IL-2 Sturmovik: Battle of Stalingrad

 PC
User Score
6.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 279 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 147 out of 279
  2. Mixed: 35 out of 279
  3. Negative: 97 out of 279
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  1. ebola
    Oct 27, 2014
    1
    The last time reviews got posted here the devs asked fanboys to post good reviews. Ignore the fanboy 10 fest and read the comments about the poor flight models which you can find on Youtube. This is not IL-2 its a poor imitation.
  2. lion737
    Oct 27, 2014
    10
    As I have no experience in testing games, I will just talk about the subject I can judge as a professional pilot.
    The flight physics and aerodynamic modelling is just superb. It is way ahead of anything available for PC.
    Surely this leads to a steep learning curve, even if you have flown the original IL2 for some years. But it should give you another kind of satisfaction, if you are able    As I have no experience in testing games, I will just talk about the subject I can judge as a professional pilot.
    The flight physics and aerodynamic modelling is just superb. It is way ahead of anything available for PC.
    Surely this leads to a steep learning curve, even if you have flown the original IL2 for some years. But it should give you another kind of satisfaction, if you are able to fly a successful traffic pattern. To land a high powered tail dragger, good training in reel life was needed, and it is necessary in IL2: BoS as well.
    In the early access forum, even experienced sim pilots were complaining about "bounced" landings, ground looping, difficult taxiing etc etc. Some training with the RoF crates will surely help, as any WW2 fighter pilot began his career on biplanes as well.    … Expand
  3. b45t4rd0
    Oct 26, 2014
    6
    The good: Graphics are really good for being directX 9. The crash landings are done really well. The sounds are also really well done. The Flight Models are pretty good. Flying the campaign in full real can be pretty intense. The bad: MP only via their test servers, no mission builder, SP campaign could be better. Overall synopsis, this still runs way smoother and has less bugs than CLOD.The good: Graphics are really good for being directX 9. The crash landings are done really well. The sounds are also really well done. The Flight Models are pretty good. Flying the campaign in full real can be pretty intense. The bad: MP only via their test servers, no mission builder, SP campaign could be better. Overall synopsis, this still runs way smoother and has less bugs than CLOD. The flight models and difficulties almost get to the CLOD level and this can be played in full real. If they add a dynamic campaign that I can play online with friends, add a mission builder, forget the points and unlocks, then this could easily be a 9. Until then I think a 6 is fair.… Expand
  4. Moider99
    Oct 26, 2014
    1
    I can't recommend buying this when its been confirmed a much cheaper (€10) version is about to be launched. They locked a thread about it on the official forums because so many customers who bought this game for $60 and $90 were rightfully unhappy.

    On YouTube there is a video of a 109 flying like an RC plane doing impossible moves and you can do endless loops in a he111 - so it's hard    I can't recommend buying this when its been confirmed a much cheaper (€10) version is about to be launched. They locked a thread about it on the official forums because so many customers who bought this game for $60 and $90 were rightfully unhappy.

    On YouTube there is a video of a 109 flying like an RC plane doing impossible moves and you can do endless loops in a he111 - so it's hard to believe the 9 and 10 scores here. The developers have forced their idea of how to play this game on customers, you can't select your own graphics options just presets like an XBOX game, you can't select them game options you want just two presets easy and expert and you have to play single player to unlock 'powerups' for multiplayer.    … Expand
  5. BigManWithZweih
    Oct 26, 2014
    10
    Well, what we have here…

    Best ever feel of light on your home PC? Yes, it is. Graphics, Sounding, Flight Model, Force Feedback effects, Camera effects – everything is focused on Your feeling of flight. Really great feeling, never have experienced something like this before anywhere, may be in a real flights only. Boring lifeless campaign like in previous flight sims? No, Il-2 BoS    Well, what we have here…

    Best ever feel of light on your home PC? Yes, it is. Graphics, Sounding, Flight Model, Force Feedback effects, Camera effects – everything is focused on Your feeling of flight. Really great feeling, never have experienced something like this before anywhere, may be in a real flights only.

    Boring lifeless campaign like in previous flight sims? No, Il-2 BoS Campaign is really fun and it provides single-player gameplay which is incomparable with any other combat sim on the market. Simply the best single-player fun in flight sims ever.

    Amazing realistic sound which can’t be heard in any other flight sim? Yes, it is. Very natural sounding in cockpit, heard like I’ve experienced in real prop planes. Incredible external sounds, while looking on plane with fly-by camera I hear same what I hear on flight show on airfield.

    Useless and predictable AI? No, Il-2 BoS AI is really close-up to men-style air combat. Sometimes it is hard to determine – are you fighting with AI or with a real man in Multiplayer. It can perform different specific maneuvers like split-S, turns, Hi and Low Yo-Yo, climb and dive, combat turn and so on. It’s never “just turn on you like a bull”, no, it’s really smart opponent.

    Best plane damage model on the market? Yes, it is. There is no any other flight sim which will show you such details of airframe damage like BoS can show. Airframe deformation - broken parts which are falling very realistic with full-physics calculation. Amazing Graphics Effects of Fuel fire, Engine fire, Fuel and Water leaks, plane Explosions when it collides ground or obstacle, sounds of damage and hits – all these are incomparable with any other flight sim, simply the best.

