1940
Was Their Finest Hour
Winston Churchill saluted the gallant men of the Royal Air Force who so successfully defended Britain in 1940 against the Nazi hordes with "Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duties, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, This was their finest hour."
Well,
it still seems to be "their finest hour" is this new flight
sim from Rowan Software is anything to go by. Rowan has been developing
such sims for 17 years. Their previous DOS-based efforts included Overlord,
Dawn Patrol, Air Power, Navy Strike, and Flying Corps. The latter, set
during World War I, was hailed as being extremely realistic and visually
stunning. Now Rowan and Empire Interactive apply their expertise to World
War II. And pit the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the German Luftwaffe against
each other in the epic Battle of Britain.
The Battle of Britain took place between July-October 1940. The Nazi armies had conquered France and were planning Operation Sea Lion; the invasion of Britain. The RAF was literally Britain's last hope. And was the only conflict during the War that was fought, and decided in the air. It became clear to Hitler by October 1940 that the Luftwaffe was unable to defeat the RAF. And he turned his energies to planning the invasion of Russia. The Battle was fought in four significant phases; faithfully reproduced in the sim.
The Battle of Britain sim can be played from either side of the war. The first part is Convoys which is set between July 10th to August 11th. It chronicles the initial attacks by the Germans. During the second and third phases, Eagle Attack and Critical Period, the intensity of raids increases. These culminate in Blitz; the final campaign.
For all the campaigns history is used as a guideline, but the players' successes or failures determine the outcome of the war. Players can also determine their involvement with command decisions. And can play either as commander or pilot for the RAF or Luftwaffe.
As
commanders, players in charge of Southern England; the entire theatre
of operations. A campaign map with historically accurate tokens and icons
sets the tone. The level of detail is amazing and allows players to control
everything from aircraft resupply to allocation of squadrons. Micro management
is reduced by a customizable list of Directives that automate some duties.
Squadrons can be ordered to stand down (rest) if their readiness falls
below a certain level. Automatic responses to enemy aggression too can
be set. The number and size of air patrols can also be adjusted. And to
keep the thrill factor in mind, you can always jump into the cockpit to
fly a mission.
As well as the main mission, there are 28 stand-alone that include a comprehensive training program. Here, the basics cover flight fundamentals like take-off, landing and simple flight. Advanced covers formation flying and landing under dire circumstances. The training modules also include dog fighting, bombing and interception. You will be advised by radio of your progress while in-flight and also receive an evaluation after completing the training.
Your skills too can be tested in six historical scenarios. These include two sims of the brutal Black Thursday to the climactic Battle of Britain Day where the RAF defeated a massive incursion and crushed the Luftwaffe morale. These quick missions allow players to become familiar with various tactics, as well as the distinct qualities of the planes themselves.
Battle of Britain contains five flyable, realistically-modeled aircraft. Players in the RAF will fly Hurricanes and Spitfires. Luftwaffe pilots can choose between the Me109 fighter, Me110 twin-engine fighter or Ju87 dive bomber. All planes are authentically reproduced from the way that they fly to their detailed cockpits. Players can pan around the inside of their aircraft as well as interact with the "virtual cockpit" by throwing levers and switches using the mouse. Flight models are extremely realistic, but can be reduced in complexity.
In addition to flying, you can also become an air gunner in German bombers like the Ju88 the He111 and the Do17. You may also come across older British planes like the Bolton-Paul Defiant fighter that only had a four-gun turret facing backwards and the Blenheim bomber.
Rowan has also gone to great length to make Britain look great. The Southern English landscape has been accurately reproduced. All of the prominent RAF bases are recreated, as well as famous landmarks such as the Tower of London, Trafalgar Square, Buckingham Palace, Parliament and Big Ben, St Paul's Cathedral, and the Royal Albert Hall.
The ground detail matches the sky. The sim includes realistic weather effects including cumulus clouds that you can hide in or manoeuvre through. The game portrays the 800 square miles of air packed with over 1200 planes. This accurately replicates the large numbers of Luftwaffe offensives. All visuals can be recorded with gun cameras during flight, then edited, replayed, and saved after the mission.
The sim's minimum needs are a Pentium MMX/166, 32MB RAM and Win 95/98.
G
Menon
[email protected]