This is intended to be a "just for fun" posting.
Several of us old Fighter Duel guys had gotten together to play European Air War. There were tons of network problems and depending on where in the country you were dialing in from, the network problems were significantly better or worse. One night, one of the guys connected and typed this message into the text radio:
"Have you guys checked out the new online game Aces High? They're offering a free one year subscription as a promotion to help get it started."
Thus, "HomeBoy" was officially recorded in the Aces High record books. I'm so proud.
That was in 1997 as I remember. I've been in and out of AH ever since.
OK, I get an email from a friend sometime last year telling me about this great new combat game "IL2". I dabbled with it until Forgotten Battles came out and then I took the plunge. It has been lots of fun but now I've returned to Aces High. In case you're wondering why I'm back, read on.
First, let me just level with you about my skill level. I have been at this online combat thing for a long time. I think it was 1995 that I first faced a real-life opponent while paying for a long distance telephone call in the DOS game Fighter Duel. [Side note, I think my very first computer aircraft combat game experience was in 1993 - Secret Weapons Of The Luftwaffe, SWOTL. Man, I loved that game!]. Thus, you would think I am one of the better pilots in the game. After all, I've read Robert Shaw's book from cover to cover, more than once! Sorry about that, check my scores. Pretty sad. Good thing I approach this from a "fun" perspective.
It is precisely this "fun" perspective that has brought me back to AH after my little experiment with IL2. To summarize, here are the reasons--
1. AH is simply more fun than IL2.
Though I really do appreciate the attention to detail Oleg has put into the game, flying those planes is just too much work. Having to worry about engine temp, prop speed, rpm management, trim, etc. just gets old after a while. I don't mind that in MS Flight Sim so much as that's why I'm flying it [so as to get better and handling the aircraft] In a combat sim, I'm trying to shoot people down not keep my engine from overheating.
2. AH is OLMP, IL2 is not.
Nuff said. No boxed game can ever truly compete in the online, multi-player arena in my opinion. The only one that has come close is RB2; again, IMO.
3. I can't hit a blasted thing in IL2!!
This has been REALLY frustrating! I stand a better chance of getting a kill by chopping up your rudder with my prop than I do at getting bullets into your plane. No joke, I've actually gotten several kills that way after using up all my ammo trying to score hits! What a relief it is to actually start thinking about deflection shots again. Ahhhh, AH!
4. The flight models in IL2 seem to change with each patch! One of the things I really loved about IL2 was the realistic flight models. Way better than AH. But, there is this huge experiment that seems to go on constantly with the FM and you really have to wonder what's going on there.
5. The relationship Oleg has with his customers is a strange one. I don't join so many others to say Oleg Maddux does not care about or support the IL2 community. I think he really does care about the game and is trying hard to support it. It is pretty wierd though how they will come out saying a patch will come out "Monday at 12:00" and then nothing for three weeks! The mud begins to fly on the message boards and then he'll come out with some terse comments (his English is pretty limited) and everyone will settle down only to see things stir up again. A very bizzare thing to witness.
6. The bickering, fighting, finger pointing, and just general immaturity of those message boards over there in IL2 is something to behold. It seems there is the weekly "Boycot Maddux!" montra or the "I'm going back to 1.1..." Way worse than these message boards!!
So, I'm glad to be back. I don't plan on going anywhere for a while. Especially with the anticipation of AH2.
Again, I've written this mostly to have fun and reminisce a little. Hope you've enjoyed it a little. I have.
