I don't really think the optimism needs to be blind for a game like this.
The flight sim niche is definitely an oddity in the online gaming world. Most other game types are just going through the motions to 'finish' them. There is pretty much nothing stopping any person from doing everything in them other than time invested. Not so with the simulator and FPS market. To actually become good at a game like this versus most other games requires a level of skill and individual capability.
With most other MMO type games, you can read a guide that will tell you what to do and how to do it. 'Do this sequence of things, and you will stand the best chance of winning.' is all there is to it. There is a 'best way' of doing things that is easily repeatable by practically anyone who can read and press buttons on a keyboard.
In a game like this, you can read In Pursuit and whatever other books and guides you like and they will give you ideas. They will not allow you to execute on those ideas though, you need to put in the time to have the feel for the game and the SA to pull it off. Some people will be able to pull those ideas off better than others. You also can never have the same battle twice in a game like this.
It's a type of gaming that has become less popular in an age where games have become nearly impossible to 'lose'. I don't really think there is any equivalent competition for this game out there. There are plenty of other MMO games, but very very few comparably featured flight sims. This type of game I think will continue to have its niche appeal for quite some time.
I just don't really see the core idea behind this kind of gaming evolving much over time. WWI and WWII in particular were a time in aerial battle that will never again be duplicated. Air forces were a new thing, people were developing the tactics that will allow the best chance of victory. Both sides were in an arms race to develop better refined aircraft to fight with. Both world wars were the only time ever that two relatively evenly matched air forces were facing off against one another, with the people at the controls being the major deciding factor. Bombs were not 'smart', pilots were.
As the technology evolved the influence of the individual pilots became somewhat less. In modern combat you can see a dot on your radar over the horizon, push a button that sends a missile to obliterate it, and fly home. There is just not the same amount of satisfaction or gameplay to be had there as manually shooting an aircraft down within 600 yards with machine guns or cannons, or dropping dumb bombs on targets.
It's a scenario and style of game that is unique. There is no other online gaming experience that gives the same type of gameplay as a WWI/WWII flight simulator other than a WWI/WWII flight simulator.
Now, I can see it ultimately migrating platforms to the consoles. As long as I can hook my HOTAS, pedals and TrackIR up to my Xbox 1440 or whatever they're up to when it happens, I'm good with that.
Wiley.
