Wow I should start playing more video games. New F-14 game?

[Ken Cartwright]

1 hour ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

Anyone of you guys follow Growling Sidewinder on YouTube?

Are Lock-On and DCS related?

Yes and yes :).

 

Flanker from the 80s and 90s was the basis for Lock-On, and Lock-On was somewhat the genesis of DCS.  it's evolved a lot since then, though. Flaming Cliffs for DCS is basically the same as Lock-On, with the same aircraft, some of the same missions, etc., it's just been updated for the new graphics engine and some flight model improvements.

 

Those aircraft don't have the same level of detail as the newer ones that are dedicated study-versions, like the F-14, F-18, F-16, etc.

[ytsejam87]

5 hours ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

Anyone of you guys follow Growling Sidewinder on YouTube?

Are Lock-On and DCS related?

They are.  Lock-On was a predecessor to DCS: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lock_On:_Modern_Air_Combat

 

Growling Sidewinder is a pretty cool channel.  Grim Reapers is another.  Plus, you can get some DCS info/gameplay from Ward Carroll and CW Lemoine.

[Hajo L.]

 

10 hours ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

Anyone of you guys follow Growling Sidewinder on YouTube?

Are Lock-On and DCS related?

 

I sometimes watch his videos. They are nice and informative!

 

 

HAJO

[Ken Cartwright]

Spam alert - again.  And reported, again.

[habu2]

If it walks talks and smells like spam, it probably is....

 

Wonder what's repeatedly drawing them to this thread?  Unless it's the same sad guy ...

[phantom]

9 hours ago, habu2 said:

If it walks talks and smells like spam, it probably is....

 

Wonder what's repeatedly drawing them to this thread?  Unless it's the same sad guy ...

Both removed....no doubt again in both cases the same person.

[Gwen Phoenix]

On 11/29/2018 at 7:32 AM, lesthegringo said:

If I may be so bold as to make a further suggestion, the use of a TrackIR unit enhances the experience, once set up properly

 

Hi Les,

What's this TrackIR unit you're talking about? I've sometimes seen it mentioned on Growling Sidewinder's videos comments below, but still don't know what it is.

Cheers,

 

Gwen

[Ken Cartwright]

19 minutes ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

 

Hi Les,

What's this TrackIR unit you're talking about? I've sometimes seen it mentioned on Growling Sidewinder's videos comments below, but still don't know what it is.

Cheers,

 

Gwen

TrackIR is a head-tracking sensor that allows you to look around in the sim by just moving your head.  It exaggerates your motion so you can always be looking at the monitor but it can pivot the view to look all around, even behind you, in the game.

 

It increases the immersion and also makes it much easier to keep your eye on your target, etc., while playing.  It connects via USB and uses some kind of lighting to sense the motion (either a reflector clipped to a hat or a device that attaches to a headset if you wear one while playing).

 

https://www.trackir.com/

[Gwen Phoenix]

Hi Ken,

Ah, nice; thanks. What about this Oculus Rift VR set which Sebs is mentioning above?

I will need to buy a new computer to get into DCS, I'm afraid.

Cheers,

 

Gwen

[Ken Cartwright]

VR is a different animal than TrackIR. TrackIR has a much lower hardware requirement and is easier to implement, but doesn't offer the stereoscopic 3D views that VR can provide. 

 

With TrackIR, you're still basically sitting in front of your PC looking at your monitor, but your head movement is tracked to change the view, so you can pan the view and look around by just moving your head.  As mentioned, it exaggerates the movement so you can pan to view behind you while still being able to look at the monitor ahead of you, but you adjust to that and can usually tell where something is relative to your direction of travel by your head position, just like in real life.  TrackIR can also track lateral movements, so you can lean forward to zoom in on the HUD or an MFD, slide your head sideways to look around a canopy frame, etc.  You can do that and still be able to see your keyboard for typing commands, etc.

