LATEST NEWS

Il2 Sturmovik sales


By 76.IAP-Blackbird, October 20, 2019
"Personal note, buying on their website contributes the Developer with 100% of your purchase"

Dear Pilots! Battle of Bodenplatte, Flying Circus and the Achtung Spitfire! Campaign are nearing official retail release in just a few weeks and to celebrate we are giving you the opportunity to purchase our older Battle Modules and previous Scripted Campaigns for an amazing 75% OFF!! No doubt you will want to pick up our latest titles, but in case you don’t already own some of our previous titles, this is the most aggressive pricing ever offered! It’s also been 75 years since the time period in which our Battle of Bodenplatte title takes place. It’s was the height of the war on the Western Front and the Allies were struggling to break into Germany. This era was the pinnacle of piston powered aircraft designs and saw the first introduction of jet fighters. Oct. 15th - Oct. 31st 2019 on Website Oct 15th - Oct. 27th 2019 on Steam BOS = 75% OFF (Website and Steam)
BOM = 75% OFF (Website and Steam)
BOK = 75% OFF (Website and Steam)
Blazing Steppe = 75% OFF (Website and Steam)
Fortress on the Volga = 75% OFF (Website and Steam)
Ten Days of August = 75% OFF (IL-2 Website Only)
Havoc Over the Kuban = 75% OFF (IL-2 Website Only) Cliffs of Dover: BLITZ – 75% Off (IL-2 Website Only) All Rise of Flight Content = 75% OFF (Website and Steam) Official Webstore
https://il2sturmovik.com/store/battle-of-stalingrad/ Steam
https://store.steampowered.com/…/IL2_Sturmovik_Battle_of_S…/ And don’t forget to Pre-Order our next upcoming Scripted Campaign – Achtung Spitfire! Available exclusively on the Official IL-2 Website As usual, if you purchase a plane you already have you can send it as a Gift to a friend or squadron mate. IMPORTANT NOTE: The $10 OFF Early Access discount for Battle of Bodenplatte and Flying Circus will be expiring in just a couple weeks. If you want to get that discount please don’t delay! NOTE: having at least the base game (Stalingrad) on Steam means you can launch it from the Steam client without entering a login and password and you can access your IL-2 content purchased elsewhere if you link the accounts. The Sturmovik Team
• 3 replies
• 1,830 views
• Add Reply



Il2 new planes are coming


By 76.IAP-Blackbird, October 19, 2019
Dear Pilots!   It’s our great pleasure to officially announce that our next Collector Planes for the IL-2 Sturmovik: Great Battles series will be the – Yak-9, Yak-9T and the Hurricane Mk.II.   Both of these aircraft, or I should probably say all three of these aircraft, were important designs that were workhorses of their day that made great contributions to the war effort on several fronts.   These particular planes were chosen so we can offer an even more diverse and well-rounded plane-set that benefits primarily our Eastern Front products, which we still care deeply about and as of now, the majority of our customers own the most of.   The Yak-9 came in many different flavors and it derived from the robust Yak-7b design. The Yak-9 was used over many important Eastern Front battles and was a very versatile and reliable airframe. It was the most produced Soviet fighter of the war. The famous Normandie Niemen pilots also used a variant of the Yak-9 in combat as did many successful front-line Soviet units. The Yak-9 was light and maneuverable at low altitudes and gave her pilots a real chance against the Bf-109 and Fw-190s of it’s day although it was less armed than its German adversaries.   However, the Yak-9T came packing the NS37 37mm cannon in the nose which was a heavy hitter. A 37mm round can do some serious damage to not only enemy airplanes, but also vehicles and armor. Due to the bigger length of the 37mm cannon, the cockpit of the -9T had to be moved rearward about 400mm to accommodate it, slightly changing its lovely profile. The Yak-9 was an important aircraft for the Soviet Union and will make an excellent addition to the IL-2 Great Battles Series!   The legendary Hurricane, which was built by Hawker, became famous in the west for winning the Battle of Britain and for the many sorties flown in the Mediterranean and North Africa theaters. However, it was also widely flown on the Eastern Front as a Lend-Lease product and saw much combat over the vast landscape of the Soviet Union.   Hurricanes were one of the very first Lend Lease types to reach the Soviet Union and they were pressed into service right away as a stop-gap fighter as Soviet industry moved eastward to safer locations. It would eventually be joined or replaced by other Lend Lease designs like the Kittyhawk and Airacobra and newer Soviet designs, but the Hurricane soldiered on in many combat roles across several fronts including Stalingrad and Moscow. They were also heavily used on the Northern sectors to protect important warm water ports.   Soviet ground crews also employed several weapon modifications which had a heavier punch than its original Browning machine guns. We hope to model most of these modifications. The Hurricane in Soviet service was a lengthy affair that deserves inclusion in IL-2 Great Battles.   Without further delay, here are some very early Work-In-Progress renders of the Yak-9 and Hurricane in production. As is customary, Pre-Orders for these planes will commence in just a couple weeks and they will be ready for duty first half of next year. Remember, that by purchasing Collector Planes you allow us to continue to make important and interesting aircraft that we may not have been able to include in our main titles.                             The Sturmovik Team
• 2 replies
• 2,277 views
• Add Reply



