| Flight Simulators Review |
These are just a few reviews in a nutshell for you. If you want more in-depth coverage, I highly recommend sites like Gamespot or CDGames or Gamespy, which provide very in-depth game reviews and are all wonderful sites. (Gamespy also offers a marvelous online gaming solution).
Short version: Buy It! Long Version: There are a lot of reasons to hate Microsoft, but their flight sims are not one of them. Their civilian sim is the sim all other sims compare themselves to, and for good reason. It is very comprehensive, and as realistic as a commercial sim can hope to be. This game has outstanding graphics and performance is good on most machines, albeit not quite as good as it's previous incarnation, FS2002. It features the most realistic weather yet seen in a sim, and even allows you to interact with ATC. The developer community surrounding this game is second to none, and is perhaps the best reason to buy this game. With thousands of both freeware and commercial add-ons available for it all over the web, it simply never grows old. If you are looking for a good non-combat flight sim, this is it. In fact, it's pretty much your only option. The only other commercial sim in this price range is X-Plane...also an excellent sim, but ultimately less entertaining. It's flight model is arguably better, and performance on modest computers superior, but it's not as pretty or well-rounded. It IS available for the Mac, though. 
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:This game is loads of fun to play. While purists scorn it's survey-style generic panels and flight-modelling, it is still a splendid game with marvelous graphics. (It is a pity Jane's no longer makes games, as they were really becoming very good at it when they threw in the towel). A wide variety of modern jets are at your disposal, and it is one of the few recent sims(that I know of) that lets you refly classic Vietnam actions. Better still, it's old enough you can get it cheap.
Short version: For hardcore simmers only. Long Version:I can't say much about this game, as I only briefly owned it(it did not care for my computer). It struck me as very realistic...so much so, in fact, it forced me to call the company's tech support and embarrass myself. I simply could not get my rudder pedals to respond in flight, and was pulling my hair out. The very patient(and suprisingly knowledgable) tech guy carefully explained to me that the F/A-18 is a fly-by-wire aircraft, whose onboard flight computer automatically disables the rudders at speeds above 150 knots to prevent the pilot from overcontrolling the aircraft. I thought this was a load of hooey, so I tried flying the Hornet below 150 knots and sure enough, the rudders worked just fine....which is good, because I promptly stalled the plane messing around at such a slow speed. I got rid of this game because my joystick never seemed to like it much, and the dreary North Sea terrain bored me, but it struck me as a good game for a hardcore simmer.
Short version: A must for hardcore simmers! Long Version:This game is a legend and, despite a rough start, has become(many patches later) one of the best modern flight sims ever made. It is not for the casual flyer, though, as it sports a user manual the size of a Tom Clancy novel. (Fear not, though, it has a dummy mode!) It, too, can be had cheaply, and has developed an active modding community. I think it is one of the most immersive flight sims I have played, with an outstanding feel to it, and thanks to it's age it can run acceptably on modest systems. Flying it will certainly give you an appreciation of the skills of modern combat pilots!
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:One of my personal favorites, this overlooked game runs great on modest machines and, more importantly, is loads of fun to play. It features the oft-ignored Korean air war, and you can enjoy flying for either side. This sim has something to offer most any simmer, and I highly recommend it. It also has great force-feedback effects, if you are using a force feedback stick.
Short version: Try the demo, then buy it if it works. Long Version:The successor to the above game, and similar in many ways. A much more ambitious offering, however, and one of the few sims daring to offer the player a taste of the hundred plus bomber formations that blitzed London during WWII. Unfortunately, the frame rate predictably suffered, and the aircraft in general seem plagued by an indefinable "twitchiness". It also features the world's most annoying prop blur(a mod exists to remove this). It is a great game, nonetheless, that merely requires lots of tweaking(you should be used to that by now!)...TWO games, in fact, since the campaign game can only be described as a real-time strategy game encompassing the entire Battle of Britain. You are treated to a wide variety of aircraft in the game, as well, even being permitted to fly the notorious Stuka, or act as gunner on one of Germany's many bombers! Despite it's flaws, I highly recommend this game, as it is very immersive, and the user community is very active, and will only grow as the company has released the source code to the general public. It has a reputation for graphic and frame-rate issues, though, so be sure and try the demo first. It is not an easy game to get working properly, but for those hardy souls willing to endure the aggravation of messing around under the hood, it can be a rewarding experience. Footnote: This game continues to improve, thanks to the efforts of the it's fans, and the enlightened gesture of the developer, Rowan, who open-sourced it when it's 15 minutes of fame were up (Rather than sticking it on a shelf to rot while they greedily sat on the license, as many companies are prone to do). Visit their HQ for the latest patches.
