Reviews / previews
Who says flight sims are dead? Hot on the heels of B-17 from Microprose, another World War II flight sim is prepping for takeoff. IL-2 Sturmovik will focus on the battles that the Soviet Union fought against the Nazi invasion. The featured aircraft in this game, the IL-2, was a heavily armored ground-attack airplane that was capable of busting everything from tanks to bridges. In addition to the pilot, the IL-2 had a rear gunner in later versions, and gamers will be able to fill this role using a mouse to aim the turret. When you play as the rear gunner, either a human teammate or the computer A.I. will fly the plane. However, you won't be limited to flying just the IL-2. In fact, you'll be able to fly 17 other aircraft, including the MiG3, German BF-109, and U.S. loaner plane the P-39Q. Maddox also plans to release new planes as add-ins after the game ships.
Missions in the campaign mode will be a mix of air-to-ground and air-to-air sorties. Gamers will be tasked with attacking both stationary and moving targets. The usual bridges, airfields, and buildings will be complemented by moving targets that are very tough to hit, such as attacking and retreating columns of tanks, transport ships, and military ships. Air-to-air missions will include fighter sweep, intercept, patrol, and escort of friendly craft. In addition, a quick mission builder and a fully featured mission builder will let gamers custom design their own scenarios. Online games will enable up to 32 humans to fly in the same game, while up to 16 will be able to duke it out with the A.I. in cooperative mode.
The Hands-On preview build was limited to two missions for each side, but this was more than enough to whet the appetite for a full-featured fighter simulation. This will not be a flight sim for the faint of heart. The physics model will be demanding with all of the realism settings turned on; stalls, pilot blackout, and enemy pilots will all be working against you. The ground-based anti-aircraft fire will also be particularly deadly. However, beginners will be able to toggle off many of the options to make the sim relatively easy to fly.
The graphics in the preview build were very sharp, but the frame rate did suffer from some breakup. Still, the plane models, lighting effects, and terrain graphics were excellent. The 3D cockpits were well-done with reflective gun-sights and good instrumentation. Exhaust smoke from tanks and vapor trails left behind planes added to the graphical realism. Also, the clouds, sun, and other weather effects, including snow and rain, made for a convincing game world. Gamers will be able to save and view a replay of a mission to get a better look at all of the eye candy that this detailed sim offers.
Overall, IL-2 Sturmovik is shaping up to be a topnotch flight sim. If you want to try your skill in some of the legendary Soviet aircraft of WWII, Sturmovik will deliver the goods when it ships in the second quarter of 2001.-- 0 / GamePro
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