t just make the game harder; it reimagines the levels and essentially feels like a mostly new game on its own.
Gameplay blends the barrel-roll focused piloting of the Star Fox series with the more multi-lock missile style of Galaxy Force or After Burner. Most of your obstacles are enemy ships rather than the environment itself, but this varies somewhat by level. There is also an upgradable weapon system that feels like something more commonly seen in 2D scrolling shoot-em-ups. These allow you to pick up new, more powerful weapons, as well as orbiting turrets to add to your firepower. Overall, it strikes a nice balance that can appeal equally to the various subsets of rail-shooter fans. But shooting weapons isn’t the only way to take out enemies in Rogue Flight. One of my favorite features is a tail whip attack that allows you to spray enemies with your ship’s jetstream. This can be used to wipe out entire groups of enemies at once if you can line it up correctly. Pulling it off and clearing a screen in a single attack is immensely satisfying. You also have access to both a boost and brake. The brake has the secondary function of drawing in power ups while making you more vulnerable to attack.
As you play you’ll unlock upgrade modules for your ship. There are only two slots, so you’ll need to be picky which ones you use, but effectively upgrading your ship can make a huge difference. By the time you finish all the primary routes on normal difficulty, it is likely you’ll feel like an untouchable god. I found that most of the time, my upgrades outpaced the difficulty curve when playing on normal difficulty. However, the unlockable new game plus will knock you right back down. Rogue Flight does a great job of offering you customization, but never making it required. At the end of the day, your own skill is what will see you through, and it is possible to clear every route with a perfectly vanilla ship if you’re up for the challenge.
The Switch version runs well during actual gameplay. In fact, the vast majority of the time this is a 60 frames-per-second game. Cutscenes can be a little jittery, and some of the texture work is very low resolution on Switch. Levels themselves, though, play out smoothly and resolution holds up well for the most part. I did notice that the resolution drops noticeably when using the tail whip attack, but not to a degree that I felt impacted my gameplay. I should also note that while the soundtrack and voice acting are both excellent, your main character’s internal monologue is mixed very low, making it difficult to understand without subtitles.
Rogue Flight is deceptively packed with content. From alternate routes and remixed stages, to a hardcore one life mode and tons of ship customization. It handles excellently, generally runs well on Switch, and offers plenty of options to adjust the difficulty to your desired level of challenge. You may find that the difficulty curve isn’t quite harsh enough on normal difficulty but with five different difficulty levels this is easily adjusted for. Modes unlocked later in the game will also give you a run for your money. This is a remarkable rail-shooter with a deep understanding of its inspiration, while also offering a fresh experience. If you enjoy Star Fox, Galaxy Force, Space Harrier, or After Burner, you will find something to love in Rogue Flight.
