If you think the high-flying life of an Airline Tycoon is romantic, think again. There are a lot of tough management decisions to make and a lot of figures and statistics to juggle. The knack is balancing all the variables and reaching your objective, preferably before your competitors. In AIRLINE TYCOON from Monte Cristo that is exactly what you need to do to succeed in the game but it’s not all hard work…! There’s a fun element in there too…!  

The campaigns start off relatively simple, firstly by choosing your airport and on-screen representative from a selection of four. The other three then go on to become your competitors in the game so you need to keep an eye on what they’re up to. The airport itself contains all the tools and people necessary for success including travel agencies, a bank, hangars, a museum, duty free shop, bar and, of course, your executive office so make good use of the facilities. 

All of the characters and locations are represented in bright, almost cartoony graphics which take away some of the more serious elements of play but when you are competing to be the best aesthetics take a back seat. The 16 different missions become increasingly more difficult to complete although your managerial skills will be improving all the time. However, the problems arise with the competitiveness of your opponents so you have to make sure you are just as ruthless as they are.  

The objectives vary widely and they all rely on your skill as manager but, fortunately, you will have some underlings to delegate too and some on-screen equipment that will prove invaluable. Your filofax, for example, is used to store all your flight plans and telephone numbers and, when you’ve made enough money you might even be able to get your hands on a laptop.  

From behind your plush desk you can call up staff and equip your planes as well as keeping track of the kerosene supplies and reading any mail you may get. Outside, in the airport terminal, you can decide on what orders you’d like to tackle from the available ones in the travel agency or visit the bank manager to arrange a loan, sell shares or check your credit. The museum is a great place to begin building your fleet as it offers several cheaper, more affordable aircraft until you have established enough credit to buy new ones and there’s always a good selection of things to purchase in the duty free shop. 

You can move freely around the terminal although, initially, some places will be closed to you. It’s also a really busy place with lots of commuters wandering around doing their own thing. From time to time little think bubbles appear above their heads so you can see what’s on their minds but it’s usually about what they imagine the plane will be like or thoughts of lounging on an exotic beach somewhere. We’ve seen these little touches before in games like Theme Park and Roller coaster Tycoon but they all add to the overall fun aspect and are a welcome relief from the more stressful side of play.