DCS Weekend News 18 October 2019 - Sale


By MigBuster, October 18, 2019
  2019 Autumn Sale starts today! We are happy to announce that the DCS World Autumn 2019 Sale is here with incredible savings on most DCS World products!     Lasting until November 4th, save 50% on most DCS World modules! This applies to aircraft, maps, and campaigns. The only exceptions include: DCS: F/A-18 Hornet by ED - 25% off DCS: Persian Gulf Map - 25% off DCS: Christen Eagle II by Magnitude 3 LLC – 25% off DCS: F-14 Tomcat by Heatblur Simulations – not on sale at this time DCS: F-16C Viper by ED – not on sale at this time Get these deals starting today in the DCS E-shop. We will also be participating in the Steam Halloween Sale. Open Beta update We released a new Open Beta update this week. Much of the focus has been on the Viper and includes initial Basic IFF and fuel tank jettison. On the Hornet front, we are introducing the AGM-62 Walleye ER/DL with support from the AWW-13 Data Link Pod. Along with these highlights, many more fixes have been included and you check out the complete changelog here. Development Report #1 In order to provide greater transparency in our endeavours, we are happy to introduce a new series of Development Reports. These will shed light on some of the most requested features and their progress. New AI FM (GFM) - currently in progress Last week we introduced some new skills for our AI pilots, and we want to thank you for the feedback. We are happy to hear that it’s making a big difference! We are also working on what we term the GFM (General Flight Model), and this is the new FM for the AI that you may have heard us hint at earlier. This FM will support asymmetric payloads, and naturally crosswind landings. We think this will make the AI pilots fly in a more realistic and human fashion. The GFM will not only simulate kinematic movement, but also true stability and controllability characteristics of the plane and their natural behavior at takeoff and landing. The current effort is on building variations of mass and moments of mass in flight. In the future, we will develop the principal functionality to support supermaneuverability. UH-1H Multi-Crew Functionality - currently in internal testing This hugely anticipated feature is close to seeing the light of day. We have begun internal testing of multi-crew functionality for the Huey. The initial testing is progressing well, and it will allow two pilots to fly the Huey as a team. Pilots will be able to interact with each other’s panels, and it should be a beet fun addition to an already excellent module. Next week we will share some new information about Modern Air Combat (MAC) and the Supercarrier module. Thanks for your support. Yours sincerely,
The Eagle Dynamics Team
• 2 replies
• 1,579 views
• Add Reply



