Preview: Damage Inc

No longer will MadCatz be just purveyors of fine joysticks. The peripherals company has recently expanded its repertoire with the game Damage Inc.

Damage Inc is a dogfighting simulator developed by Trickstar Games, where the player is in control of a plane. Air-to-air, air-to-ground, and air-to-ship combat is the heart of Damage Inc – planes are controlled by a special joystick made by MadCatz just for the game.

Players will get to pick from 32 planes that are upgradeable into 68 variations. 25 historic missions, from Pearl Harbor to Iwo Jima will also be available, and will come with more than 100 objectives for the best replayability options. Arcade and plain old ‘sim’ modes are also available. But it’s not just about fighting.

Damage Inc will let you choose between stealth missions, recon missions, ground attacks, escorts, ground defense and ordinary dogfights. Carrier takeoffs and landings also play a part in certain missions.

We got our mitts on a preview of Damage Inc a couple of weeks ago. While the joystick was well crafted (as expected of a MCZ peripheral), the game itself suffered from slow reactions and clunky handling. Aiming was easy enough – flying the plane was not, and caused us more than one unfortunate death. Nonetheless, the bundled joystick will be a nice dealbreaker for those thinking if they should get the game. It’s been a while since joysticks have made their marks as peripherals, and Damage Inc may just be the game to change that.

Damage Inc releases on August 28 2012, at a suggested retail price of S$52.90 for the game alone.