 

VR typically has you wearing a headset that completely replaces your view of the world, and all you see is what's displayed in the headset. Each eye gets its own view, so the computer is working harder to generate two separate displays and it requires a bit more oomph from the PC and video card. It is usually a lower resolution display than a monitor, but can be much more immersive.  I say this with only having tried it briefly a couple of times, and I am sure others can offer more information.  With VR, you typically can't see your keyboard, so you either have to use clickable cockpits and use a mouse, or just develop muscle memory for button locations.  Some people also add bumps to certain buttons so they can orient their hand position without looking at it, much like the bumps on the F and J keys on many keyboards.

[Gwen Phoenix]

4 hours ago, Ken Cartwright said:

With VR, you typically can't see your keyboard, so you either have to use clickable cockpits and use a mouse, or just develop muscle memory for button locations.  Some people also add bumps to certain buttons so they can orient their hand position without looking at it, much like the bumps on the F and J keys on many keyboards.

 

Ken,

That's quite informative, thanks a lot! I don't think I could handle VR, so I'll start with TrackIR instead. It's one hell of a simulation! I really like how GS edits his videos with the aftermath of the dogfights; it's awesome.

 

AIM-54C fired from an F-14B while hunting and killing a Su-33

 

 

 

Today's encounter between an F-15C and an AV-8B

F-15C wins the first round.

 

 

Then AV-8B gets even with a couple AIM-9Lunas shot in the face 😄

 

[Delanie]

 

i used to play aircraft Sims with my brother when we were younger and had great fun with Falcon 3.

I've just found DCS and sprung for a thrustmaster hotas setup,no peddles yet.

I agree that it is more of a sim than a game I had real problems getting my  SU25T off of the ground, kept auguring in to port until i worked out i'd set the controls wrong and the left engine was turning itself off duh!

 

With regard to the VR, Track IR debate I Have a playstation VR2 and that is just plain scary in its realism but I can't quite see how it would work in this sim, anyhow I'm not paying for another VR system however there are software versions of head tracking which work on facial recognition which may not be as acurate as Track IR but as they are free it gives a good Idea what is possible without having to buy extra hardware. 

[11bee]

Don't forget MSFS.   Doesn't do the combat thing but it's got truly revolutionary graphics and (with the right add-ons) is amazingly detailed and challenging.   Boston to Orlando in PMGD's 737-800. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2023 by 11bee

[Slartibartfast]

I watch Growling Sidewinder every day.

 

I started on MSFS 1(?) and found flying a C172 on instruments and plan view pretty boring.  A year or so later I discovered Chuck Yeager’s Air Combat and loved it! I needed the threat of “death” as a requirement for fun.

 

Last sim I played was MSFS 10(?) that offered WWII maps.  I guess my monitor wasn‘t very good because I had a difficult time seeing targets more than a few hundred yards/meters away.

[Ken Cartwright]

As we're talking about other sims, one option is Falcon 4.0 with BMS.  Technically, BMS is a stand-alone application, but due to copyright status, they require that you own Falcon 4.0 to install.  The graphics are not as good as DCS or MSFS, but it is a fairly detailed F-16 sim (and they've added a few aircraft recently), offers good performance, a good multiplayer experience, and a dynamic campaign instead of just a bunch of individual missions.  About the same level of complexity as the DCS F-16, I would say.

 

Steam link for Falcon 4.0 (a whopping $7): https://store.steampowered.com/app/429530/Falcon_40/

 

And then BMS: https://www.falcon-bms.com/

 

 

 

This is probably 4.36, not the latest 4.37, but it gives an idea of the graphics. Again, not as good as DCS or MSFS, but not bad, and the campaign and other technical things can help make up for the lower graphics quality.  Plus, it's only $7.

 

 

[habu2]

I flew Falcon 4.0 a lot back then, in fact I still have a sealed copy of F4.0 in the ringed binder.  I drifted out of the PC sim world some time after Allied Force was released.

