Operation Desert Storm: 30th Anniversary Edition - v0.9.8 Release Announcement

[+Menrva 4,003]

Fans of ThirdWire's Strike Fighters, I'm happy to announce an upcoming re-release of Operation Desert Storm: 30th Anniversary Edition, due between this December and next January (yet to be defined).

Since the last public release in January 2022, the development team has worked in spare time for more than a year in overhauling the mod with brand new creations, tons of improvements and bug fixes, additional content and much more. Here below some sneak peeks at what's to come.

 

With the intent of delivering the most complete Gulf War experience, players will now be able to fly with the three unique F-4G aircraft that were deployed to the conflict with Euro I camo (namely serial numbers 69-0269, 69-7566, 69-7234) and the only Grey colored F-111E (serial number 68-0050) deployed alongside the more common camouflaged F-111Es. F-4G aircraft 3d model and skins courtesy of @ravenclaw_007.

To complement the already huge list of flyable aircraft offered by the mod, new aircraft have been added! Say hi to the wonderful, brand new Mirage F1EQ-5, Mirage F1EQ-6 and Mirage F1CR by @ludo.m54 and his Mirage F1 Team. Moreover, let's welcome a couple of two-seaters; the F-16D-40 Fighting Falcon by @ravenclaw_007 in its Bahraini livery (skins and decals by @Viper63a) and the F-5F available in Royal Saudi Air Force camo and Grey Bahraini livery (skins and decals by @paulopanz). 

I decided to allow players to choose from experimental camos devised before the Gulf War for some of the most known aircraft of the war. The A-10As are getting the experimental Flipper and Peanut camouflages (both were meant for the Gulf War, respectively for night time and day time missions) and the F-16C Block 25, serial number 84-1212, gets the unique desert camo it sported during Desert Shield, before it was later decided to remove it. These three new skins have been made by yours truly. The original Lizard camo for the F-16C Block 25 is from the Viper Team, it has been upscaled and detailed a bit more by yours truly, as a bonus.

On the fun side of things, additional skins have been added to important aircraft of the war; these include prototype paint schemes for the F-117 and the F-15E, Iranian liveries for the F-5E, MiG-29, F-14A and F-4E, and the VX-4 black livery for the F-14A. These skins exist only for player use and won't be seen in normal gameplay during the campaign and single missions, so rest assured the mod won't be breaking any reality check by default. The F-117 skins are brand new and made by yours truly.

Okay, so we get to see more variety and beauty in third-person view, but what about cockpits? Numerous cockpits have received a face-lift in the way of brand new textures, mapping fixes, recolouring, better calibrated and standardized HUD colors, corrected view-points and much more. The Mirage Factory's F-14A cockpit now takes the place of the stock one by ThirdWire which looked inappropriate for early 1990s Tomcats, alongside small texture improvements by yours truly. Cockpits for the F-15C, F-15E, RF-4C and for F-7s were revised by yours truly, given hi-res textures and/or proper recoloring for consistency's sake. The S-3 Viking is now flyable, with Foxmonter's original cockpit getting a fresh hi-res repaint by @Viper63a. MiG and Su cockpits received similar treatment by yours truly, and thanks to the works of @OlWilly and @michaelk.

If you've had enough of the sky, do know that our master 3d modelers have been busy producing dozens of brand new 3d models for land and sea warfare. One huge, major update regards the Iraqi ground forces; @yakarov79 produced a vast number of brand new vehicles never seen in a flight simulator before; from exclusive Iraqi versions of known Soviet tanks to not-so common howitzers, proper Iraqi command vehicles, artillery units, APCs and more. The Iraqi ground forces have never been reproduced so accurately before, so you can be sure they are a real treat of the mod.

Coalition units also got a high-definition treatment with brand new objects by fellow @guuruu, including the M270 MLRS, M102 and M110 howitzers; he also worked on brand new ship 3d models, from generic boats and bulk carriers and cargo ships, to the Iraqi Zhuk-class patrol boat. Moreover, he reworked all data and sound design of guns used by most ground objects; guns now feature unified warhead weight based on caliber and standardized light range and tracer size. Ground battles feel much more intense and gun-only dogfights now feel incredibly realistic, as you or the AI can survive multiple hits (whereas in stock Strike Fighters it's usually an unrealistic one-shot one-kill).