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:One of the best prop sims made, this game continues to soldier on despite it's age, due to soundness of it's design and it's very large and active user community. This game runs great on even old machines, is easy to play and has a great period feel to it. The graphics are a little dated, but still attractive, and there are countless mods for this game for those seeking to bring it up to date. My only real gripe about this game is that(like many flight sims), I seem to spend an inordinate amount of time "shooting at dots". That is, distant aircraft seem to stay distant despite my best efforts to close the gap, and I seem to perpetually be pursuing a horde of gnats. It is nice that Microprose chose to simulate the giant "furballs" of the air war in Europe, but I often wish that the furball was not inhabited by fleas!
Short version: Buy It!(if you have the hardware for it) Long Version:Yes, there was a Combat Flight Simulator One, but it was a largely mediocre offering (with the possible exception of the terrain graphics, which were promptly stolen and used by modders in almost every other flight sim) and paled before it's competition at the time of it's release. Combat Flight Simulator 2, however, is an outstanding sim, with some very good mods (most notably an entire Australian campaign) and is quite fun to play. This game offers a refreshing look at the Pacific Theater, and manages to escape some of FS2000's vices..although you will still need a decent computer to run it acceptably. Like all of Microsoft's sims, it's value is derived as much if not more from the dedicated user community than from what comes in the box. (It also offers you the rare opportunity to land on a carrier, which is big fun)
Short version: Doesn't matter, you'll never find it anyway. Long Version:I did not care for this game much when I got it, but I feel it is worth mentioning because it has undergone considerable improvement from the user community (including one of it's original programmers), and because it is one of the few combat sims available for the Mac. (I don't want to launch into a PC vs. Mac tirade here...I own both and hate them both without prejudice. I simply make the observation since Mac gamers need all the help they can get finding good games.) My understanding is that this game now supports hundreds of flyable aircraft and probably many more improvements since it shipped. My own biggest gripe against the game was that the playing area was very constrained, and there were never many aircraft in the sky at one time. Still, it may be worth a look, if you can find it floating in a bargain bin somewhere.
Short version: Good bargain buy (unless you have a newer Nvidia card)! Long Version:A fun game to play, with great graphics(although you may eventually want to replace the drab winter terrain with a more colorful mod), sound and feel, this is one of the few flight sims where a dogfight can get me white knuckled (Mig Alley is another). While not the most realistic of sims(spins are noticably absent), it still manages to convey a very good feeling of flight and is great for online play. It keeps finding it's way back onto my hard drive, despite it's shortcomings, and will probably be there for some time to come. It's a steal at current prices. (Nvidia users may want to skip it, though, as the graphics won't display properly on many Nvidia graphic cards)
Short version: Skip it. Long Version:This is the little game that couldn't...but should've. The graphics are generally nicely done, but suffer from an embarassing amount of on-screen redraw and sluggish view changes, and while the terrain is attractive the clouds look more like fake vomit. The audio is often annoying, there is no multiplay, and the flight modelling is less realistic than the exhaustive cockpit management might suggest. Even with all these flaws, you might consider this game a diamond in the rough, because it clearly tries to achieve a lot, and often succeeds. Unfortunately, the game also suffers from just plain bad interface design. Keyboard commands are not intuitive (command-shift-Q to quit, for example) and it often takes two clicks to accomplish what could've been done with one. (Make your selection, then click a toggle switch to confirm your selection, because...well, toggle switches are cool). Worse, it fails to completely immerse you in the very theatre it is supposed to simulate...the USAAF bombing campaign over Europe. It is hard to pretend that your half-dozen bombers represent the aerial armada that dumped hundreds of thousands of tons on bombs on the Reich, or that the handful of fighters opposing them are all the Luftwaffe has to offer. This games is not all bad, with many fresh ideas, but, unlike the aircraft it is based on, ultimately fails to deliver the goods.
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:Outstanding graphics and an immaculate flight model highlight this sim, which profiles the oft-overlooked air war on the Eastern Front during WWII. A rare treat for those wanting to sample Stalin's Hawks, or any WWII sim. The enviromental effects have to be seen to be believed(finally, a sun that looks so blindingly real you can hide in it!), and at it's most realistic settings a real challenge for the most experienced armchair pilot. An astonishing array of aircraft are flyable, and virtually every plane found in the Russian skies during the Great Patriotic War(as they called it) is represented in some way. Lots of satisfying ground attack opportunities, too. The real strength of this game is in its multiplay, which is very enjoyable and less vulnerable to cheating than more open-sourced sims. The custom graphics come at the usual hardware cost, but modern rigs should run it fine. I cannot recommend this game highly enough. A demo is available if you are unsure of your hardware. If you buy the game, be sure and download the patch, which contains many new airplanes, in addition to the predictable bug fixes.
