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Combat flight simulator
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Combat flight simulators are video games (similar to flight simulator software) used to simulate military aircraft and their operations. These video games are distinct from dedicated flight simulators used for military flight training which are far more complex and consist of realistic physical recreations of the actual aircraft cockpit.
earliest version of Microsoft Flight Simulator (1982) had crude graphics, simple flight models – and a combat option, with "dog fighting" in a World War I Sopwith Camel.
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Encyclopedia
Combat flight simulators are video games (similar to flight simulator software) used to simulate military aircraft and their operations. These video games are distinct from dedicated flight simulators used for military flight training which are far more complex and consist of realistic physical recreations of the actual aircraft cockpit.
History
The earliest version of Microsoft Flight Simulator (1982) had crude graphics, simple flight models – and a combat option, with "dog fighting" in a World War I Sopwith Camel. This feature was removed in the simulator after v4.0, though the Camel itself remained as one of the standard aircraft for some time.
The early 1990s saw several rival publishers such as NovaLogic with titles like the Comanche Series that simulated helicopter combat and later Jane's WWII Fighters which had small features that the Microsoft titles lacked, such as more detailed visible damage.
Although mass interest has waned in recent years the genre is still popular today with many titles specialising in certain types of aircraft or historical periods or wars with Microsoft remaining one of the market leaders. Microsoft currently has three combat flight simulators: Combat Flight Simulator WWII Europe Series, Combat Flight Simulator 2 WWII Pacific Theatre and Combat Flight Simulator 3: Battle for Europe. Ubisoft is now the leading publisher in the genre with the acclaimed IL-2 Sturmovik series,which some claim to be far more realistic than the Microsoft games, the first of which was first released in 2001. The IL2 series has been routinely updated and is currently available as a "complete" series with the release of IL2 1946 on DVD. A move that extends the life of the franchise. This latest version incorporates all previously released versions. Ubisoft did not offer owners of the previous versions an upgrade option. These users, in order to take advantage of online play, had to re-purchase the series on the DVD as the DVD version is not compatible online with previous versions.
Types
Combat flight simulators are usually classified according to their historical period, type of aircraft, level of detail (survey is less detailed than a study type) and single- versus multi-player.
Historical
There are simulators for most modern periods and wars, including the following:
Simulators of current moderns wars are usually classified not by the period of war, but rather as a separate category of "modern jet simulators".
Survey
Many of the historical combat simulators are classified as "survey simulators", because they include a variety (or survey) of aircraft from the period in question, typically from all nations participating in the conflict. Early simulators often suffered from flight models and instrument panels that differed little between aircraft, but more recent examples have excelled in this regard, forcing the virtual pilot to learn the carefully modelled strengths and weaknesses of the various types (e.g. the different fighting and flying styles of a Spitfire versus a Messerschmitt 109 in IL-2 Sturmovik or a Mitsubishi Zero versus a US Navy F4F Wildcat in Combat Flight Simulator 2). There have been modern jet survey simulators as well (US Navy Fighters by Jane's/Electronic Arts 1994, USAF by Jane's 1999) typically with simplified and generic modelling of radar, navigation, and weapons.
Study
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 modelling an aircraft's systems as accurately as possible, often requiring thick manuals that rival the real manuals in detail. Jane's specialized in such sims in the 1990s with titles such as Jane's Longbow, Jane's F-15 and Jane's F/A-18).
Falcon 4.0 is perhaps the ultimate example of this genre. This 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 simulator. Official development stopped after a few updates, but the F4 fan/development community continues to develop new versions and add-ons (still active in 2005, when a new commercial version was also introduced under the name "Falcon 4.0: Allied Force").
“DCS: Black Shark” is a PC game of the Russian Ka-50 attack helicopter and is the first title in a new Eagle Dynamics and The Fighter Collection simulation series: “Digital Combat Simulator” (DCS). Following Eagle Dynamics’ tradition of excellence, “DCS: Black Shark” will bring an even more realistic simulation experience than its predecessor “Flaming Cliffs”. “DCS: Black Shark” will offer an unprecedented level of realism in regards to flight dynamics, instruments modeling, avionics systems, and weapon systems. The artificial Intelligence of ground vehicles and helicopters has been improved dramatically as well as weapon modeling. A new Mission Editor includes a powerful electronic mapping system that allows user to easily create missions and campaigns. A new campaign system allows the front line of the battlefield to move back and fourth according to your mission success or failure. Due to the increased flexibility of the DCS system, additional fixed-wing aircraft and helicopter add-ons will follow shortly. This is the first helicopter simulator I’ve seen that has been worth the money for some time. This new version is English but the radio communications are sometimes hard to understand because of the heavy accents.
Modern jet
This type includes all simulators of modern jet aircraft. These simulators can usually also be classified by their historical context or level of details (study versus survey). 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, F22 lightning 3 and many others). A recent example is Lock On: Modern Air Combat, which attempts to bridge the study/survey gap with quite detailed models of several US and Russian aircraft.
Multi-player
Most simulators listed can only be played by a single player, although most titles from the late 1990s on include some sort of multi-player/network capability. With single player combat simulators, everything other than the player's own aircraft is controlled by the program's "AI" (artificial intelligence). Although modern video games create fairly intelligent and independent behaviour for adversaries ("bandits") or allies ("friendlies"), advanced players find even the best to be too predictable. Multi-player games allow players to oppose one or many human players for a much more realistic and challenging experience. Some simulators exist only or primarily in internet multiplayer versions (e.g., Air Warrior, the massively multiplayer Fighter Ace, Aces High, World War II Online, and others).
Other aspects
Missions, campaigns, mission builders
However realistic their flight, weapon, and system models may be, combat flight sims remain video games and as such, many players seek replay value. Simulators enhance the replay value by not only offering a variety of single missions, but also randomly generated quick missions or longer campaigns consisting of several smaller mission or objectives. Many simulators also include "mission builders" which allow the player to create missions.
Most campaigns are "dynamic flowing", which means they change according to the results of each successive mission, e.g. if the player destroys a "target of opportunity" which turns out to be a truck carrying an enemy leader then the campaign starts to take a different path.
Controls and other hardware
As real-time applications with a lot of things going on, combat flight simulators are among the most computer and graphics demanding applications at any given time, and true sim fans are constantly upgrading their hardware, including the most advanced graphics cards. These sims have also given rise to a variety of hardware add-ons such as "HOTAS" (hands on throttle and stick") controllers that allow full control of most functions without touching the keyboard. Voice control and head-tracking view control systems are also available for home flight sim enthusiasts.
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