The terrain has received noticeable improvements. All terrain objects have been given DetailLevel statements in order for them to be scalable depending on Ground Object graphics settings; this means that less important terrain objects will appear only at Medium, High or Unlimited settings as required. More importantly, Iraq got brand new airbase 3d models by @Jimbib accurately portraying the layouts of the time, alongside a proper Kuwait Int'l airport and Iran's Kharg island airport.

Be on the look-out for easter eggs, especially at Iraq's Tallil Airbase. You'll be able to see @Jimbib's recreation of the Ziggurat of Ur, and you might find a bird by @guuruu inside one of the hangars, seemingly out of context. This actually is an historically correct easter egg; history aviation enthusiasts should know about it.

There's also a not-so secret single mission available for you to experience. It's not Gulf War related, apart from the fact you'll be flying an F/A-18A of the VMFA-314 Black Knights. Mission date? July 4 1996. Hmm, what could it be?

You can tell the amount of effort and passion that went into the mod by reading the complete changelog below.

Changelog:

• Remade installer to allow users to install the mod folder to a path of their choice.
• Major overhaul of effects with great help by guuruu; improved Stary's Unified Effects package and fixed various issues.
• Modified DTV filter data for all avionics files to use a different BlendOp for better visibility at night.
• Resized various cockpit and aircraft .TGA textures to improve performance and reduce memory load.
• Cleaned up Pilots folder of unnecessary files, fixed few occurrences of missing textures.
• Optimized Decals folder, resized void and/or plain color decals to 1px, removed unnecessary decals.
• Standardized control keys for all kinds of animations on all aircraft.
• Standardized HUD color values, gunsight textures and night lighting for all cockpits.
• Added DetailLevel statements to all terrain objects in order for them to be scalable depending on Ground Object graphics settings.
• Added new runway models for major Iraqi airports (as well as Kharg Island and Kuwait Int'l airports) recreated very accurately by Jimbib.
• Added proper 3d model of the Ziggurat of Ur in the vicinity of Tallil air base, by Jimbib.
• Added realistic Easter Egg to Tallil air base, 3d model by guuruu; history aviation enthusiasts should look for an aircraft.
• Added four missing Saudi Arabian airports: Buraydah, Al-Artawiyah, Jubail and Al-Khafji.
• Added Veltro2k's C-2A(R) aircraft released by Wrench and properly reworked for the ODS environment.
• Added FastCargo's F-5F with brand new RSAF and BAAF skins made by paulopanz.
• Added brand new Mirage F1CR by the Mirage F1 Team, with specific tweaks for the ODS mod.
• Added brand new Mirage F1EQ-5 and Mirage F1EQ-6 aircraft by the Mirage F1 Team, with specific tweaks for the ODS mod.
• Added latest versions of the Mirage F1EQ-2, F1EQ-4 and F1EDA aircraft released by the Mirage F1 Team.
• Added proper Saudi Arabian E-3A (E-3A with CFM engines) 3d model made by Sundowner, with brand new skin and decals done by PeacePuma.
• Added huge ground objects update by yakarov79 with brand new 3d models for tanks, radars, SAMs, howitzers, anti-air guns, vehicles for the Iraqi faction.
• Added dozens of nicely detailed 3d models standing in as destroyed models for ground objects, by yakarov79.
• Added new, nicely detailed 3d models; M270 MLRS, RORO ship, Zhuk-class patrol boat, Bulk Carrier ship, M102 and M110 howitzers by guuruu.
• Added revised weapon data for all AIM missiles including additional sub-variants, all by Crusader, and revised loadouts for aircraft.
• Added missing CBU-78 and updated 3d models for some other CBUs, all made by ravenclaw_007.
• Added airburst version of the 1000-lb GP Bomb Mk.13 and more realistic SEAD loadouts for the Tornado GR.1, by dtmdragon.
• Added smokeless rocket effects by simonmiller416 for the AIM-120A and for all AGM-88s and all AGM-65s.
• Added specific Kuwait skin to the BMP-2 ground object by yakarov79, for use in the Invasion of Kuwait campaign.
• Added experimental desert camo skin applied on one F-16C Block 25 aircraft before Desert Storm began.
• Added experimental Peanut and Flipper A-10A paint schemes conceived for the Gulf War (scrapped before Desert Shield).
