Ok, im putting myself in the firing line here, judging by the large AH community that's out there, but i have a gripe about this game and i need to give it a darn good airing cos its beginning to smell a bit.
Its a long story so kick back, crack open a cold one and i will tell you a story.
Few years back the first online game i played was Warbirds and almost immediately i was hooked. Here was a game that supplied me with allot of my interests and hobbies, i love to fly and take to the air as often as i can and my inherited love and interest of WW2 aircraft from my father who was in the RAF inevitably drew me to this game and i fell madly and head over heals in love with it (we are now getting married in the Autum and are planning a few kids later)
This was so great, a large online community and the enjoyment of flying with like minded pals from all over the globe...DARN COOL
a few years later and i stumbled across AH. I downloaded the game and started it up, logged on for the free 2 week trial and begain flying.
WOW !!!! WOW !!!! WOW !!!!
I thought WB's did a pretty good job with the aircraft modelling and landscaping but this game was just so much better.
The aircraft were far more detailed
The landscape was to die for on an on line sim
The cannon fire was no longer red and yellow lines but real looking cannons with translucent tracer !!!!!
The game play had even more depth and the bases and fields look far better and more detailed.
Tanks and AA trucks Cool!!!!!
Little touches like the landing gear actually slowly retracting instead of just disappearing.
Sounds, just so much better, like the real thing, engines splutter and crank into life instead of the normal brrrrrrrrrrrr!!
VR cockpits, etc., with pan and snap options!!
My god, i thought i was in heaven, good bye Warbirds and farewell, you are good but never this good.
Then i played the game.
At first i thought it was me and that a new flight engine would take a bit of time to get used to, but no.
Oh sure i got the hang of it ok, and im no amateur when it comes to flying. I fly for real and i know all about torque, etc.
I know how and when to used rudder, flaps and just about everything else, but the game just seemed so flawed.
With all the great touches it offered over and above WB's it is let down by the shear unplayability of the game.
OK ill stop now, i know there are probably a few hundred of you out there playing this game every day screeming at me and think its the best thing since sliced bread, but it would be so much better if it didn't have such a steep learning curve.
It basically boils down to the dogfighting. It is not as enjoyable nor as fast and furious as WB's. You fly for what seems ages, you see a con and your up high, turn into his 6 and swoop down for the kill. Ok now he is better than you and manages to manoeuvre with minimal damage out of your line of sight. So you power away and swing in for another kill, again you over shoot, that's ok but the second time you come to turn the stall horn sounds like a dyeing whale and if you don't turn with the minimal of stick movement your sent spinning to the ground. BOOM
Now like i say, i know all about the aerodynamics of aircraft and i am sure that HI TECH and the gang know there beans when it comes to a realistic flight sim.
But for myself, and i know many others, this is just no fun at all. It may well be the most realistic flight engine around, but that's just it, this is not real, its a game, and we have no input on our senses other than sight as to what our aircraft is doing.
There's no G force and although the sounds are far superior to WB's the engine pitch hardly changes weather your barley above stall speed or close to ripping the wings from your plane. Realistic maybe, but that's no good when your 1000 feet and have no bearings weather your going slow or fast. Yes, i know there is a speed indicator in the cockpit but who wants to spend all the time checking his dials when your in a dogfight. No sensory input means you need to make slight inaccurate changes in a game like this for everyone to enjoy.
I know i will get a barrel load of 'Sod of back to WB's if you don't like it' and 'call yourself a pilot? i have no problems'
But that's just it, id rather go with AH as it is a brilliant step further than WB's
I have tried, i wanted so badly to love this game like i do WB's i wanted to pay the Monthly fee and bask in this games glory. But i cant, because to me (and i know allot of other who have tried this game) the gameplay take away the enjoyment of getting in there and having fun.
If the Flight engine was a little more friendly so ALL could adapt to it, i think the WB's community would drop and AH would have to set up another server to cater for the extra players.
I do not say this game is crap, nor bad. It is an excellent achievement that no doubt took many hours of dedicated programing. I just wish it was as easy to love as WB's
Isn't there a chance for a relaxed arena, with a little less 'IN YOUR FACE' learning curve? somewhere were you could fly for few mins, have a blast, without checking your dials every min? ohh well i know ill get a pasting for this but until AH becomes more USER FRIENDLY i cannot justify the monthly outgoing for a game that is for the best part infuriating to play, and i know of many many others who like me were taken back by the games outlook and disapointed at the actual flight charateristics.
Ok i have said my 2 bucks worth.
<Braces himself for an onslaught of outrage by AH community>