    Not realistic flight models? No, Il-2 BoS keeps a super-high standard of plane performance data precision. All main airplane and it’s engine characteristics are kept in 2% precision range in compare with real historical plane performance data. Till the day no one haven’t success in proof that something is wrong. Many have tried but all they have fail in their attempts to proof that something in plane FM is really wrong. Developers always have strong base of proofs that BoS airplanes are really high close-up to real prototypes.

    Best WW2 combat sim ever? Yes, it is. You need to try it and you will confirm that. Best graphics, best Flight and Damage Models, best Sounding, best Game Play, best AI. Simply the best. You need to try it, I’m hope you will – everyone who loves or just likes the combat aviation need to try this life experience.    … Expand
  6. Wulf1958
    Oct 25, 2014
    8
    Works straight out of the box, excellent flight physics, impressive graphics, very realistic maps, plenty to do in single player or online, extremely exciting air combat and huge potential for future development.

    I purchased the game as an 'early access' player and have never regretted it. Frankly I've already had my money's worth. Is it perfect? No, there are features I don't like    Works straight out of the box, excellent flight physics, impressive graphics, very realistic maps, plenty to do in single player or online, extremely exciting air combat and huge potential for future development.

    I purchased the game as an 'early access' player and have never regretted it. Frankly I've already had my money's worth. Is it perfect? No, there are features I don't like but then what's new about that. The game would be cheap at twice the price. Get it and have a go. Fantastic fun.    … Expand
  7. Johnny_Red
    Oct 25, 2014
    1
    This game was/is advertised as a combat flight simulator. I bought into the early access pretty early and was very impressed with the way it looked and handled. I posted how impressed I was on the forums. Being so early in development I was expecting some improvement over time and some evolution. Friday's came with some updates, New planes etc. But they also came with
    1. The removal of    This game was/is advertised as a combat flight simulator. I bought into the early access pretty early and was very impressed with the way it looked and handled. I posted how impressed I was on the forums. Being so early in development I was expecting some improvement over time and some evolution. Friday's came with some updates, New planes etc. But they also came with
    1. The removal of graphics options, in their place 3 presets because the developers think their players are too stupid to tinker with their own computers.
    2. Arcade like HUD, presumably the devs think the player base is too stupid to look at the actual cockpit instruments they have modeled. Reading the forums, some folk are looking for tablet app's to show their instruments when there is a cockpit on screen, so I guess the devs have the target audience they were looking for.
    3. Unlocks, power ups, call them what you like. They are a gamey feature. Some folk are saying they are the first step in the introduction of in-game purchases/microtransactions/pay to win features. Time will tell on that, but the signs are there for sure. The devs and forum moderators think the paying customers are too dumb to just jump in the aircraft and fly and must go through flight school to get unlocks. I **** you not, read the forums.
    4. No improvement of flight models.
    5. An empty campaign that the paying customer is forced to go through to access the field modifications locked into the power up/unlock system.

    The textures are low resolution, the game engine is dx9 and with 2 years of development there has been no improvement. DX11 cards have been on the market for a long time. The folk who play flight simulators are always looking for the best fps and invest a lot of money in their hobby. I'm pretty sure 90% of the player base have dx11 systems.

    Flight simulations are a cult. They bring out the fanatics. The devs threatened to scrap the project if the reviews on this site weren't favourable. The scores of 9-10 you see here are from the kool-aid drinkers.
    This is not a flight simulator and it is NOT a worthy successor to the original il2 by Oleg Maddox. It's an arcade shooter aimed at the warthunder crowd and that is a shame.
    I asked for my money back, stating that the game is not the simulator it was advertised to be. That the introduction of power ups have no place in a simulation. Eventually they agreed and refunded my premium early access $90. They will not look into unlocks, they are there to stay. My refund is testament to that.
    I give it a 1 and only because they gave me my money back    … Expand
  8. comanche
    Oct 25, 2014
    8
    Its a very well made and beautiful game. Planes and scenery look great! I don't care for the unlocks and the single player campaign needs more immersion. Multiplayer is fun. In time, I think this will be a fantastic WW2 combat sim.
  9. Johnny2
    Oct 24, 2014
    0
    This is a huge disappointment. The unlocks are a joke. Might as well fly War Thunder or any other arcade game. It was supposed to be a sim, but it is an arcade game. Too bad they did not live up to what they promised.
  10. NattyIced
    Oct 24, 2014
    8
    So many delirious reviews of this title. Yes, it doesn't have a truly dynamic campaign. Neither did Il-2 series, aside from a 3rd party that created it and was incorporated by the devs. The FM is light years beyond the original Il-2 series that had tons of issues from its inception that were slowly fixed over the course of a decade: Every aircraft had the same torque, p-factor and propsSo many delirious reviews of this title. Yes, it doesn't have a truly dynamic campaign. Neither did Il-2 series, aside from a 3rd party that created it and was incorporated by the devs. The FM is light years beyond the original Il-2 series that had tons of issues from its inception that were slowly fixed over the course of a decade: Every aircraft had the same torque, p-factor and props always rotated left hand in the FM - even Jets had prop engine physics. There was no high alt FM for years, and even when it was modified with version 4.0 the FM was still broken above 6KM. The DM was very basic, there was no chance to retain level flight with a 1/3rd of a wing shot away with aircraft that have been shown to fly level with half a wing shot away. It was impossible to taxi on one engine. There was no ground handling model. The Il-2 series previously took over a decade to get where it is today, and it still has a lot of issues that BoS does very well, and BoS performs far better in all of the FM and DM categories than the original Il-2 series.

