Damage Inc.: Pacific Squadron WWII

Damage Inc.: Pacific Squadron WWII is a 2012 aerial-combat game developed by Trickstar Games and published by Mad Catz, released for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Windows. Set in the Pacific Theatre of the Second World War, it casts the player as an American naval aviator flying historically inspired fighters, dive-bombers and torpedo planes through a campaign loosely tracing the United States' island-hopping war against Japan, from Pearl Harbor onward. The game favours accessible, arcade-style flight over hardcore simulation, emphasising dogfights, strafing runs, bombing missions and dramatic set pieces, with a roster of more than twenty unlockable aircraft and a 'Damage Inc.' mechanic that rewards aggressive, sustained combat with boosted abilities. It also featured online and split-screen multiplayer modes. Notably, Mad Catz bundled the game with a dedicated flight-stick peripheral in a special edition, leaning on the publisher's hardware business. Critical reception was poor: reviewers criticised dated visuals, repetitive missions, weak presentation and a general lack of polish, ranking it well below contemporaries in the air-combat niche. Damage Inc. is remembered as a budget effort that struggled to stand out in a genre that had largely moved on, of interest mainly to dedicated WWII aviation enthusiasts seeking undemanding action. Its poor sales and reception effectively ended Mad Catz's ambitions of pairing budget games with bundled flight hardware.