Ever wonder what it’s like to work as an air traffic controller? Flight Control from Firemint gives you a taste of what it’s like by putting you in charge of an airport landing field. There are three static maps; one a standard airport, a Hawaiian air field complete with pontoon planes, and a Navel cruiser. Planes approach the air fields from every direction and you have to draw them a flight path to the proper runway while making sure to avoid any mid air collisions.

The game is deceptively simple, but requires a lot of strategy to keep advancing. The planes and runways are color coded so you know what goes where. Jets are faster than propeller planes and helicopters are very slow. But then there’s 747s which are bigger and faster that you'll have to make room for while more and more planes keep coming in. Eventually you’re being swarmed with planes you have to direct and re-direct while collision courses you have to sort out come out of seemingly nowhere and much fun and laughter ensues. Reaction time is critical as well as being able to think critically when you’re drawing those paths.

The game is also full of style. The music chosen for it as well as the art carry that feeling of nostalgia for the way air ports and air travel used to from the muted color pallets to the uniforms the stewarde... er flight attendants wear. Scores can be uploaded so you can see how you’re doing against everyone else and it tracks you stats like how many planes you’ve had on screen at once or what plane you’re most likely to crash. It’s easy enough for anyone to pick up and play and the challenge will suck you in and keep you up at night trying to land that one more plane. If you’re afraid of flying though, you may want to forget this game exists though.

Grade A-
Meta Grade 97