    As far as CloD, take all of the failures above and add in it has no dynamic campaign and required a crew of individuals to come along and hack it to get it working okay. CloD is an epic failure of a WWII flight sim, so terrible that it's release caused quite the maelstrom and yet the negative reviewers here fully support it - so that should give ample evidence that the negativity is quite clearly not objective or subjective but completely in the form of a character issue.

    Yes, BoS has issues. It requires the play of Single Player to accomplish the "unlocks" which are quite simply field load outs that, in many cases, were actually standard load outs. I view this as a totally ridiculous requirement to play SP to get loadouts that were mostly historically readily available.

    The SP campaign system is okay. It's no Pat Wilson's from RoF, the beta campaign from RoF, or Starshoy's campaign (the 3rd party creator of the original Il-2's campaign system) - but it does work. There is a lot of action outside of the flight path, and a lot of alternate action going on. I was on a bombing run with a flight of Pe-2s and came across a flight of He-111s on their own mission - I attack one of the He-111s to try to shoot it down while I was en route for my objective because they were there and the Pe-2 was in fact used a bit as a heavy fighter. I damaged the He-111 but it didn't go on, and I aborted to return to my task. I had to level bomb a rail station, and I did - it worked quite well and the level bombing system works very well. It's pretty on par with the bomb sight operations of B-17: The Mighty Eighth.

    The FM and DM are very good. You can damage a plane and depending on physics damaged parts can later become separated from the aircraft based on manuevering or drag. Something neither the old Il-2 series, CloD, or DCS can claim. Aircraft can bend or break depending on collision with aircraft or ground, or based on over stress. I've flown around with a bent Il-2 fuselage, and the bend in the fuselage actually caused the Il-2 to pull up because of the angle of the horizontal stabilizer relative to the direction of motion. Again, something the other two series that are the point of praise for the negative reviewers can't do.

    There is tremendous ground handling physics with BoS. Taxiing actually requires taxiing as in the real world, not Tokyo drift across the airfield like the old Il-2 and CloD.

    There is a ton more - like great overcast or great heavy cloud features with "God Rays" peaking through that will actually light up the aircraft as it flights through them. Large moving cloud features. Turbulence below clouds.

    Quite simply, there is so much that a review can't cover it - but it is 80 to 90% positive. The negative is the unlocks. The negative reviewers here should be paid no attention.

    I have two decades of sim experience, from Confirmed Kill v.93 to today. I do know know sims, and this is one that is certainly worth at least the Standard edition.    … Expand
  11. gamerzinowich12
    Oct 24, 2014
    10
    Ok, let's get started with the fact that my score wouldn't have been 10, but around 9 or 8. I'll throw in a 10 to offset the 0-scoring cry babies that are upset since their fantasies are not fulfilled. But honestly, they should throw in a 5, 6 etc.. but they do a 0 to 4 since they're just so upset that the sim they hoped to redeem all of the past disappointments turned out not to beOk, let's get started with the fact that my score wouldn't have been 10, but around 9 or 8. I'll throw in a 10 to offset the 0-scoring cry babies that are upset since their fantasies are not fulfilled. But honestly, they should throw in a 5, 6 etc.. but they do a 0 to 4 since they're just so upset that the sim they hoped to redeem all of the past disappointments turned out not to be perfect on all aspects.

    I'll keep this short and sweet:

    The devs have created a simulator with fantastic feeling of flight and excellent hardcore dog-fighting experiences. Graphics are great despite the bit dated DX9 engine (just look at the vids). The map is excellent, but of course flying over the snow can get tiresome.. but that's not the sim's fault.

    The gripes are mostly about the plot-twist that dev team pulled, which is "grind xp to get unlocks". I think that decision is a combination of not having a budget to do a detailed historical experience and the assumption that "everyone else grinds so ME TOO".. and that idea combined with lack of budget I assume took us with the current mode of campaign. That was the stupidest thing they could do because the wrath of a flight sim scene knows no limits. It's far from perfect, but it's not the disaster some other reviews are referring to.

    Also some concerns about flight characteristics on some models. But honestly, there is evidence for and against. It's not just that "ITS WRONG" like some people say.

    SO ALL IN ALL: A nice pierce of flight sim software set for WW2 eastern front. Definitely a sim (vs. the arcade titles we've seen with WT etc) and I hope we'll see another theatre and a real campaign engine.

    But if you like flight sims, GO FOR IT! It's a no-brainer given the market that's out there and the positive aspects BOS has.

