SteamBirds Walkthrough

SteamBirds is a turn-based strategy game taking place in an alternate steampunk history. This airplane game features lovely top-down graphics, epic music, simple controls, and fifteen challenging dogfights!

SteamBirds puts you in control of the red squadron of aircraft (no, Luke and Wedge do not make an appearance in this game). Your objective is to shoot down all of the other planes while making sure that your planes are not shot down. If you complete your mission successfully, you will be able to advance to the next; if you fail, you will have to retry the current mission. Upon the completion of each mission, you can earn up to four stars depending upon your performance. The less damage that your aircraft take, the more stars that you will earn. Your progress is automatically saved in this airplane game, so you can continue your campaign if you need to take a break or try to earn more stars on missions that you have already beaten.

Combat in SteamBirds is turn-based and similar to the classic board game, Blue Max. Unlike Blue Max, this airplane game does not restrict aircraft to a hexagonal grid, but allows a free range of movement. Movement is planned before each turn by clicking and dragging flight path markers. Once you are satisfied with your flight plan, click the arrow in the upper-right corner of the screen or press the spacebar to start the action. All planes move simultaneously. If an aircraft of one team faces an aircraft of an opposing team and gets within range, then the first aircraft will automatically fire.

Aside from basic movement, aircraft can take special actions in SteamBirds. To order one of your aircraft to use a special ability, click on one of the buttons adjacent to the flight path marker. Special actions include 180 degree turns, engine powerups, and shields. Hover your mouse over a button to read more about the powerup. Use these abilities sparingly since they require a recharge period.

Basic dogfighting tactics work well in this airplane game. Try to get on your enemies' tails while preventing your enemies from getting on yours! The bracket technique (pincering a single enemy aircraft using two or more of your units) is great for quickly isolating and taking down enemies. The drag maneuver (offering one craft as bait while other aircraft get on the tails of the enemies) also works well in this strategy game. Experiment with different maneuvers to find out what works for you!

SteamBirds is an outstanding strategy game experience. If you are a fan of the golden years of aviation, the art of tactical maneuvering, or steampunk-esque alternate history, then you will enjoy this airplane game!