themightysrc

French pilots - Emile Fortou. German pilots - Kurt or Ernst Remarx. Brits - Willy Coppitt (thank you Tom Sharpe) or Arthur Gonner. I'm not taking this seriously enough, am I?

I haven't voted yet, because the last campaign was in an EIII (difficult to fly, doubt I hit very much and he snuffed it anyway it a freak knitting accident) and the current one is in a BE2c (spend most of my time looking for EIIIs, then I run away as quickly as possible). Once I'm through this masochistic streak, I'll try a sensible aircraft and see what all this dogfighting mularkey's all about. Probably.

I don't know if it's always been the case, but I perceive myself as running away an awful lot more. Mind you, I've taken to flying the BE2c, which might help explain that. I've no particular desire to become a notch on a Fokker pilot's stick, so I'm taking advantage of the opportunity to explore the fascinating low-level world of hedge hopping, bottom tightly clenched.

"Dont judge SubSim.com by the the few of us that happen to be against OFF3 or who took part on the "bashing" of OFF3." I wouldn't dream of judging an etnire forum by the posts of one or two disgruntled people, however I will certainly have reservations about those people based upon their posts. One particular post, I think, was on the lines of "well I wouldn't trust him, if I were you because...." and went into a rather childish litany thereafter. Not edifying to read; less so given that, as part of the fine hobby of blowing things to bits on PCs for fun, simmers are probably in a very small minority: to then display rancour towards other simmers who happen to think differently is somewhat childish. This is a very small pond, people.

"The recurring complaint seemed to be that it is only a mod, there for not worth much." Somehow, I can't imagine Spitfire V pilots in 1942 pooh-poohing Spitfire IXs on those grounds. I personally don't give a dingo's kidney is OFF is based on CFS, Super Mario or the original Space Invaders. The point is that it works, and as far as I can see, it works rather well. Surely that is the main criteria for judging the end result? Nobody is forcing anyone to buy something that they object on whatever grounds, so the whole thing is a storm in a teacup. I must confess, I dislike posts that are zealous in tone - OK, you don't like the idea of paying for software? Don't sodding do so! - but I haven't really seen much silliness regarding over-zealous OFF (or other sim) fans grinding axes regarding other WWI sims. I own RB3D, FE, SDoE:WWI and OFF:BHaH, and I can recognise the various strengths and weaknesses in each one. If asked nicely, I will profer an opinion on each, but I don't see the point of any 'my sim is better than your sim' argument, since it is utterly irrelevant to me, and, I suspect, to most simmers. That's aside from the fact that such squabbling is extremely childish and discourteous to others. WRT to the linked thread, I read all the posts (slow day at work), and there were plenty of supportive posts as well as those from gamers who I presume have a principled objection to paying for software. It was relatively balanced, although a couple of posts resorting to ad hominem arguments did seem to me to be rather on the playground level. Finally, I've seen Rise of Flight in the shops, and I've been impressed by the screenshots I've seen. My only potential (or real) objections fall into two areas: one, it'll eat what little performance remains on my PC (new 2 1/2 years ago!), even more than OFF and FE do (they call me Mr. 7 FPS...), and two, 3 flyables upon release is not going to tempt me to spend. However, I remain open to reviews and developments. Cheers, Si

I'd have the DH5 and SS DIII (rather than the much later and hardly used DIV). I'd also love to see the much maligned RE8, and obviously the Albatros two seaters, plus maybe Aviatiks. But I'm fully in accord with those posting above who say any two seaters, and that I'm grateful that the splendid people at OBD might wish to expand upon our current choices. To find such a combination of enthusiasm for the product and absolute professionalism is a lesson for other software houses. Cheers, Si

Hi all, I've been playing RB3D for donkey's (years, that is), FE since the middle of last year and latterly I've discovered OFF:BHaH. In that time, I've been through a few different PCs and versions of Windows, in effect always playing catch up as my wallet permitted. My current setup is a dual core 2.8 Intel system with 1mb of RAM and a Radeon 7000 video card, which means that my heavily patched RB3D does odd things, but is quick, FE does nice things, but stutters as it passes data back and forth (I assume), but OFF can only really run on 1-2 vid settings and is still a little stuttery when working hard. Given that I don't have endless reserves of dosh - who does? - would I be better off ditching the Radeon card for another one, or should I simply try to stuff more RAM into the box, to bring it up to at least 2 and preferably 3mb? I know this is probably noddy stuff to most of you, but I'm not a PC expert, and would appreciate your opinions. Cheers, Si

Hi Viper, Well, given that memory is as cheap as (RAM) chips, i guess it's that first and then more major outlay. Thanks for your response. Cheers, Si

Hi, Care to expand on what Freetrack is, old bean?