    Thanks for reading!    … Expand
  12. Bando
    Oct 24, 2014
    10
    Best sim on the market. Flying feels genuine, intuitive controls and the feeling of "being there" are gorgeous.
    Don't be fooled by the decisions of the devs (unlocks and stuff) the sim itself is worth every penny, cent or whatever you pay with. Great fun and the devs are tireless in their pursuit of prime support.
  13. Check6
    Oct 24, 2014
    0
    Unlocks, XP points, grinding and powerups - If those are things you enjoy or expect from a flight sim, then, by all means, this title is for you.

    This title tries to tell you this is the continuation of the original IL2 series yet doesn't have 10% of the features that made IL2 what it is. Combine that with developers that threaten their customers, and forum moderators that are    Unlocks, XP points, grinding and powerups - If those are things you enjoy or expect from a flight sim, then, by all means, this title is for you.

    This title tries to tell you this is the continuation of the original IL2 series yet doesn't have 10% of the features that made IL2 what it is.

    Combine that with developers that threaten their customers, and forum moderators that are amongst the worst in the business, you are left with very few people playing and even fewer with any interest to play.

    This is the 1st flight sim I've ever bought that I have absolutely 0, zip, nada, interest in playing. It's no simulator, and it's definitely not much of a game either.

    In 2014 you don't even have an option for something as simple as setting the trim on an axis of your HOTAS. You can't even create skins for the planes. You can't even choose markings or numbering for your planes.

    This is the biggest let down as a flight simmer I've seen yet. Not only does this game fail to deliver something better than products released years ago, it doesn't even deliver the very most basic features of those other titles released decades ago. To top it all off, this game is expensive.

    Save your money if you are expecting a real IL2. The closest product I can compare this to is Wings of Prey and that's probably pushing it. With very questionable flight models, a basic damage model, DX9 graphics, along with hollywood effects, the realism and accuracy of this game is completely thrown out the window.

    If you are looking for an IL2, look at the real IL2 titles made by Oleg. If you want a War Thunder grind fest in an arcade setting, this is the sim for you.    … Expand
  14. Gotre
    Oct 24, 2014
    10
    This is the best simulator of all that I've played .
    I can not put into words the feeling that you get when you first take-off in this game.
    It must try.
  15. Chris455
    Oct 24, 2014
    8
    This simulation is very immersive and enjoyable in it's release version, and has tremendous potential to become even better. What others see as shortcomings are actually features that did not make it into the release version, but can (and I believe will) be retro-fitted in later updates. A quick comparison of the original IL2 vs 1946, or even the initial release of RoF compared to theThis simulation is very immersive and enjoyable in it's release version, and has tremendous potential to become even better. What others see as shortcomings are actually features that did not make it into the release version, but can (and I believe will) be retro-fitted in later updates. A quick comparison of the original IL2 vs 1946, or even the initial release of RoF compared to the current build will reveal what I am saying- those who expect perfection (however they define it) in an initial release are doomed to disapointment. The vast majority of outright bugs have been killed with the help of the community through the early access program, which I believe will become the model for future flight sims. Many. if not most of remainder have been acknowledged as remaining "in work". The dev team was very responsive to inputs from the community. One example: the "bar" that OM failed to fix in all the years of the original IL2, was corrected within a few days by 1C/777, to the delight of the community. Unfortunately, our community remains riddled with individuals who feel that if they are not allowed to direct 100% of the activities and decision-making of the developers, they attack the final product any way they can, no matter how un-objectively. It's amazing how some people feel that a $50 investment earns them a place on the Board of Directors.
    When the smoke has settled, this sim will deserve a solid 9.5. and will take it's place right next to its famous namesake. Right now I'll give it an honest 8.
    Now, back to flying!    … Expand
  16. Kalimba1
    Oct 24, 2014
    10
    BOS is a wonderful sim. And so much more to come. I give it a 10 because it is a first to see such a complex
    simulator being so great at release. I predict that BOS will surpass in every aspect of graphics and complexity any current simulator. It is the new Milestone in WW2 sim.
  17. mudcat
    Oct 24, 2014
    7
    Really has a great core to it and should honestly be rated higher, game looks amazing, although you may go snowblind, pretty good DM, FM's seem fine to me. But the problem as probably noted in plenty of other reviews is some poor decisions regarding SP and unlocks. Unlocks can only be done in the SP campaign. So if you want those field modifications you are going to have to spend aReally has a great core to it and should honestly be rated higher, game looks amazing, although you may go snowblind, pretty good DM, FM's seem fine to me. But the problem as probably noted in plenty of other reviews is some poor decisions regarding SP and unlocks. Unlocks can only be done in the SP campaign. So if you want those field modifications you are going to have to spend a considerable amount of time in the campaign.

    As for the campaign, you have choices based on what aircraft you choose, between things like ground attack, intercept and escort etc. The missions are then randomly generated and difficulty of said missions will vary and increase based on your "pilot level".

    The missions aren't exactly the worst thing in the world, but I wouldn't exactly call them enjoyable either. It's a decision to have them work this way that has angered a lot of MP focused folks, essentially being forced to play SP. For the SP oriented folks it seems to miss the mark as there is nothing exactly imersive about it. No real coherent story to it, just a collection of randomly generated missions.

