THQ Nordic and Nukklear have decided to revive the the Comanche series, which used to be a popular niche helicopter franchise from Novalogic. I remember having a poster up in my room for that game because the helicopters looked so darn good in that game. Well, the reboot of Comanche is a far-cry from the old games, abandoning the realistic military sim nature of the 3D 1990s outings and going for a more fast-paced simcade approach with a Call of Duty-style approach to the multiplayer PvP.

The game is currently in Early Access over on the Steam store for $19.99, but during the first week of release it’s marked down by 25% off for only $14.99.

Some gameplay trailers were also released to commemorate the launch, giving gamers a look at the five different helicopter types available in the game, along with the four different drones you’ll be able to man as well.

You can check out the trailer below.

Risky move, Cotton.

A lot of the people who used to love the old NovaLogic games did so because they required a lot of skill and tactics to master. The combat wasn’t about racking up 360-no scope killshots or trying to perform some impossible feat flying upside down while taking on half a dozen enemies. While the games did court casual users with an arcade flight-model, it also had an advanced simulation mode for those who wanted a real challenge.

The Comanche games were never quite on the level of Jane’s Advanced line of tactical combat simulators, but they weren’t quite as casualized as depicted in the trailer above.

You can get an idea of what the old-school gameplay was like with the video below from Squakenet featuring Comanche 3.

Frame-rate issues aside, the game was a tactical beast, and you had to be smart about how you approached targets, making use of limited ammo, and engaging enemies wisely.

It looks like the new Comanche is all about that fast-paced gameplay where you’re nabbing kills quick and racking up your score as fast as possible.

According to the Early Access FAQ they plan on being in the developmental phase for six months, fleshing out the multiplayer and single-player content.

Maybe with some proper feedback we’ll see some modes and options more akin to the older tactical helicopter titles that really helped shape the brand back in the day.

It’s not like we need an IL-2 -Sturmovik levels of realism implemented, but paying a little nod to those who enjoy more sim-based aerial combat games over the arcade outings might help lure in the old fans who haven’t had much entertainment to sink their teeth into when it comes to decent helicopter combat simulators in recent times.

(Thanks for the news tip Guardian EvaUnit02)