Reviews / previews
Jane's/Electronic Arts has gained a reputation for making solid simulations of real-world defense systems. Its new F/A-18 (fighter/attack) simulator may not reach the popularity of its recent USAF product, but it's getting positive attention from the most avid of PC pilots.
F/A-18 was developed by the same EA team that created the popular F-15 simulation. True to form, the avionics and weapons systems are so painstakingly reproduced that they are almost a pain to learn. For most users, F/A-18 will require a much larger investment in time than in money. Its steep learning curve (look at a minimum of 10-12 hours) may be daunting to entry-level or journeyman pilots, but the most expert and rabid of flight-sim fanatics will find this simulation most stimulating.
F/A-18's graphics quality is several marks above its F-15 predecessor. The game's high-altitude atmospheric and 3D cloud effects are stunning. The terrain looks good above 10,000 feet, but suffers a bit at lower altitudes. The lighting effects are also dramatic with spectacular explosions and an impressive show of sunlight glinting off bodies of water and the cockpit's glass surfaces. Nighttime missions are realistically portrayed with triple-A tracers streaming skyward and the occasional glow of distant targets being detonated.
The Super Hornet's virtual cockpit takes some getting used to. As you pan around the instruments, distracting aliased lines appear, but the cockpit looks much better than most. As funky as the graphics inside the cockpit can look, the views outside the canopy are spectacular. Having the constant freedom of a 360-degree panning view considerably heightens the situational awareness. It's a real thrill to glance outside the canopy and witness one of your wingmen nailing a target.
The level of detail created in the F/A-18 cockpit is also impressive. There are more than a dozen multipurpose display screens to select (each with functional push buttons) that show systems status, navigation data, or situational information.
The most exciting feature of F/A-18, however, is the mission builder. Jane's says it's the same application that its own designers use to build the missions in the game. Objects can be placed on the map and scripting "triggers" are set to determine what happens when objects interact. You even get to write your own text for briefings and debriefings. Missions can be made as simple or as complex as you like and are made a permanent part of the game by being added to the list of sorties. Mission files can also be sent to friends to be used in multiplayer combat.
There are some performance issues to deal with. The program requires much more than the recommended CPU. Much of F/A-18 involves flying in cooperation with other Hornets, but the more planes you add to your flight, the choppier the game gets. Users will find that reducing the overall detail in graphics settings will increase performance. I also experienced consistent lock-ups when completing single and campaign missions. Even after I eliminated some memory-resident applications from Windows, the problem persisted.
Despite the performance issues, F/A-18 is a great ride. It sets new standards in realism and customization and will find a place on the bookshelves of those sim fans looking for the best and most complicated simulations of flight.-- Steve Baxter / GamePro
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