    There really is a lot of good stuff in the game, but the decision of unlocks tied to a SP randomly generated mission campaign really drags it down, this game should be an 8 or 9, but instead gets drug down by the stinker or an idea that in their unlocks system. I gave it a 7 because while that unlock business is indeed silly, it still does a lot of things really well, that and I can't give it a 7.5 :)    … Expand
  18. Masterjts
    Oct 24, 2014
    1
    This is a mediocre sim at best. The flight models have huge holes, the damage model is a joke and the ballistics is lacking. It has huge huge historical inaccuracies and is heavily russian biased. The terrain is fairly small and because the theater is Battle of Stalingrad the ground is covered in snow which means there is absolutely no variety in visuals. Even if the game's graphics wereThis is a mediocre sim at best. The flight models have huge holes, the damage model is a joke and the ballistics is lacking. It has huge huge historical inaccuracies and is heavily russian biased. The terrain is fairly small and because the theater is Battle of Stalingrad the ground is covered in snow which means there is absolutely no variety in visuals. Even if the game's graphics were top notch, which they are not, the game would look bland and boring. On top of that the game does not even give you a full set of graphic's options because the developers do not thing the community is smart enough to configure their computer's properly. (do a search and you can find the exact quote on the topic.)

    Overall I cant recommend this game at all. If you have any love for the genera then your money would be best spent elsewhere supporting people who make flight simulations instead of junk like this.

    The Legend Returns! ? Please, if anything this is the final nail in the IL-2 coffin.    … Expand
  19. F19_Klunk
    Oct 24, 2014
    9
    First of all; who am I and what do I take with me writing this review?
    I am an avid simmer and have been so for the past almost 15 years. Even though I never got into flight sim games.. as a fantic... until the early days of IL2 original, I still have played titles such as Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 1-3, European Air War, DCS titles, Rise of FLight etc etc.
    IL2 original series -    First of all; who am I and what do I take with me writing this review?
    I am an avid simmer and have been so for the past almost 15 years. Even though I never got into flight sim games.. as a fantic... until the early days of IL2 original, I still have played titles such as Microsoft's Combat Flight Simulator 1-3, European Air War, DCS titles, Rise of FLight etc etc.
    IL2 original series - with following titles such as Forgotten Battles and all it's addons (Pacific Fighters et al) - really got me into the genre, and flying with a virtual squadron since 2003, this genre and IL2 titles in particular has given me lots of great gaming moments.

    When it comes to difficulty settings, I have always seen myself as Hard core even though I have never understood the joy of clickable cockpits. I do expect a lot when it comes to immersion, realistic FM/DM/weather and scenarios. I enjoy servers and missions with objectives and have a hard time finding any fun with just swirling about with no aim, shooting at stuff that moves.
    I did try Warthunder and even though it has it's benefits, the game mechanics really put me off, and I also found it too "arcadish".

    Now, IL2 Battle of Stalingrad.

    Ever since the development of this title hit then news, my expectations have been high. Even though Cliffs of Dover had it's good moments, it was never the successor of IL2 original series we all were hoping for. I enrolled quite quickly as a "founder" for BoS, meaning payed up to access early alpha. I have reguraly played this game ever since it's first open builds.

    As far as the scope, the Stalingrad area, the developer's have really made an excellent work with the environment. The map is huge (358 ? 230 km), it is depicted quite beautifully. I guess we all wondered if the developers could pull it off, making an all winter map in white and still make it vivid and interesting to fly over.. but: Well; they did it! The GFX is fanastic!

    The planeset so far with 10 flyable planes is quite enough for this (hopefully) first "iteration", even though I am hoping for more to come. The models and extremely well done and the cockpit's well up to par. The balance of fidelity and "not so demanding on hardware" is well done.
    Sound? Never had better!
    FM/DM; even though it could -and will be- improved, it is still the "best" I have even experienced. Weather effects such as wind gives an addtional challenge when flying, especially when landing.

    Multiplayer; as we are still just a few days after release, we still only have a fews standard servers, but 50+ pilots on one server with huge possibilities to make interesting scenarios bodes well for the future. I do lack the old IL2 "coops" possibilities, but we will just have to see what time might reveal; the tight time frame of development has forced the producers to keep a "feature budget" in order to deliver the title to the market in time. So far I think they have managed that task very well.

    Single player: The developers have been able to create a Campaign which is decent. The foundation is excellent but lacks a bit in "personality". The missions generated on a central server are still interesting and I look forward to how the developers continue to enhance single player as time goes by; something they plan to do.

    The thing that is most discussed these last weeks of early access is the "locked addons" such as additional armaments and skins for the available planes, and the necessity to unlock them in single player to be able to use in multiplayer. Even though I have never been a single player type of a guy; after flying the campaign to unlock them, this feature is NOT a big issue for ME; even if I do understand some of the criticism. If this is how things will work in the future I don't know....

    In essence; Yes! This is the REAL successor of IL2! I could use words such as "amazing", "fantastic" and such, but I won't (even if the title really IS fan... and ama...."). If you are an avid flight simmer; this title is a must!! The best there is on the market - and I have tried them all. I really hope this title is successful; if it is I feel there is NO limit for what this team can achieve. The price? Well, divide the sum with the amount of hours of fun you will have and compare it to any FPS you buy with no second thought, you will find that buying this title is a no-braine...

    cheers    … Expand
  20. Gammelpreusse
    Oct 24, 2014
    6
    This is not a SIM! I'ts an aircraft "game", as said by the developers themselves. So just that you know what you get here. I will review this sim from a simmers perspective flying IL2: CloD and DCS, who wants "more" depth in a Sim, not less. IL2 1946 players though will feel right at home here.

