Simulation or Shoot-em-up?

[Flanker35M]

S!

Jagr, the AI seems to have just the same AI routines as IL-2 had. The AI wobbles it's ailerons, rudder moving like a paddle, flap fighting, they suddenly just ignore you and fly straight, barrel roll evasions, outclimb tactics etc.

The bombers dogfight and collide like idiots. The power of their defence was a formation and they flew relatively steady. I can go fly in the middle of them without fear of getting even half seriously damaged. I flew under a bomber Do17Z at about 5m below the gunner and he MISSED! Shot his bullets to the sky as he tracked another plane, not mine.

The list of AI goes on. I just call it Appalling Idiocy as it is now. I like CoD, but as for now it is a test bed for patches. Not gonna go online before issues have been tackled. Remaining hopeful, but I think the US release will be the point where we can see what is gonna happen. A few weeks to go and really hope Luthier's gang will get it patched up before that.

[baronWastelan]

Here's what I posted on Amazon.com:

By twin_dragon

Fun:5.0 out of 5 stars

I have the Russian version since April 8, 2011. Currently I'm on patch 14413. I'm also a fan of FSX since Feb 2008. Today I started a flight in FSX, looked at the ground, the roads, the sea (DX10), and as good as it is after years of tuning and tweaking, I started to feel sick because of how fake it looks compared to Cliffs of Dover.

This new flight sim is in its infancy, and is barely half complete. But what you get cannot be beat in the realm of WWII flight sims. Yes there's Rise of Flight which is brilliant for the era it depicts, but it's like watching autocross (WWI) compared to the Le Mans 24 (WWII).

To put it bluntly, there's nothing else available in 2011 if you want an advanced complex simulator for WWII era combat. The details of the damage models are so elaborate, it will almost make your eyes water at the thought that so many little details can be updated in real-time. Sheet aluminum, torn and deformed by shells and bullets, will cast shadows, and holes reveal all the components inside: oxygen tanks, engines, oil tanks, frame, etc. Your engine must be operated within published limits at all times, or there will be consequences. Gone are the days when you get an "overheat" message pop up, which lets you know to open your radiator, so your engine instantly cools and is like brand new. You need to continuously monitor all the gauges, especially in the British aircraft. The engine model is so precise, you can cook one exhaust valve from running boost too high for a minute, and see a difference in the color of the exhaust flames in one bank of cylinders as a result! The details of the clickable cockpits are already well known, and they are truly photo-realistic down to control rods and chains that rotate when controls are operated.

There are new mission features that are only just beginning to be explored. The Full Mission Builder (FMB) works nearly identically to the FMB in modded Il-2 1946. It is extremely easy to set up attack waypoints, for example.

In conclusion, if you're interested in a game that you can jump into and play for 8 - 10 hours, then toss aside and forget, then Cliffs of Dover is not for you. If you want the most detailed flight simulator of WWII era aircraft on earth, with many years of unlimited experiences ahead, then you should not miss out on Cliffs of Dover.

http://www.amazon.com/2-Sturmovik-Cl...4807149&sr=1-1

[JG14_Jagr]

Originally Posted by Flanker35M

The bombers dogfight and collide like idiots. The power of their defence was a formation and they flew relatively steady. I can go fly in the middle of them without fear of getting even half seriously damaged.

The LW bombers were armed with rifle caliber low cyclic rate MG's with small magazines.. in the words of several JU88 pilots they gave them the guns more for morale than for effect.. The B17's and the USAF worked on boxed formations with overlapping fields of fire.. the LW bombers main defense was designed to be SPEED. 111's of 88's under attack were not going to fly level..they didnt have the defensive firepower to prevent a guy from camping on their tail and ripping them apart..

[ChocsAway]

Originally Posted by Flanker35M

S!

Jagr, the AI seems to have just the same AI routines as IL-2 had. The AI wobbles it's ailerons, rudder moving like a paddle, flap fighting, they suddenly just ignore you and fly straight, barrel roll evasions, outclimb tactics etc.

The bombers dogfight and collide like idiots. The power of their defence was a formation and they flew relatively steady. I can go fly in the middle of them without fear of getting even half seriously damaged. I flew under a bomber Do17Z at about 5m below the gunner and he MISSED! Shot his bullets to the sky as he tracked another plane, not mine.

The list of AI goes on. I just call it Appalling Idiocy as it is now. I like CoD, but as for now it is a test bed for patches. Not gonna go online before issues have been tackled. Remaining hopeful, but I think the US release will be the point where we can see what is gonna happen. A few weeks to go and really hope Luthier's gang will get it patched up before that.

Totally agree with you here. The AI is nothing short of a joke and the biggest immersion killer IMO. ME109s rolling faster than an F16. Friendly AI queing up and stealing kills. Enemy planes not bothering to evade when you pump bursts of fire into them repeatedly plus all of the above.

My biggest concern is that as others have mentioned, and that is that Clod will be abandoned by the devs once the USA version has been released. It needs a lot of work and some pretty huge patches to make the sim playable and more immersive. I hope we get that as there's lots to like about Clod already and I've spent many hours on it even in the broken state it is clearly in, but with so much potential it would be a real shame to see it fail.

[Zoom2136]

Originally Posted by Flanker35M

The bombers dogfight and collide like idiots. The power of their defence was a formation and they flew relatively steady. I can go fly in the middle of them without fear of getting even half seriously damaged. I flew under a bomber Do17Z at about 5m below the gunner and he MISSED! Shot his bullets to the sky as he tracked another plane, not mine.

Well I guess it's an improvement over the original iL2 where bomber could snipe you arrss from 1k true 4 layers of clouds...

BTW, you may have been lucky than that gunner got tunnel vison...