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:The worthy successor to IL-2, this game expands on and refines the original. While it may seem more like an expansion than a while new game, there are enough new features to justify buying it, even if you already own IL-2. Many new aircraft have been added, the already superb graphics have been polished to a high gloss and realism has been taken to even greater heights with the introduction of complex engine management. Also new is a true dynamic campaign. Want to dodge searchlights in your He111 on a night raid over Leningrad? Defend Berlin from the onrushing red horde in your Me262? Test the mettle of the Finnish Air Force in 1938? It's all there. I doubt you could ask for a more exhaustive simulation of Eastern Front Aerial Warfare than this. If it has a down side at all, it is that the game demands some serious hardware to fully appreciate. But if you could run IL-2 acceptably, you should be able to play FB, as well, although you may find the dynamic campaign running rough on older machines. As with all Maddox flight sims, be sure and download the patch, which makes significant improvements in the game. The only real gripe I can find with this game is that the artificial intelligence is rather flawed...AI gunners shoot like Robin Hood, AI planes fly outside their true performance envelope and AI pilots sometimes adopt some rather questionable tactics, which can all be rather maddening at times. But this game really shines in online play, and that's where you should fly it. Right now!
Short version: Buy It! Long Version:An add-on to Forgotten Battles, The Aces expansion adds a slew of new aircraft to the tried and true FB universe, this time including a LOT of Western favorites, like the Warhawk, Lightning, Mustang, Thunderbolt and Spitfire. Even the Japanese Zero makes a cameo, to whet your appetite for the next big offering in this sim genre: Pacific Fighters. There is also a patch which adds still more planes...a perk for which the designer, Oleg Maddox, is worshipped for...and also brings the lethality of the gunnery more in step with real life. (Prior to this patch, planes in Forgotten Battles were notoriously difficult to bring down). There are some new maps and missions, as well, but the highlight of the whole add-on is the new planes. It's a must have for fans of the IL-2 series.
Short version: Buy It...but only if you own the rest of the series. Long Version:This game works as both a stand-alone game or an add-on to the rest of the Forgotten Battles franchise. As an add-on, it's awesome, adding many favorite planes and lots of new maps to the FB collection. As a stand alone game, however, it's less fun. The Maddox team has done an admirable job of representing the Pacific Theater, but as an off the shelf game, it is incomplete. Oleg's attention to historical detail becomes his achilles heel with this game, as he has done a remarkable job of simulating the endless hours of tedium pilot's experienced flying over vast expanses of the Pacific Ocean, and many important aircraft of the theater are omitted, ostensibly because inadequate reference material existed to bring them up to the exacting standards his team has become legendary for...but also because the publisher was too frugal to include an additional CD worth of existing content, which will only be available as a download. These deficiencies may well be improved with future patches, but a more intractable shortcoming of the game is play balance: the sad fact is, the historically accurate Japanese planes might as well be made of paper mache dipped in kerosene, and so online play tends to be less balanced as a result. Good for realism, bad for gaming. The Marianas Turkey Shoot is not much fun to simulate if you have to be the turkeys. It's certainly worth owning if you are a fan of the IL-2 series, however. A host of fascinating planes have been added to the FB lineup, including the long-awaited B-25. The ocean graphics have been very well done, and there is nothing like landing on the beautifully modelled aircraft carriers, which even pitch with the sea. Overall, a thumbs up, but if you are new to the series, I recommend going out and buying them all. You'll be glad you did, and avoid any potential opponent-finding headaches online. An unfortunate side effect of the success of this series is the proliferation of game versions and patches floating around out there, making online play...the real strangth of this series...sometimes frustrating and problematical. So buy them all, get the latest patch, and avoid the headaches. See you in the Coral Sea!
Short version: Buy it if you are bored of Forgotten Battles, but don't expect to fall in love. Long Version:This game is a mixed bag with some promise, but ultimately a failure. Overall, it is an attractive sim with beautiful clouds, a nice and rather unique assortment of flyable aircraft (at last, a sim that includes the best of the British birds!), and a superficially interesting campaign game. But what should have been a winning recipe remains undercooked, and ultimately leaves a bad taste in your mouth. CFS3 seems to be plagued by more than its fair share of bugs...many users have had trouble running it properly. Some cannot make it run at all. The flight modelling is not quite what I would call "as real as it gets", either, since real planes actually stall and spin when mishandled, while CFS planes ride on rails and are unlikely to misbehave unless a bullet strikes the tiniest back corner of a wing, at which time they are suddenly transformed into flying bricks (yes, those of you who remember CFS2 can be apalled now). While the selection of aircraft is quite nice, it omits the heavy bombers that are almost synonymous with the Western Air War. While this last apparent oversight was deliberate...the game is supposed to feature low-level strikes and attack missions...it is somewhat ironic that high-altitude warfare in the sim is marvelous, with some of the prettiest clouds seen yet in a sim, while the terrain graphics leave room for improvement, and seem to be the main culprit in sabotaging otherwise good frame rates. All in all, CFS 3 makes some modest improvements over CFS 2, but at a high hardware price. Out of the box, it is plagued by bugs, and feels incomplete. I really can't recommend it wholeheartedly. But it has it's merits, and fans of CFS 2 may enjoy it.