    + Very nice graphics, all optimized to create a huge feeling of immersion of winter in    This is not a SIM! I'ts an aircraft "game", as said by the developers themselves. So just that you know what you get here. I will review this sim from a simmers perspective flying IL2: CloD and DCS, who wants "more" depth in a Sim, not less. IL2 1946 players though will feel right at home here.

    + Very nice graphics, all optimized to create a huge feeling of immersion of winter in Stalingrad 1942
    + Stable release, most bugs worked out
    + very nice aircraft models, just a bit too reflective skins

    +/- solid, but not exceptional FM, gives the feeling of flying a much lighter plane then what a WW2 warbird (loaded 3-7 tons, depending on the ftype of fighter plane) actually was, has some quirks still to be worked out (landing bounce, low speed stall characteristics, roll rates of several aircraft, max speed in all aircraft etc.) Feels more like flying an ultralight, but is still a lot better then War Thunder.

    - no campaign deserving that name
    - unlock system/level system, giving the impression of an arcade game
    - simplified damage model/Hollywood feel -> quick successes
    - simplified CEM (same level as old IL2)
    - no mission builder (yet)
    - no user made skins (yet)

    So far, a 6 with a tendency to 7, though with lots of potential for better ratings. Will check the game again in a year and see what changed. As that, I can recommend this sim for beginners, or people coming over from War Thunder seeking more of a challenge and immersive expirience. It's solid in it's core, needs some optimisation. But in it's complexity a step back from IL2 CloD and a huge step away from DCS. I'd personally call it a transition sim on the way to more challenges.    … Expand
  21. CountValar
    Oct 24, 2014
    9
    The team behind the WW1 sim Rise of Flight did this WW2 game with 1C. Fundamentally this is a hardcore simulator which is visually very appealing and polished. The developers probably glanced at War Thunder when they created an achievement based singleplayer campaign. It allows the player to quickly drop in and out of the game, which is positive, but in its current state it is not terriblyThe team behind the WW1 sim Rise of Flight did this WW2 game with 1C. Fundamentally this is a hardcore simulator which is visually very appealing and polished. The developers probably glanced at War Thunder when they created an achievement based singleplayer campaign. It allows the player to quickly drop in and out of the game, which is positive, but in its current state it is not terribly engaging. Nonetheless this is an excellent package with much to offer the serious simmer… Expand
  22. Stiglr
    Oct 24, 2014
    1
    Graphics are not bad but the xbox style presets stop you from really getting the best visuals on your pc and its only DX9.

    I like to play online but you can't access all the weapons until you unlock them in the single player. The community spoke out about this over a month ago and they just ignored them which is generally what they do if you criticize or point out a problem. The only    Graphics are not bad but the xbox style presets stop you from really getting the best visuals on your pc and its only DX9.

    I like to play online but you can't access all the weapons until you unlock them in the single player. The community spoke out about this over a month ago and they just ignored them which is generally what they do if you criticize or point out a problem.

    The only people who can run a server are the fanboys who dont criticise, one guy that did was stopped from running one, just search their forums and you can see that. No mission editor either so you just play air quake and not real battles.

    There are some really weird flight model issues that if you search on youtube will show examples of planes doing things they cant in real life. A weird bias against luftwaffe planes that when questioned gets you banned on their forums e even after you post performance stats. One of the developers scared the community a few weeks ago into giving them good scores here by threatening that the project could close in december if scores continued to be low.

    Its sad to see the IL-2 name sink to new lows. I won't give this a 0 but my score is lower because of the fanboy 10 scores.    … Expand
  23. SYN_Ricky
    Oct 24, 2014
    7
    I find it to be the best and more consistent WWII combat sim at present time.

    Graphics are very nice, from the exterior 3D models to the cockpits. Lighting and atmospheric effects are amazing. It also runs very well on my 5+ years old machine. I only experience a problem with clouds, as some other people do. Quite annoying ATM but I'm confident we'll see a fix for this. FM give a    I find it to be the best and more consistent WWII combat sim at present time.

    Graphics are very nice, from the exterior 3D models to the cockpits. Lighting and atmospheric effects are amazing. It also runs very well on my 5+ years old machine. I only experience a problem with clouds, as some other people do. Quite annoying ATM but I'm confident we'll see a fix for this.

    FM give a very good sense of flying and are quite demanding, I don't see how anyone could label them as arcade. Even if not every single switch and instrument can be activated in the cockpit, all systems are simulated and the most important ones are to be controlled by the pilot in flight and kept within the correct envelope.

    Netcode is good, MP is still limited to a few servers, as the both the dserver software and the full mission builder haven't been officially released yet, but they will be released soon. Given the previous experience with ROF and the bigger WWII community I'm pretty confident that MP will be allow for a great experience, whether you a re into pure dogfight or more into complex historical scenarios.