[Gwen Phoenix]

5 hours ago, 11bee said:

Don't forget MSFS.   Doesn't do the combat thing but it's got truly revolutionary graphics and (with the right add-ons) is amazingly detailed and challenging.   Boston to Orlando in PMGD's 737-800. 

 

Hi 11bee,

Nice! What's the learning curve like in order to start flying Flight Simulator? Is there a tutorial to follow to start up a Boeing 737-800, for instance?

Also, could you please elaborate on the challenges you say the sim takes on? Any system failures to overcome during flight, etc?

What are the add-ons needed? Awesome graphics. I'm quite interested in trying that out first until I go back learning DCS (tired of being blurred out of the sky by a missile which I didn't even know it was coming). 😄 Couldn't even eject in time!

Cheers,

 

Gwen

Gwen  

[11bee]

14 hours ago, Gwen Phoenix said:

 

Hi 11bee,

Nice! What's the learning curve like in order to start flying Flight Simulator? Is there a tutorial to follow to start up a Boeing 737-800, for instance?

Also, could you please elaborate on the challenges you say the sim takes on? Any system failures to overcome during flight, etc?

What are the add-ons needed? Awesome graphics. I'm quite interested in trying that out first until I go back learning DCS (tired of being blurred out of the sky by a missile which I didn't even know it was coming). 😄 Couldn't even eject in time!

Cheers,

 

Gwen

Gwen  

The learning curve for something like the 737 is what you would expect for a study level sim.   Takes some time but it's not insurmountable.   If you can figure out how to use the various radar modes in the DCS F-14, you can figure out how to program the FMS on the 737.   The rest is just practice or start with one of the more basic aircraft that come with sim.   My particular favorite is Xcrafters Cub (a Piper Cub on steroids).   

 

For add-ons, I'm using the payware PMDG 737 and a few airports (Logan being one of them, it's truly amazing).   The PMDG product has a good manual with it but there is also a very detailed series of Youtube videos by a RL 737 pilot that walks you through every step of flying this thing "by the book".   737NG Driver - YouTube     For system failures, you can set that up for whatever works for you.   You can enable random faults or set the sim up for a specific failure at a specific time (want to practice V1 engine failures?  Have at it). 

 

There are thousands of very high-quality freeware add-ons out there.   Aircraft, airports, sceneries, etc.    Many (most?) are over at flightsim.to   Unlike the old days, the new MSFS makes installing these add-ons easy.   Just drag the file to your Community folder and that's it.   Couldn't be easier.  

 

 

 

[ST0RM]

@Ken Cartwright Microprose regain rights to the Falcon series and has hinted at a possible Falcon 5.0
They've already said they'll continue to support the current BMS. So hopefully some competition for ED and their DCS. 

[Ken Cartwright]

Thanks Jeff!  I had seen that, and I guess that's why it's not available on gog.com any longer, and I'm anxious to see what they come up with .

[11bee]

11 hours ago, ST0RM said:

@Ken Cartwright Microprose regain rights to the Falcon series and has hinted at a possible Falcon 5.0
They've already said they'll continue to support the current BMS. So hopefully some competition for ED and their DCS. 

That would be fantastic.   I respect DCS for the level of accuracy they bring to their subjects but I always found that Falcon 4.0 just had more "soul" in the campaigns.     

[ST0RM]

11 hours ago, 11bee said:

That would be fantastic.   I respect DCS for the level of accuracy they bring to their subjects but I always found that Falcon 4.0 just had more "soul" in the campaigns.     

Agreed. When the sim community continues to hold their Dynamic Campaign as the benchmark, you've done something right. 
DCS has stretched themselves too thin to appropriately manage the world they've created. So a DC is still a long ways off. 

[echolmberg]

Any chance this is coming out for the Wii?

[Ken Cartwright]

1 hour ago, echolmberg said:

Any chance this is coming out for the Wii?

[KursadA]

Simulators are great, but there is nothing like learning real engineering principles and practicing problem solving skills while playing. I can't be the only person playing Kerbal Space Program (KSP) here. Any other KSP players?