• Added prototype Lizard camo to the F-15E Strike Eagle as a fun bonus, with its correct serial number.
• Added prototype paint schemes to the F-117A Nighthawk as a fun bonus, with proper serial numbers.
• Added overhauled skins and decals for all Mirage 2000 aircraft, as well as new hi-res textures for fuel tanks, by ludo.m54.
• Added period correct Euro I camo and Shark Mouth skins to the F-4G aircraft with correct ODS serials and decals, by ravenclaw_007.
• Added overall grey skin for the F-111E representing the unique 68-0050 serial number that took part in Desert Storm.
• Added Improved Countermeasure Effect mod by simonmiller416, increasing realism and improving looks of flares.
• Added BQM-34 Firebee by yakarov79 as a target drone eventually for training missions for the Coalition aircraft.
• Added KDS-155 dispenser by Coupi to the MiG-25PD, with specific tweaks for use by the AI in the ODS mod.
• Added much better detailed AGM-62 Walleye bombs made by ravenclaw_007 in place of old ones.
• Added F-16D Block 40 aircraft made by ravenclaw_007, with Bahraini skin and decals previously made for ODS by Viper63a.
• Added new hi-res skins and decals for the KC-135s by daddyairplanes with templates produced by yakarov79.
• Added Lizard camo skin based on the F/A-16C proposal to the F-16C Block 25 aircraft as a fun bonus, with correct serial numbers.
• Added Iranian camo skin to the F-5E aircraft by Crusader as a fun bonus.
• Added Iranian camo skin to the MiG-29A aircraft by The Mirage Factory a fun bonus.
• Added Iranian camo skins made by ravenclaw_007 to the F-4E aircraft as a fun bonus.
• Added Iranian camo skins and VX-4 black livery skin to the F-14A aircraft as a fun bonus.
• Added improved sight textures by michaelk for Stary's Su-7 cockpit.
• Added M992A2 and proper V-150 APC, 3d models created by GKABS.
• Added MovementX and MovementZ data to all cockpits to allow XY slewing for TrackIR users.
• Added The Mirage Factory's F-14A cockpit in place of the stock one by ThirdWire, alongside reworked textures and data.
• Added Foxmonter's original S-3 Viking cockpit to make the aircraft flyable, with a hi-res repaint by Viper63a.
• Added working canopy animation to both aircraft and cockpit 3d models for all MiG-21s/F-7s.
• Added shells ejection update for the MiG-29s and reduced MiG-29UB's gun rounds to 50, as suggested by Crusader.
• Added KS-3 and KS-4 ejection seats created by 76.IAP-Blackbird and Flogger23 to all Iraqi Fitter aircraft.
• Added correct list of serial numbers to the Iraqi skin of the Su-24MK aircraft.
• Added reworked, higher resolution strobe light texture for aircraft and runways, for improved in-game looks.
• Added numerous real Gulf War pilots to the campaign data and correct ranks for the Iraqi air force.
• Added bonus Unknown Contact mission as a fun Easter Egg, inspired by a rare demo video of F22 Total Air War.
• Added more RWR sounds specific to certain aircraft in order to increase variety.
• Fixed many inaccurate hitboxes for most of the more 170 ground objects included in the mod.
• Fixed inaccurate hitboxes and/or collision points still present on few aircraft.
• Fixed weapon stations data for the F-117A so that now it carries LGBs only, including GBU-10s.
• Fixed weapon stations data for the UAE Mirage 2000s, the RAD variant now carries the Harold recon pod.
• Fixed weapon stations data for the F-15E in order to avoid weapon 3d models clipping between each other.
• Fixed data for the F-15E so that the AVQ-14 pod does not appear on loadouts with dumb bombs, by dtmdragon.
• Fixed wrong gun ammo count for the MiG-21F and the F-7s; the MiG-21F-13 carries 1x60 rounds, the F-7s 2x30 rounds.
• Fixed exaggerated BaseRCSModifier value for the F-117A, now it can be targeted by other aircraft.
• Fixed exaggerated jammer strength value for the MiG-25PD, now it can be properly locked on by other aircraft.
• Fixed AimAngles values for the internal gun on all F-15s, so that the HUD gunsight is properly aligned.
• Fixed Hawk's cockpit so that it features correct viewpoint, working HSI, lighter reflections and proper gunsight data.
• Fixed some cockpit data for all MiG-21/F-7 cockpits, as found in a topic written by Crusader.
• Fixed misplaced RWR screen on the Jaguar GR.1A's cockpit 3d model.
• Fixed misplaced wingtip vortex effects on all F-111s, all Su-20/22s, the MiG-23UB and the Su-24MK.
