Games - Combat flight simulator

Home > Listing Index > Games > Combat flight simulator

	Games - Combat flight simulator

As used here, combat flight simulator refers to home PC based flight simulator game software used to simulate military aircraft and their operations. It does not refer to large scale dedicated flight simulators used by the military for flight training and combat planning.

The earliest version of Microsoft Flight Simulator
(1982) had crude graphics, simple flight models – and a combat option, with "dog fighting" in a WWI Sopwith Camel (removed in later versions). It seems that many virtual pilots want simulated weapons in their simulated airplanes, and the genre of combat flight simulators (or sims) has developed in many directions since then.

You can divide this genre into a number of sub-categories by historical period, type of aircraft, level of detail (survey vs. study sim), single- vs. multi-player, and perhaps others. This is a brief overview with some representative (not necessarily definitive) examples from the past 15 years – there are typically many sims in each category, and as PC hardware has improved, the scale, detail, "AI behavior," and visual appeal of these programs has continued to improve as well.

Historical Sims – There have been WWI sims (e.g. Red Baron by Sierra), WWII sims (Aces Over Europe – Sierra 1991, 1942: Pacific Air War by Microprose 1994, IL-2 Sturmovik by Maddox/Ubisoft 2001, many more), Korean War Sims (MiG Alley by Rowan 1996), Vietnam War Sims (Flight of the Intruder by Spectrum-Holobyte 1991). There are also sims set in the First Gulf War, but we'll call those "modern jet sims."

Survey Sims – Many of the historical sims can be considered "survey sims" – they allow you to fly a variety of aircraft from the period in question, typically including some aircraft from each of the sides or nations in the conflict. Early ones often suffered from flight models and instrument panels that differed little between the types, but more recent examples have excelled in this regard, forcing the virtual pilot to learn the carefully modeled strengths and weaknesses of the various types (e.g., a Mitsubishi Zero vs. a US Navy F4F Wildcat – very different flying/fighting styles required). There have been modern jet survey sims as well (US Navy Fighters by Jane's/Electronic Arts 1994, USAF by Jane's 1999). Modeling of systems such as radar, navigation, and weapons is somewhat simplified and generic in such sims.

Study Sims – Modern jet combat aircraft and helicopters have a variety of complex electronic and weapon systems that are specific to a particular aircraft. This has led to a genre called the "study sim," which focuses on modeling these complex system in amazing detail, requiring thick manuals that rival the real thing in detail and amount of study required to master the systems. Jane's specialized in such sims in the 1990's (Jane's Longbow attack helicopter, Jane's F-15 fighter/bomber, Jane's F/A-18 Navy fighter/bomber). But Falcon 4.0 ("F4") is perhaps the ultimate example of this genre. This lovingly detailed simulation of the USAF F-16 Fighting Falcon was released by Spectrum-Holobyte (later marketed by Microprose) in 1998. It was claimed that most of the techniques and tactics used in the real jet worked in the sim. Official development stopped after a few updates, but the F4 fan/development community continues to develop new versions and add-ons (still very active in 2005, when a new commercial version was also introduced under the name "Falcon 4.0: Allied Force").

Modern Jet Sims – There have been many modern jet sims, some of them listed above under Survey Sims (USNF, USAF) and Study Sims (F-15, F/A-18, Falcon 4.0). Some have concentrated on future fighters (e.g., F-22 Total Air War by Digital Image Design in 1998), while others have simulated well-known existing fighters (several AV-8 Harrier II sims, F-14 Fleet Defender by Microprose, many others). A recent example is Lock On: Modern Air Combat
, which bridges the study/survey gap with detailed models of a few US (F-15, A-10) and Russian (Su-27, MiG-29, Su-25) jets.

Multi-Player Simulations – Most of the sims listed above are primarily single player sims, although most sims from the late 1990's on include some sort of multiplayer/network capability. With single player combat sims, everything other than the player's own aircraft is controlled by the sim's "AI" (artificial intelligence). Modern sim AI can produce pretty smart "bandits" and "friendlies," but advanced players find even the best to be too predictable. Multi-player games allow players to face off against one or many human players for a much more dynamic experience. Some sims exist only or primarily in internet multiplayer versions (e.g., Air Warrior, the massively multiplayer Fighter Ace
, and others).

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Combat flight simulator ]

Games - Combat flight simulator

Searches on eBay

Related searches on eBay