Il2 DD Update Dev Blog 233


By 76.IAP-Blackbird, October 15, 2019
Hello!   We continue our movement toward the release of Battle of Bodenplatte, but even near the finish line we still find opportunities to improve the entire project. This time we found a way to implement a significant optimization to part of the graphics engine that is responsible for displaying the clouds. In addition to a significant increase in FPS on existing cloud settings, this allowed us to add an additional setting for the cloud quality called "Extreme". This option is named so because it combines somewhat increased performance with a significant reduction of the “boiling” clouds effect which appears when looking sideways from the direction of movement. We have also significantly increased the clarity of cloud shapes and boundaries. Our clouds always looked nice on the high settings, but with the addition of this new option their visual quality and realism has significantly increased. However, it is better to see an example:     Work on the Tank Crew project is still in full swing, and new additions can be expected in the coming months. First, at the end of October, the project acquires its main gameplay component- two Scripted Campaigns based on historical events of the Battle of Prokhorovka. Second, our next update will include new command functionality for the tank and tank the platoon commander. Third, before the end of the year, we expect our partners from DigitalForms to complete two new armored vehicles - the Soviet self-propelled artillery SU-122 and the German medium tank Panzerkampfwagen V "Panther". The 3-dimensional model of the Panther exterior is in a high degree of readiness whereas the SU-122 has already been completed and work is underway on texturing the interior and creating its crew animations:       You can discuss the news in this thread
• 0 replies
• 1,434 views
• Add Reply



DCS Weekend News 11 October 2019


By MigBuster, October 11, 2019
    Viper and Hornet Update With the early access release of the Viper, we are now focusing on the most pressing bugs and desired new features for the Hornet and Viper. We have been reading all your feedback, and this is the biggest factor in determining our priorities. While not a complete list, here are our priority items for the Hornet and Viper in our roadmap (please note that the items listed are not in any sequential order): F/A-18C Hornet Targeting Pod Slave to waypoint / target point Line of sight indication on the HUD Coordinate display Cursor Zero and Snowplow modes Radar Track While Scan (TWS) mode SPOT mode AACQ mode Weapons Release of the AGM-62 Walleye Dynamic launch zones for JDAM and JSOW Pre-Briefed (PB) mode for AGM-88 HARM Avionics Correct the ability to pull 30 G by disabling the G-limiter circuit breaker as a cheat Automatic Carrier Landing System (ACLS) mode Countermeasures Smaller flares option that can be up to 60 on the aircraft F-16C Viper External Art Complete external skin and provide a template to the public External lights Centerline fuel tank Add wing flex Additional skins Visual damage model Cockpit Art Add pilot body to cockpit view (VR) Systems EEGS Level-5 and Lead Computing Optical Sight (LCOS) gunsight when target is locked on radar Identify Friend or Foe (IFF) system Corrected AIM-120 Dynamic Launch Zone (DLZ) that correctly accounts for A (active) and T (time to impact) times Track While Scan (TWS) radar mode Air-to-Air Radar to include Control page (set PRF, contact fade, etc.) Targeting pod (target range indication, SP/CZ/TGT indications, azimuth indication angle indication [waterline with line], GRAY indication, north arrow, M mask indication) If AIM-9 and AIM-120 are loaded, selected aft on the dogfight switch should select AIM-9 and pressing forward should select AIM-120 Emergency jettison button Ability to create and modify steerpoints form the UFC Steerpoints must auto-sequence when option selected from STPTY DED page Toggle missile type select with missile step button for more than .8 seconds Lock indication on the RWR is missing. It should be a circle. At missile launch, then the circle should flash Complete CMDS manual mode programming When a contact is locked while in NAV mode, changing to AA mode should not remove the lock Only a long press aft on the DMS switch should turn the HMCS on and off. Currently, up, right, and left also have this function AI vs the New Damage Model As the new damage model is being implemented, tested and tuned for all our WWII modules we are making sure that all aspects of gameplay are checked and tuned as well. Is this case, with the new damage model we noticed that the AI can be very accurate, and many times testing vs the AI, they would land all shots center mass, any times scoring a pilot kill before anything else. To deal with this we have added a couple of new functions to the AI. First, we added error aiming offset, this will prevent the AI from shooting at the center of the model, and will be adjusted based on the skill set in the Mission Editor. This makes it more realistic when you manage to get some distance on the AI, but letting them in close will still be as deadly as expected. Secondly, there is also a function for tracers aiming correction, this means that when the AI is using tracer rounds, the AI will correct its aim only as the AI fires on a target. The time required for the AI to adjust its aim is based on skill level as well, so excellent level AI will adjust their aim much faster than lower-skilled AI. Now this is only the first phase of these changes, the next adjustments will focus on targeting of key components and areas of different aircraft, as we were told by Luftwaffe fighter pilot Erich Brunotte, they were instructed to fire on the inner left engine on B-17s as there were some critical systems that were not doubled located there. This will allow the AI to be more precise as far as targeting aircraft components going forward. Lastly, we have tuned how aggressive the AI is when firing on a disabled or already destroyed enemy plane, currently with new damage model testing, the AI would unload on you, and not let up until every part of you was a flaming hunk of wreckage, now, the AI should recognize when you are damaged enough, or dead and stop firing, hopefully this will allow the AI to maintain more ammo, and be more useful in large scale fights. These new AI features should be available in this week's Open Beta update, we ask you to share your experiences with the AI tweaks and give us feedback on your personal experience with it. DCS World Open Beta Update This Friday we are releasing a new Open Beta update with the following highlights: AI Combat Improvements R/BL mode for Harpoons on the Hornet A number of fixes for the DCS: F-16 Viper A number of fixes for the DCS C-101 by AvioDev You can read the complete changelog here. Many thanks to all our faithful community. Yours sincerely,
The Eagle Dynamics Team
• 1 reply
• 1,531 views
• Add Reply