• Fixed missing exhaust emitters on the A-10A and OA-10A aircraft.
• Fixed exhaust emitters on the AV-8B so that they appear not just on thrust vectoring controls.
• Fixed nose landing gear being textured improperly on the S-3 aircraft.
• Fixed pilot's head stuck looking in the same direction on the AV-8B aircraft.
• Fixed excessive fuel flow values and sluggish flight model on all F-16C aircraft.
• Fixed wrong, outdated flight models and data for all F-15 aircraft.
• Fixed few loadout.ini files referencing the AGM-84A instead of the more period correct AGM-84D.
• Fixed few gun sounds not playing in-game due to their filenames containing a dot character.
• Fixed overlapping parking spot reported by Viper63a on Ali Al-Salem and Ahmed Al-Jaber airfields by Jimbib.
• Improved terrain target areas and objects, removed unused and duplicate terrain objects.
• Improved AI altitude and strafe, rocket and bomb attack values to reduce weird flight behavior at low altitudes.
• Improved ViewList.ini file, now you can take better screenshots of your preferred aircraft and gameplay instant.
• Improved and optimized all files of the Sounds folder, now being less than half the original size for faster loading, by guuruu.
• Improved guns data, now featuring unified warhead weight based on caliber, standardized light range and tracer size, by guuruu.
• Improved visibility of ground objects at night through the DTV camera by increasing MaxVisibleDistance, by guuruu.
• Improved aircraft data for all Mirage F1s for proper AI use of ECM and countermeasures, by pvince.
• Improved all MiG-21 cockpits with reworked gunsight and cockpit textures, removed gunsights embedded into the 3d models.
• Improved F-7B and F-7M cockpit textures by using the hi-res repaints of MiG-21 cockpits by comrad.
• Improved MiG-25 cockpit and avionics with tweaks done by OlWilly.
• Improved MiG-23 cockpits between variants with OlWilly's improvements and with different gunsight textures.
• Improved Su-7 cockpit with fixed typos and additional tweaks, by OlWilly.
• Improved A-6E cockpit by reworking few textures and by making the bombing gunsight reasonably sized.
• Improved RF-4C cockpit by using and tweaking hi-res cockpit textures by streakeagle made for the F-4 cockpits of SF1.
• Improved F-15C and F-15E cockpits, repainted HUD glass and needles, moved misaligned 3d model parts through .ini tricks.
• Improved F-16A cockpit with more accurate position of indicator light boxes.
• Improved little skin texture details on the MiG-23UB, added cockpit files to make it flyable by the player.
• Improved small texture details on the F-7B, F-7M and Hawk aircraft.
• Improved F-5E with flight model and cockpit tweaks by baffmeister.
• Improved exhaust emitter effect size on most aircraft, by guuruu.
• Improved viewing angles in all F-16C cockpits to feel more natural, as suggested by TaktischesGenie.
• Improved SpeechText subtitles, now on par with the Speech Enhancement mod by yours truly.
• Improved data and drag values of chaff and flare to be more realistic, by orsin.
• Improved FlightEngine.ini values to provide better texture quality on lower settings and to reduce out of memory events.
• Improved realSKY mod with modified cloud shaders, purple-ish twilight transitions and reworked lens flare textures.
• Improved SoundList.ini data for better doppler effects, extended sound range for engines and explosions, guuruu.
• Removed the Maverick EO aiming symbol from the A-10A's HUD, to reflect Gulf War avionics, as suggested by dtmdragon.
• Removed GBU-15 from being selectable for the F-15E, as no data confirms it was used by F-15Es during ODS.
• Removed double versions (EOGR and ASM) of AGM anti-ship missiles, now only ASM ones are selectable.
• Removed SA-13 9S80 radar as it is historically inaccurate for Iraq in 1990-1991.
• Removed anachronistic AIM-7 and AIM-9 missile variants from the Weapons folder.
• Removed RWR from the F-117A since it never had one in reality, as pointed out by dtmdragon.
• Removed ECM from the MiG-25PD aircraft as it did not have any in reality.
• Removed R-73 missile from the mod and corrected loadout of the MiG-29UB to use R-60s instead.
• Removed JATO from C-130s and from Tu-22s as they are not needed and not proper for the Gulf War scenario.
• Removed tracer texture from specific guns where tracers rounds were not used operationally, as suggested by dtmdragon.

