What is the best WWI aircraft fighter sim/game?

[LewisS]

I guess I should ask of the posters in this thread, how many are also developers of the sim they're cheerleading?

I'll admit that I have a bias and a fondness for Targetware's Richthofen's Skies, mainly because I'm a 3D artist making models for RS.

I'm not going to get all high and mighty about who's sim "rules", but from a simply prosaic view and from my own experience I like games that I can customize the reality, and be part of the creation of content.

The thing about TW is that the sim was largely aimed at WWII air combat in online missions. It's also been expanded to include Battle of Britain and Western Europe bomber campaigns. In fact there is right now a lot of new bombers in development That it is also flexible enough to have expanded into a Korean jet air combat and a WWI from 1914 to 1918 simulation is one of the pluses of the game engine. I'm not saying it's the end all, be all, to combat flight simming.

[Gremlin_WoH]

I can not see any comments of developers in this thread 'cheerleading' their own sim. In fact the developers I know of always stay away from 'cheerleading'.

[LewisS]

Originally Posted by Gremlin_WoH

I can not see any comments of developers in this thread 'cheerleading' their own sim. In fact the developers I know of always stay away from 'cheerleading'.

I guess I was asking if there were, (I'm admitting to my biases here, not that that's a really bad thing..), but I also like OFF since it has what I consider player realism, which is important if you're playing for the immersion factor.

[Rich]

I got the BH&H and I have not been able to make it work right yet. I bought more ram memory, now I have ordered a new video card, hope this works

Rich

[Rickitycrate]

I would like to help you get you OFF up and running well but I am not too good with such things. What I can suggest is that you refer to the OFF Homepage http://www.overflandersfields.com/info.htm and check out the many resources there for setting up you pc. Also you will find a link there for the OFF Forum where a great group of guys would be very happy to answer any questions and give you technical advise so that you can get the most out of you OFF experience.
I hope you can get it worked out. Don't give up. Come to the forum, you will be welcomed.

Best wishes. Jim aka Rickitycrate

[paullmf]

I ended up liking First Eagles for the ability to easily customize the flight model.
It doesn't have the campaign and peripheral 'sortie' immersion as OFF, or even RB3! But its great for messing with flight characteristics and has a really large selection of flyable aircraft.

I like modding Sims for historic reality purposes. I've done it in F1 (GPL) and recently spent many (probably too many) pleasant evenings researching real-life flight models (including many visits here), then trying to recreate that in FE, and then dueling it out.
Combat comes alive when your aircraft and the AI share FM limitations -your Fokker E.I can barely climb, descending takes patience and flat turns require actual concentration etc. Positioning ones-self advantageously becomes important real fast!

Each to their own though. i echo the comments above, that attempts to define which Sim is 'Best', is pointless and an invitation for argument.

Paul

[Toadvine]

For all around single player WW1 air combat fun I still like Red Baron 3D. It has tons of content and the campaign is among the best in a 3D flight sim.

I have Rise of Flight and for single player it is very light on content, but what it does contain is done better than any other WW1 flight sim, no question.

I also have Over Flanders Fields but if I am going to play an old game I would just as soon play RB3D.

A highlight of RB3D for me is the excellent joystick and keyboard controls for cockpit views. You don't need a Trackir to see enemies or anything else. Panning works great, locking on and off targets works great, it is an overall superb system for playing and flying in the cockpit. I would be a happy camper if RoF would copy and paste it.

Also, I enjoy the total immersion of the Great War that is presented in the game. It is a complete recreation of the WW1 air war from 1914 to 1918. Then I like the fact that everything on the ground is destructible. The map is huge but no matter where you fly; over cities, or villages, or areodromes; every bridge, every building, every tent, gun emplacements, front line trenches, tanks, whatever you see that is man made can be blown up and burned if you attack it. I don't know of any other sim with this feature.

The only problem with Red Baron 3D is its age. It is an old sim with a primitive flight model and damage model. It has to be modded and patched to the moon to get it up to its full potential, and even then it looks like a relic from the last century. But the gameplay and content are intact.

I also like Rise of Flight but for different reasons. I love the brand spanking new game engine and the enormous effort put into the planes themselves. These planes are detailed like nothing else. So much is rendered!; from the cables, to the frame, to the dials and instruments, to the rockerarms moving on the motor. The detail is astounding, and equal attention is given to the flight model and damage model . It seems a Herculean effort was poured into modeling these old planes.

Where RoF falls flat is overall game content. It is not a true dynamic reproduction of WW1, so it lacks that very critical game feature. Maybe some day it will have it, but don't expect to see it any time soon.

[Rich]

I did get OFF up and running. When they say it has a steep learning curve they are not wrong. I am still doing quick combat and occasional combat session. It is very impressive, fun and challenging.

Rich

[akmatov]

Hey, Rich; you couldn't start off worse than me.

I completely forgot about torque from rotary engines and as my wheels left the ground the plane rolled over and pin-wheeled. Ops.

[Rich]

I am beginning to try my luck with the campaigns. The longest so far is 7 missions. I did shoot down 3 albatross in 3 minutes very intense and fun. Got shot down and kill next mission. I love it, very challenging.

Rich