New Keyboard--Preliminary Report


By RIBob, October 6, 2019
 Just bought this: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00481BEY8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 While certainly NOT cheap, it has the following advantages: 1) Frees up a USB port, since no separate mouse is required 2) Every key is programmable.  While I don't envision re-programming the already dedicated keys, the option is there. 3) Spill-and dust-resistant, as per IP 54 spec., and otherwise very reliable.  I have used this keyboard in a commercial environment for several years, and amongst the numerous keyboards being in constant daily use/abuse, I do not know of one of that has failed or malfunctioned.  Probably the most trouble-free device in our POS setup. 4) The keys are mechanical, and so extremely reliable and will retain their "touch" for a very long time.  Rated for 20 million actuations before failure, as per mfr. 5) The integral mouse pad is just as useful as the one on your laptop, after you tweak its' settings to suit you-- DO NOT fail to do so.  After slightly adjusting "Mouse Properties" for the mouse pad on the new keyboard, I find no issues with the keyboard's mouse pad;  It's faster than reaching over to the mouse, IMHO, once you get used to it.  I found myself reaching for my mouse many times before I remembered it was now on the keyboard, instead of the desktop.  This keyboard has some disadvantages, to wit: 1) The keys are not back-lit.  I like this feature, but admit that some may not. 2) The programming of the keys will require of the user some experimentation/familiarization.  Understandable, perhaps.  The documentation of the programming program is not what it might be.   3) Cost.  Plain and simple, it's expensive.  OTOH, it's extremely reliable, and has loads of non-assigned and programmable keys. The keyboard comes with almost zero instructions, but with Mfr's web site address.  Win 10 system will install the basic drivers.  After that, go to Mfr's site, and download/install the main program for the keyboard, which will allow programming of keys, including (they claim) macros.  The keyboard comes with a metal tool to remove the key pads easily and painlessly, and it works flawlessly.  Best tool of its type I've ever used. I plan to install some color-coded paper into some of the  non-assigned keys for use in flight sims: Green for ground, Blue for air, Red for guns, Orange for bombs.   All will be grouped, and labeled.   As of this writing, I can't respond on the key programming feature, but I reckon, with some persistence, it will work OK.   Other reviewers have said such.  Some sims are not friendly to auxiliary keyboards/keypads.  I cannot say whether this keyboard will overcome this issue.  It is possible that aux programmed keys from the main keyboard might be recognized, as opposed from key-commands from a separate keyboard.  So, a preliminary report; so far, the keyboard/mousepad, with the latter having very slight adjustment, is perfect.  Will advise as the programming of keys is accomplished. Disclaimer: No financial connection with mfr or vendor. Submitted for consideration    
• 1 reply
• 1,325 views
• Add Reply