Edited January 7 by Menrva

[+Menrva 4,003]

My extended thanks to @yakarov79, @guuruu, @daddyairplanes, @GKABS, @Jimbib, @ravenclaw_007, @ludo.m54, @dtmdragon, @Crusader, @Coupi, @paulopanz, @TaktischesGenie, @simonmiller416, @pvince and @swambast for supporting me and the mod during its latest development.

The year 2023 has been bitter for some members of CombatACE.com and it is marked by the sad loss of dear Marty ‘NIELS’ Nielsen. I send the CombatACE.com community all my heartfelt thanks and best wishes. The release of the mod is going to be dedicated to the memory of 'NIELS', who has been one of the major beta testers of the ODS 30AE mod before it got its official public release.

Blue skies and tailwinds…

Edited December 9, 2023 by Menrva

[bazillius 1,252]

Thank you for your work!

PS. If you want add and replace in Su-24MK_DATA.INI to this.

[DiveBombAI]
AimPitchOffset=3.0

[StrafeAI]
......
AimPitchOffset=-1.6

AI Su-24 will stop missing its target.

Thanks, the best modification ever.

[mono27 83]

This mod is GREAT! Thanks for all your work here. I enjoy a lot flying it and will be looking forward to this next update. Thank you and good work!

[simonmiller416 1,157]

Due to various reasons, my contribution is still very small. It makes me feel honored to be mentioned.

[+Viggen 517]

An outstanding mod gets better. Truly appreciate the passion you all put into this mod.

[mono27 83]

I remember that time ago there was a thread about a Su-24 cockpit. Will it be included in this patch to make this plane flyable?

[+Menrva 4,003]

4 hours ago, mono27 said:

I remember that time ago there was a thread about a Su-24 cockpit. Will it be included in this patch to make this plane flyable?

No. I would have liked to include YEYEYE's Su-24 cockpit, but I don't have it and I cannot ask YEYEYE anymore for permission. I also wish we had proper cockpits for the Su-20 and the Su-22s (Stary had made some as shown in rather a decade old screenshots), but for now we do our best with what we have. I can only hope the community will work on such additions in the near future.

Edited December 9, 2023 by Menrva

[+Shootingstar2 26]

OH BOY !! Can't hardly wait

[TheJetfighter 1]

I just found out about this update. Waiting for that update already! 

[ARG16 6]

Great job team!!!! Waiting for that update already! 

Thank you for your hard work.

[tverdy 5]

I just find about this update now. probably cause I mainly check downloads sections only

not sure why I stumbled on front page this time. maybe I was getting a bit sick with all those [Fictional] planes we get these days.

I mean, how many [Fictional] planes do we need ?

anyway... so happy for the news. this is by far my favorite thing to do in SF2. matter a fact I consider this as a totally separate game

cause it basically is

Menrva my friend, you are a legend. really... modding a few things by myself back in the days... I can just imagine the amount of time you pour into this

wow

and for free. just for community, as they say

gigantic respect

also a huge thanks to everyone involved into this too

I have only one "request", if I may... please make it as stable as possible

 

edit

and, of course, RIP NIELS

 

Edited December 20, 2023 by tverdy

[+Menrva 4,003]

8 hours ago, tverdy said:

gigantic respect

also a huge thanks to everyone involved into this too

They are the legends as well. I certainly have done my part in the mod (and I'm not done yet, some stuff will be reworked after the release due to time constraints), but without them the mod wouldn't look nor be as great as it is. Thank you for the kind words, posts such as this are pretty rare and mean a lot to us modders.

8 hours ago, tverdy said:

I have only one "request", if I may... please make it as stable as possible

Due to the heavier quality of textures and 3d models, requirements are not the same of stock SF2. I tried my best at finding a compromise between quality and performance. Fellow @guuruu optimized all sound files and this has even shortened loading times very noticeably. Sometimes I get reports of crashes to desktop, sometimes Nvidia drivers mess things up, reinstalling them seems to work (at least for one member of the development team).