    SP is a bit lacking at the moment, the campaign is more like a glorified quick mission generator with not much historical immersion. Still missions are mostly pretty fun and filled with action. There's word that this mode will evolve in the future, I have no reasons so far to think it will not change.

    As for unlocks I'm not a fan of them, but they're not a game breaker for me. It seems that the unlocking process is quite quick. Still I would prefer that at leat MP was free of unlocks.

    All in all this a very convincing simulator with a clear aim at realism. There's room for criticism and for improvements, some things really need to be fixed, but it clearly doesn't deserve some of the amazingly bad reviews I see here. It might not be the absolute best in every aspect, but it does everything very good and in a convincing manner.    … Expand
  24. Auva
    Oct 24, 2014
    3
    Well, well, well,
    there we are the second time on Metacritics maybe time for a little history session before I explain my review and my score. Now, everything started in the Early Access when they released the Singleplayer campaign. It was told us to get a really great immersive campaign, with a pilot which joins different squadrons and we get told the Battle of Stalingrad. There will be    Well, well, well,
    there we are the second time on Metacritics maybe time for a little history session before I explain my review and my score. Now, everything started in the Early Access when they released the Singleplayer campaign. It was told us to get a really great immersive campaign, with a pilot which joins different squadrons and we get told the Battle of Stalingrad. There will be unlocks and everything will be great... now then they released the campaign. In short, its not even a campaign. And so the uproar began, people were saying that this is not right and bad. And the first round on metacritics began with a bad scoring of the game from desatisfied customers. The reaction of the devs? They released a post, that if the "true fanboys" of this genre won't start a crusade against the negative votes they have to shut down that game in dezember. So essential, the Developers of the Game threatened the PLAYERS that they will shut down the game if they don't make positive votes - hence so many positives votes here. :)
    Anyway they fastly closed this here, and now after release the second Battle of Metacritics will beginn... And again the Holy Crusade of the Fanboys is marching....

    Anyway, lets talk about the Game or Simulation or yeah what is it now?

    First off, this is not a real simulation anymore. It feels like a War Thunder Simulation Battle but with a little bit more simulation. So for me its more or less a great flying game, but nothing more. But this was pretty much stated many times of the devs, that the Simulation-Crowd is not their core customer base they want to have. Funnily, this Simulation-Crowd is the one who mainly brought into the game, and gave them their Early Access Money.

    What does the game good?
    - Well the graphics are okay, they are not top of the notch for 2014 and a PC game but they are not that bad either. Some textures are pretty low ress, the colour of everything is washed out and a little bit to much grey in my opinion. If you use SweetFX than you can make a pretty good looking game out of it, but the main problems with low res textures is still there. I mean come on, its 2014 we should expect a little bit more!

    - The game is stable, so hence I don't give it a 0-2 because its stable. Thats great isn't it? It runs!

    Anything more? Well, yeah it works but thats all nothing really outstanding, what overcomes any expectations If you buy a Flight game/simulation in 2014! THATS IT!

    Now the negative Side:
    This will be a little bit more, and I only can state my point of view and what is not right with the game.

    Flight Models:
    Well, here is a lot of work still to do. It doesn't feel like I'm flying fighter planes. Every plane is pretty tail heavy which is completly **** You can't even trim the 109 G2 to a straight flight because its so **** tail heavy.

    The German Planes are making strange snap rolls when flying hard dives: It is explained by one Dev that this is because the german fighter could achieve a higher g-force but funnly a Yak-1 can follow you with the same maneuver without any problem...

    Which leads me to my biggest dissatisfaction: Cherry Picking, well the devs aren't posting any sources they used, and I can understand that because well some sorces weren't cheap or are freely in the internet. But then making such cherry picking infavour for the VVS-Planes is not right! For example: The Notleistung of the 109 F-4 was only restricted in the manuals for a short time. In game we got appx. one Minute of it. In the VVS Manuals for the LaGG3 it is said that they shouldn't dive faster than 650 km/h. But because there is ONE report of a pilot which is not confirmed that he really was that fast they can easily dive above 700 km/h without any damage at all. And this goes through every plane in favour of the VVS. Hey the La-5 or LaGG3 had fuel tanks in the wings and suffered heavy controls but they roll faster than a FW190...

    This leads me to the next point, some VVS Flightmodels are real UFO's. Especially the YAK-1. It loses zero energy, can make maneuvers like a UFO and much more. Or look at the FW190, it can do a **** Cobra-Maneuver right after the take-off. The Flight physic is broken.

    I have to come short, but there is a lot of things which aren't right or doesn't work right. The campaign is just generic generated missions without any immersion. You could even change the sides after every mission. We don't have a dedicated Sever yet, no Full Mission Builder. We don't know if we can have skins or how. You are FORCED to play the singleplayer to get unlocks for the multiplayer. We have arcadish unreasonable unlocks which are comepletly meh but could be great campaign rewards. The GUI is just a bad design and not even good.

