IL-2 Sturmovik (computer game)
| IL-2 Sturmovik | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio | 1C: Maddox Games | ||
| Publisher | Ubisoft | ||
| Erstveröffent- lichung |
2001 | ||
| platform | Microsoft Windows | ||
| genre | Flight simulation | ||
| Game mode | Single player , multiplayer | ||
| control | Keyboard , joystick , mouse | ||
| system advantages preconditions |
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| medium | 1 CD-ROM | ||
| language | German | ||
| Current version | 4.14.1 | ||
| Age rating |
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IL-2 Sturmovik is a Second World War - flight simulation of the Russian game developer 1C: Maddox Games . It is named after the Soviet attack aircraft Ilyushin Il-2 . The basic version was released in late 2001 and distributed outside of Russia by Ubisoft . IL-2 set new standards for flight simulation games, primarily due to its graphics, its closeness to reality and the unusual scenario. With the successor product IL-2: Forgotten Battles (2003) and its extensions Pacific Fighters (2004) and IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946 (2006) the simulation was further developed.
Game content
IL-2 simulates missions by the air forces of the Axis Powers and the Allies on the German-Soviet front during World War II. The player mainly takes on the role of a pilot in the Air Force or the Soviet Air Force . In its basic version, the game offers the possibility of flying several historical aircraft and focuses primarily on the eponymous Soviet Ilyushin Il-2 and the German Messerschmitt Bf 109 . Other playable aircraft are LaGG-3 , La-5 , MiG-3 , Jak-3 , Jak-9 , Bell P-39 and Focke-Wulf Fw 190 . Various official updates add the Ju 87 dive fighter , the I-16 , the BI-1 rocket plane, and the Polish PZL P.11 to the game. In Il-2: 1946 there are more than 100 flyable airplanes in total, but there are also rarely used airplanes like the Ar 234 and pure development studies like the Ta 183 or the vertical take- off aircraft Heinkel Lerche .
The player can start a campaign, play single missions and create their own missions. Since the main focus of the Il-2 is on a ground attack aircraft , the majority of the missions included in the game consist of fighting smaller ground targets such as tanks, columns of vehicles, trains and ships. On the German side, the missions mostly consist of escorting bombers and hunting for Soviet bombers. The areas of operation represent large-scale individual areas of the Eastern Front. a. Prokhorovka , the Crimea , the Kuban Peninsula , Stalingrad , Moscow as well as Berlin and the surrounding area, so that the operational area extends to the most important locations on the Eastern Front from 1941 to 1945.
Technique and feel
IL-2 offered excellent graphics for the publication conditions. The planes had been modeled in great detail, but the landscape graphics also looked realistic. Among other things, long rivers with bank vegetation, extensive forests and densely built-up cities, which were clearly divided into residential areas, inner-city areas, suburbs and industrial and port areas, were on display. Distinctive landmarks such as the Brandenburg Gate or the Reichstag were also shown. The graphics engine also offered reflective water surfaces and realistic weather effects.
The aircraft are implemented realistically in their flight characteristics. In addition, other technical aspects of flying were also implemented, such as the engine temperature, the trim or the position of the propeller blades. So z. B. the landing gear of the I-16 can be extended and retracted manually by pressing several buttons, since a mechanically retractable landing gear was not installed on this type of aircraft. The weapons used are also implemented realistically in terms of their behavior and effect. IL-2 is reputed to be the most realistic simulation of damage. This means that after a hit in the wing, the aircraft rolls to the side and loses lift as it would in reality. In other areas hit, rudder, elevator or ailerons can be damaged.
criticism
The responses to IL-2 were mixed. The trade press praised the graphics and the realistic implementation, but above all criticized the monotony of the missions and the lack of atmosphere in the presentation outside of the missions. In this context, in addition to the sterile menus and the bad music, the lack of a coherent background story, as offered by Strike Commander , was criticized.
The community was overwhelmingly enthusiastic about the game. The simulation was a great success, especially online. Clan- like virtual squadrons soon formed , which used this game to carry out dogfights and long-term " online wars " in which hundreds of virtual pilots took part. An active scene of missionary hobbyists and graphic artists for painting patterns also formed, so that to this day fans have published some, some of them commercial, additions .
Offline pilots, however, criticized the lack of realism in the computer-controlled aircraft. The increased copy protection in the course of the publication of the sequels also caused displeasure due to incompatibilities with various hardware.
Extensions and successors
In spring 2003, the further development IL-2: Forgotten Battles was released , followed by another add-on called Aces Expansion Pack in 2004 . Finally, at the end of 2004, Pacific Fighters came out, adding the Pacific scene and missions from aircraft carriers to the series . In May 2006, after its publication in Russia, the Pe-2 expansion with a new Soviet bomber appeared at the beginning of the year . The special thing about this series is that IL-2: Forgotten Battles ( FB ), Ace Expansion Pack ( AEP ), Pacific Fighters ( PF ) and the PE-2 add-on come together in the so-called "merged" installation Installed in a single large whole, resulting in tons of aircraft, maps, and ground objects available.
The series ended with one final official expansion called IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946 . This was published in December 2006. The expansion contains all previous versions of the game and, combined with the current free patch, is the standard version for online flights. It mainly contains aircraft types from the post-war era such as MiG-13 and Jak-15, as well as experimental models that only existed on the drawing board, such as the Heinkel Lerche .
In the third quarter of 2009, the successor IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey was released for Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PSP . More than 50 missions cover the period from the Battle of Stalingrad to the Battle of Berlin .
On May 28, 2010, Wings of Prey was another successor.
The successor to the series, developed since 2006 under the name Storm of War , has been available from Ubisoft since March 31, 2011 under the name IL-2 Sturmovik: Cliffs of Dover .
From version 4.09m, 1C has fully concentrated on the development of the successor, while the further product maintenance for IL-2 has been placed in the hands of Team Daidalos. Team Daidalos continues to publish updates for the game at irregular intervals, which not only fix bugs, but also expand the content, be it with new controllable aircraft or completely new game mechanics (for example radio navigation, realistic torpedoes and bomb detonators, AI improvements and much more ). The current update was released on May 2, 2019 and brings the game to version 4.14.1
Web links
- IL-2 Sturmovik series atMobyGames(English)