I'm currently running the mod on a mere Intel UHD integrated graphics card, but with the DXVK wrapper (Vulkan rendering for DirectX games). Without it I'd experience crashes to desktop as well. The wrapper made my experience smooth and stable. So, I will post instructions on how to download and install DXVK for use on SF2 at the mod's download page once it's released.

Edited December 21, 2023 by Menrva

[+yakarov79 10,540]

Absolutely off-topic, but Menrva please forgive me I have to...

On 12/21/2023 at 12:06 AM, tverdy said:

maybe I was getting a bit sick with all those [Fictional] planes we get these days.

I mean, how many [Fictional] planes do we need ?

Not sure, maybe one more or perhaps 230 is the number. Modders probably will keep doing things the way they want. Complaining might not change a thing.

On 12/21/2023 at 12:06 AM, tverdy said:

probably cause I mainly check downloads sections only

ahh...so you are in that downloader guild...You know there is much more happening here. People are talking, and contributing. At least the forum's old farts still do. 

Makes me want to reach out to all of them (modders) in their secret Illuminati-Shogun subforum and ask them to stop uploading anything...

 

[+daddyairplanes 8,707]

On 12/20/2023 at 6:06 PM, tverdy said:

I mean, how many [Fictional] planes do we need ?

as many as the people who make models and or skins want to make

everyone doing this does it as a hobby and predominantly as what interests them

we do some other things from time to time. my current projects feature new and improved skins for fighters in this, so i've taken a little additional time to do additional skins ODS specific to add to the updates. but for the most part its what the modder wants to spend their limited time on

i give the same invitation that i give everyone else: if you dont like it make your own! it may seem hard to work on Blender, Photoshop or GIMP but you dont know how you'll do until you try it. and two of those three programs are free, so cost isnt an issue. only time....

 

3 hours ago, yakarov79 said:

Makes me want to reach out to all of them (modders) in their secret Illuminati-Shogun subforum and ask them to stop uploading anything...

dammit J, you know the first rule of Secret Illuminati Shogun Modding is we dont talk about Secret Illuminati Shogun Modding

Edited December 22, 2023 by daddyairplanes

[+EricJ 3,944]

3 hours ago, yakarov79 said:

Absolutely off-topic, but Menrva please forgive me I have to...

Not sure, maybe one more or perhaps 230 is the number. Modders probably will keep doing things the way they want. Complaining might not change a thing.

ahh...so you are in that downloader guild...You know there is much more happening here. People are talking, and contributing. At least the forum's old farts still do. 

Makes me want to reach out to all of them (modders) in their secret Illuminati-Shogun subforum and ask them to stop uploading anything...

 

Look man, don't be telling commoners about the Illuminati-Shogun subforum. We gotta be above them in order to mod right.

[+Menrva 4,003]

While not publicly shown, the previous release of ODS 30AE offered reworked hit boxes and collision points for all of the over 140 aircraft of the mod; some aircraft required major fixes, others only needed small improvements. Referenced model node names have also been corrected in many cases. This (boring and time-consuming) work improves the hit detection of bullets and missiles and of crashes into the ground; overall it puts all of the aircraft of the mod on par with each other, for quality consistency's sake.

 

Another detail that is often neglected regards landing lights. After several days of work, I'm happy to announce that the next release of the mod will offer standardized brightness and range values of landing lights for all of the flyable aircraft of the mod (not player-flyable aircraft will get the same treatment at a later time). Previously, many aircraft were missing landing lights or had broken values that caused rendering issues of landing lights. Each of the over 80 flyable aircraft (sub-variants included, not counting AI-only sub-variants that were also fixed) has been tested carefully to make sure that quality consistency on landing lights is kept throughout the entire roster of aircraft.

Edited December 28, 2023 by Menrva

[High-Flyer 3]

hi i travel a lot for mission trips but i will try to play this and i thank you all for this such hard work and please protect it the best, really i say looks amazing

[jokino 2]

This is really a great mod, good job !

 

_Tutuapp

Edited January 1 by jokino

[+Hornet54 12]

Amazing work, and a wonderful New Year's gift!
I look forward to!

[+Viper63a 651]

Wow, Nice!