Short version: It's probably in the bargain bin by now. Go ahead, what the heck... Long Version:One of the advantages to Microsoft's flight sims is their open architecture, which encourages third party developers to make creative add-ons that can add life to the game, and often improve play dramatically. In the case of CFS 3, the fans have done more than that...they've saved the game from almost certain oblivion. My own first copy of CFS 3 ended up being mailed to some guy in S. Korea, who presumably needed an expensive door stop. Time has passed, though, and after hearing some encouraging chatter about the latest add-on, Firepower from Shockwave Productions, I decided to give it another whirl. My, how things have changed. For starters, it actually ran. (Points for that...my first copy of CFS3 carefully evaluated my video card's parameters against a list of all known video cards painstakingly compiled by the developers, decided my card was actually an imposter from the planet Neptune and refused to run, no doubt reporting my alien espionage attempts to Microsoft's database of all known living things and what they are likely to be worth in license fees. I had to hack the config file to even run it. Anyway, this problem seems to have been solved...or else the aliens managed to take over Microsoft. But I digress...) I cranked the sliders and fired up a Spitfire. My first reaction was "Wow, look at all the pretty clouds". Truly, they are amazing. IL-2 has some ground to make up here. Of course, if you turn your head around far enough in CFS3, the next thing you're likely to say is "What the heck is that beachball doing way up her---oh, that's the sun." Anyway, the sky looks great. Even at 20,000 feet. The ground terrain is still a love/hate thing...it's fun to interact with, but still prone to the occasional stutter. But at least I can fly across the Channel and back. Lots of tweaks and new textures exist now, so you can groom the sim's appearance to your heart's content. The sound is very satisfying, too...I enjoyed hearing the creaking of the airframe when I pulled G's. The G-view is a nice bit of feedback, too...your pilot actually sinks into in his seat when you pull G's. Remarkably, the good people at Firepower have somehow turned the dodgy CFS3 flight model into something comparable to IL-2. It still lacks the seat of the pants feel I think IL-2 enjoys, but it's arguably as good or better in dealing with stall/spin behaviour now. The force feedback is good. I think the planes bleed energy more realistically than in FB. Plane selection is great, and the add-on lets you do what we've all been yearning to do...man the guns of a B-17. Bonus points alone just for that. But the most inspired bit of mayhem is the addition of the vaunted B-29, complete with mother of all load-outs....the A-BOMB. No kidding. When you get tired of splashing water on those stupid ships with your 250kg paper weights, try that sucker on for size. I promise you won't miss :-) Damage modelling is still a poor cousin to IL-2, but better, and overall gunnery seems to have improved. The effects are nice. I expect multiplay still suffers from the inevitable abuses of the open architecture, but on the plus side, I doubt you could name a plane that hasn't been built for it. Hours of downloading fun. Anyway, I still think IL-2 rules the roost, especially in multiplay, but if you have a few bucks to burn and are a little tired of the same o' same ol', you may find yourself enjoying CFS more than you'd care to admit to the faithful followers of Oleg. It has certainly improved since it's lacklustre debut, and the guys at Shockwave seem to be well aware of everything IL-2 does right, and are doing a good job shaping CFS3 into a nice stablemate for Oleg's brainchild.
Short version: Skip it. Long Version:This game might've been adequate if it had been released when it was first developed...over two years ago. Instead, it languished on some dusty backroom shelf following the breakup of it's original developer until Xicat decided to buy it, dust it off and ship it. And what a difference two years makes! The graphics are mediocre at best, even by the standards of of it's aging contemporaries like CFS1 and Janes WWII Fighters. By today's standards (like IL-2) they are simply unforgivable. Gameplay is just as bad, and the flight modelling is laughable. The only redeeming features are an interesting assortment of aircraft (including many bombers, where you can fly as a a crew member) and decent damage modelling. Overall, though, it's hardly worth the money. It wasn't worth mine...I took it back the next day. Well, that's all I have for now. I can only review sims I've owned, so budget and time restraints prohibit me from listing any more, although I am sure there are many more good ones out there. If you know of one, drop me a line and let me know. I'm always looking for something to fly! In the pipeline: Recent notable new releases include Wings Over Vietnam (a descendant of Strike Fighters) and Wings of War (An arcade-like WWI sim that looks so good the fans have been working overtime to mod it back to reality). Future release to look for include makeovers of B-17 and Rowan's Battle of Britain, by Shockwave Games, the makers of the excellent Firepower and Wings of Power add-ons for CFS3.  Back to a Flight Simulator Overview
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