Hi Polovski, Ooh, ta! is this in the FAQs or manuals anywhere? I had a ferret round but couldn't find anything. Cheers, Si

I'd just like to add my support for additional aircraft for OFF. I'm pretty impressed by the game thus far, as it has that 'wow' factor and the sense of immersion that I suspect has been missing from WWI sims since RB3D. I would suggest (blithely, without knowing the technical difficulties involved!) that basing expansion aircraft upon existing models - as mentioned upthread WRT to N17s, 23s, 24s and 28s - would be the easiest route to follow, perhaps without overloading what are effectively volunteer software producers. Perhaps a Pfalz DXII from the DIII? Still, having said that, I'd love to see Albatros two seaters, Siemens-Schukert scouts, AK8s, Martynsides and various other craft, but I'm aware that they would probably be new departures, and therefore labour and time intensive. Finally, may I say that OFF:BHaH is probably the best £45 I've spent in a very, very long time. Cheers, Si

"It definitely isn't about online play or elaborate user interfaces with sophisticated built in mission and campaign builders, ie. not many "bells and whistles"." I'll state at the outset that I don't really give a monkey's about online play - I'm sure it's great if you like that sort of play - however I think it's quite fair to level criticism at FE's lack of campaign play and generation. If RB3D could get it so right X years ago with a randomised but date contingent set of missions (in terms of planes) then how difficult would it have been for FE to have had similar? Any designers/modders care to comment? Little things like campaign history should have been addressed as well as more consideration to the number of aircraft and period to cover. I know that TK is effectively a one man operation, and what he created as a one man op is relatively good, however punters aren't to know all of that prior to purchase, and I was fairly wary of buying FE on the basis that it featured a mere 4 aircraft when it came out. Add in that it seemed to be heavily weighted towards the end of the war and it was apparent that it was aimed solely at the US market. That's not a problem per se, but it did mean that a whole wealth of the war was missed out, and I shudder to think what FE would be like (on my PC, at least!) without the wondrous works done by the ameteur modders - ameteur only in name, IMHO - in adding so much to the game.

I have to agree that IL2 is the best combat flight sim I have ever played, and certainly the most difficult and realistic (so to speak). I'd add that FE is a much more playable game now than when it came out, and the extras added by dedicated enthusiasts are an absolute must. I sometime wonder if that many people would have bothered if they'd relied purely on Third Wire's offerings. I have a particular weakness for the early Martinsyde scout, so there you are. The campaign play - whilst becoming more interesting as the number of addon campaigns increases and as TW get their act together - is still, frankly, not what it should be, given the sophistication of the sim otherwise. If I came to buy FE again, I'd be looking in the bargain bin if I didn't know about the vast amount of work put in by third parties around the globe. Knowing that, it's a must buy. PS and score yourself a copy of Red Baron 3D to see what campaigns should be aiming for.

Hi Peter, And a happy new year to you (and everyone else). I must confess, I hadn't even realised there'd been another official update to FE! I think we've discussed this before, by email, and it touches on the information inside the 'getting started' sticky, but may I suggest the following? Now that FE has respawned itself again, would it be a good idea to list out what works with what? In other words, which set up of FE works with which desirable user mods - such as your FMs. I mention this for two reasons: the first is that I've only just downloaded and installed the official April 08 update, and it's changed the game play out of recognition (as far as I can tell), making FE rather more fun and absorbing. The second reason is that some aircraft that I've tried flying before - and which had previously been pretty unsatisfying - have now (seemingly) become more usable and responsive. I'm sure that I'm being deceived by my senses, but that's how it seems to me! Because I didn't get the first FE expansion, I've always been a little wary of downloading extras, so a definitive list of what works with what (if that's feasible) would be of great help to me, and perhaps others too. Thanks, Si

Just as a matter of interest, where can one obtain Plane Pack 5? Thanks, Si

I'd like to add a variation of the original question at this point: Which WWI period do you prefer flying? I have a soft spot for the 1915-16 period, creaking round the sky in a plane that is barely faster than a double-decker bus. Marvellous stuff. Now, if we could have Taubes and Bristol Scouts from which to lob bricks and fire rifles at each other, that would make my day. "Who are you to tell some other person he is wrong or right for how he chooses to run a computer program that he paid for with his own money? That's right, it is not your call" WRT the above, I'd simply like to point out that I wasn't 'telling' anyone how to play, simply making an observation concerning limiting one's options. And that's my last word on the matter.

