Game publishers have a strong temptation (and give in to it frequently) to dodge development costs by reconfiguring existing games to Wii capability. Alas, this approach comes at a cost. In Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII, the original game on different platforms is a winner but with new Wii technology, full advantage is not taken and the result is a good game that could have been a grand slam.

All of the airplanes, dogfights, and missions from the other formats are present here but the potential flight simulations do not fully utilize the capabilities of Wii. When you want to tilt your plane, you cannot do so quickly for the flight pattern will return to level and horizontal in what amounts to a self-correcting auto pilot maneuver. In dogfights, the action dictates some rapid and abrupt reactions from your controller.

That said, the planes themselves are authentic looking, with specific, individual characteristics and game play proceeds rather mundanely with simple missions and shoot-em up targets. Landscapes and environments are well done so that you have some variety to look at.

The publisher would do well to develop a sequel that fully uses the Wii technology. Flying should be more of a three-dimensional control activity with free hand movements. At times, the multiple button pushes necessary to achieve any kind of flight freedom in a dogfight took away from the game.