Battle of Britain Preview - By Todd "Stargog" Garner - Page 1 of 2
Introduction:
When the opportunity arose for me to take part in the beta testing
of Rowan's upcoming sim, "The Battle of Britain" needless to
say being the prophead that I am I was very excited. If there
is one air battle that took place in the European Theater during
WWII that possibly changed the entire outcome of the war it
had to be The Battle of Britain. With Hitler and his armada
taking France and now bearing down on The United Kingdom, it
was a time that heroes were made and personal sacrifice of pilots
on both sides of the channel was absolutely immense.
The brave and outnumbered pilots of the RAF had one choice and
one choice only, and that was to protect their homeland or loose
their freedom. It was that simple. Hordes of German bombers
and fighters pounded Britain night in and night out, fighter
pilots flew sorties day in and day out with at times not even
enough sleep for most of us to go to work. It was an amazing
time and the pilots of both sides should be forever revered
as some of the bravest and most skilled pilots that ever flew
in any conflict to date.
Rowan's version of this great battle is at first glimpse a very
honorable and worthy creation. This sim just reeks of authenticity
and reverence for the historical event that it intends to pay
homage to. The first thing that strikes me about Rowan's BoB
is that it has got to be one the deepest and most detailed recreations
in any sim, of what it must have been like to coordinate on
a strategic level such a huge campaign. Without even flying
in BoB you can totally control from both sides the entire campaign
that made up The Battle of Britain. There are times in the Campaign
that the amount of flights and targets that you are responsible
for is totally mind-boggling and really makes Mig Alley, which
I think was absolutely one of deepest sims to date, look like
paint by numbers. Saying that, I would like to introduce you
to Rowan's Battle of Britain.
The Battle of Britain is currently in beta testing and is scheduled
for release sometime later this year by Empire Interactive.
Graphics:
As this is the first thing that we see when we start up a new
sim it seems like a good place to start. The graphics in Rowan's
Battle of Britain are very similar to those of Mig Alley, which
in my mind is a wonderful example of a sim striking a balance
between graphics that are good enough to make the sim pilot
feel like he is actually seeing what the real pilots saw and
graphics that are so pretty and rich that they slow the framerate
down to nothing and ruin the whole feeling of flight. BoB certainly
follows the example set by Mig Alley, the graphics are very
believable and I would say maybe even a step or two ahead of
Mig Alley without bringing the frame-rate down to unplayable
levels. The version that I am using to do this preview is a
very early beta, so there are issues just like you see in any
sim that is at this stage of development, but for the most part
the graphics look very good.
All planes sport virtual 3D cockpits that are very well done
including the canopy reflections that added so much to Mig Alley's
realism. Just like in the real Spitfire the rear view is almost
totally obscured and requires slight skidding with the rudders
to see who or what is sneaking up behind you. There are times
when flying the Spitfire in BoB that you know someone is behind
you, whether it be from the sound of bullets riddling your aircraft
or just a creepy feeling that someone is there. Regardless it
is a very uneasy feeling and will haunt you in most all of your
missions when flying the Spitfire. This for me adds a great
deal to the realism and will likely cause a nervous twitch for
months to come.
Conclusion: The graphics in BoB are not amazing by today's standards
but do a very good job of making the sim believable. They are a good
combination of speed and beauty and do a great job of setting the mood.
Sound:
The sound in BoB is very well done and really adds to the overall
realism. The guns on the planes have a very believable sound,
as did the guns in Mig Alley but what really stands out about
the effects in BoB are the sound of the planes that fill the
skies over the channel. When a 109 or better yet a swarm of
them tear by you in a merge, the deep throaty sound of the pursuing
fighters is very well done and probably does more for the sense
of immersion than anything else. When these effects are combined
with the terrible rear situational awareness of the Spitfires
it can be a truly chilling experience.
One of the other things that I was really anxious to see in
BoB was the radio chatter between pilots that annoyed me considerably
in Mig Alley. To my delight the radio comms are much better
and actually helpful at times.
Conclusion: Overall I would have to give the sound in
BoB a huge thumbs up and say that it really adds to the suspension
of disbelief in the sim.