"you may go to Pakistain, Turkey, Pakistain or any Arab Country and make this same question to see if anyone fly for Israel or "The Great Satan Air Force"(If those aren't being punished in a Public square for using pc ). nobody is demmanded to play what you don't want just to be pollitically correct." Well done on spectacularly missing the point, as well as dragging politics into it. My point was that you should be able to separate your feelings about politics and ethnicities from your interest in the subject of air combat and the relative virtues of different aircraft. I loathe Nazism, but I am interested enough in German planes of WWII to wish to find out what those aircraft might have been like to 'fly' (in a play sense). Dragging the canard of 'political correctness' into the discussion seems to me to be woefully out of place.

I'm largely with stiglr when it comes down to it. I was quite disappointed to read the response from the gentleman from Israel who said that he'd never fly an Arab aircraft. If we can't leave behind our politics when we play at being pilots from another time, then I'd say it's time for a little introspection. When I play at being a pilot, I'm more or less game for anything that has wings and an engine (however I'm not zeppelinist, before you ask...). In IL2 I've flown plenty of aircraft belonging to different nations, and never felt a pang of patriotism, because I am playing. When I have a thrash at FE or RB3D (and I'd guess that many of us play both), I'm much more interested in the aircraft themselves, rather than the nation that they flew for. Hence, whilst I have a soft spot for the Sopwith Pup and Martynside S scout, it's not because I'm Briddish, but because they're interesting and fun to fly. Ditto the Siemens Shuckert DIII and Pfalz scouts. In the final analysis, I play on flight sims because they allow me to experience (vicariously, and inadequately) those bygone aircraft from times gone by, without having to spend about 100 grand in flying lessons, buying an antique plane and otherwise enraging my other half.

Excellent news - I look forward to downloading it. Merry Xmas and a happy New Year to you, Mr. Args.

It's also worth remembering that the dollar has been the fiat reserve currency of the world for yonks. That's why other countries have been happy to support it by buying for so long, particularly where it's the fiat oil dealing currency. If China (for example) flogged off its dollars (although it would be a bit bonkers to do so), then that would be seriously bad news for the dollar, and, by implication, the American economy. Still, given the current travails of the American economy, there are plenty of other reasons for Americans to worry somewhat. I don't think that the USA 'breaking up' is one of them, and I hope that Barack Obama will be able to turn around an economic decline that was as inevitable as it was a shock to the world markets.

Don246, Thanks for that link - I thought I'd managed to trawl most of the self-encompassing RB3D websites, but that is a treasure trove. I play FE, but I'm still to be convinced by it. I play RB3D still, because I was convinced by it. Either way, have fun. PS - SDOE-WWI is probably worth a look. I've had some reasonable fun with that as well.

Hi All, Having had a brief correspondence with ArgonV, I decided to purchase SDOE, and then add in the WWI stuff. I've downloaded all the indicated stuff, notably the all in one installer. However, when I try to run it (from any directory location) it immediately tells me that there's a problem with invalid data and comes to a halt. Has anyone else had this problem? Hos did you get round it? FYI, I'm running on Windows XP, and it's patched as it should be. Cheers, Simon

Hi Argon! Sorry to get back to you so late, but I've changed email addresses, and it caused a problem with the forum (my fault, not the mods). I finally tried to download directly (as opposed to via a slightly dodgy wireless link) and, lo and behold, the files differed! I tried loading the latest (ie, largest) downloaded file, and - guess what - it worked perfectly. I'm now trying to get my head round the WWI version of SDOE, but I have to say, it's great fun thus far. I'd never considered flying a Sopwith Pup over North Africa prior to this... Cheers, Si

Thanks for the reply. It's a dual core Pentium, but it seems to run the stock SDOE quite happily. What sort of utility did you have in mind? I'm happy to download and install stuff, but your reply's a touch too gnomic! More please! Cheers, Si

Wouldn't disagree at all, matey. Has anyone, for example, done any of the Brandenburg aircraft? Imagine a dogfight over the Alps! Probably commercial suicide, but what a prospect for WWI afficionados... Cheers, Si