    All in all its a 4 of a 10. And I don't compare that game with any other games. There Is a lot of potential, but I doubt the devs will use it.    … Expand
  25. Mike999
    Oct 24, 2014
    1
    This sim isnt even close to be an IL2 46 successor as advertised. Limited engine for creating MP missions. Often poor MP performance on high end machine. Thers no mission editor, customizable skins or custom video settings (??!!). The FMs seems nice but nothing much better than old IL2. Clouds look odd and cockpits are not much better than modded IL2 46. Default skins and weapon and otherThis sim isnt even close to be an IL2 46 successor as advertised. Limited engine for creating MP missions. Often poor MP performance on high end machine. Thers no mission editor, customizable skins or custom video settings (??!!). The FMs seems nice but nothing much better than old IL2. Clouds look odd and cockpits are not much better than modded IL2 46. Default skins and weapon and other modifications can be unlocked only via MP grinding (xp points) which doesnt fit into this genre. Im sorry I ever bought this. Their other game RIse of flight is much better, both visually and in terms of performance.… Expand
  26. Winger
    Oct 24, 2014
    10
    This is the REAL successor to the original IL2 Series. The sense of flight is on par with Rise of Flight (same Engine - but polished and featureincreased) and thereby absolutely stunning.
    BOS made a great staret and delivers a single- and multiplayerexperience so well working that no other combat flightsim in history can compete. Sure there still some things are missing like snow and    This is the REAL successor to the original IL2 Series. The sense of flight is on par with Rise of Flight (same Engine - but polished and featureincreased) and thereby absolutely stunning.
    BOS made a great staret and delivers a single- and multiplayerexperience so well working that no other combat flightsim in history can compete. Sure there still some things are missing like snow and rain but I am sure the devs wont stop optimizing at this point since this is only the beginning of a new era of WWII Combat flightsimming. So if youre a combat flightsim enthusiast the title is an absolute MUST HAVE!    … Expand
  27. Azradiel
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    Excellent flight experience. SP campaign is not what I was expecting but is not that bad either. The game has a very dedicated community so it will shine once all the player created missions hit in. You can already feel some of it when visiting MP servers like SYNDICATE that are testing custom missions creation at the moment.
  28. Sputi
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    Not the TRUE remake of the classic (yet), but certainly a big step in the right direction:

    + fantastic 3D plane models from the outside (never seen better in any sim out there). + good FM for what it is (certainly much better than the old il2 or 1946) + runs stable and smooth and hasn't any major bugs or technical flaws - the cockpits aren't nearly as sophisticated as they could be    Not the TRUE remake of the classic (yet), but certainly a big step in the right direction:

    + fantastic 3D plane models from the outside (never seen better in any sim out there).
    + good FM for what it is (certainly much better than the old il2 or 1946)
    + runs stable and smooth and hasn't any major bugs or technical flaws

    - the cockpits aren't nearly as sophisticated as they could be graphic wiese in 2014 (they are worse than Cliffs of Dovers which is 3 years on the marked...)
    - the map and the cities are lifeless and have not many details (i.e. rubble, telegraph poles, etc., again worse than Cliffs of Dovers)
    - no infantry, which is a shame for a game about one of the biggest infantry battles in history

    (-) if you dispice unlocks, well, the game has them (however no microtransactions or that sort of s***, thankfuly)
    (-) no clickable cockpits, for hardcore simer (like me) thats a real bummer
    (-) outdated graphics engine; I fear we will stick with the same graphical quality for quite a long time, which is a pitty considering this is an engine (digital nature engine) is already outdated today.

    And for the FM debate: you won't find a game in which everybody agrees about the flight model. There isn't just one. So imho you can ignore the FM debate, because for me as a long time simer I think it is well enough to immerse you into the world and enjoy the strengths (and weaknesses) of your plane.
    An F4 is the truly superiour plane than a LaGG. I don't know if it is correct to the last 5% but who knows? It certainly is sophisticated and far away from being arcade.

    I would give the game a 7.5 but will give it an 8 because is the game exactely what I wanted? No. But is it a good product for everyone to enjoy and did the devs sincerely try to release a good flight sim? Definitely yes.    … Expand
  29. Felix53
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    A worthy addition to the library of any enthusiast of WW2 aviation. The flight model was developed by a guy 777 got from DCS. The DCS model is well regarded by the flight sim community and I would say il2 BOS is at least on a par with DCS on that issue. The developers have concentrated on the flying aspect of the game rather than every button and switch like DCS. This will appeal toA worthy addition to the library of any enthusiast of WW2 aviation. The flight model was developed by a guy 777 got from DCS. The DCS model is well regarded by the flight sim community and I would say il2 BOS is at least on a par with DCS on that issue. The developers have concentrated on the flying aspect of the game rather than every button and switch like DCS. This will appeal to many, particularly those new to the genre. BTW I like WW2 DCS models as well, when I am in the mood for detail. At the moment BOS is better than DCS with the range of aircraft, ground attack targets (moving vehicles) and graphics.

    Ignore the haters (what is all that about!!??) and try this title if you are a WW2 flight sim enthusiast. More upside than down side. Is it perfect, no, what game is? Is it very good? Yes.    … Expand
  30. EiToro
    Oct 23, 2014
    5
    i think this game a huge back step from a simulator for example CloD. They want to meet both the casual and the pro pilots requirements. Everyone know its impossible to achieve. Some FM model awful, like 109s negative G. And a russians planes originally was much harder to keep on the air than this game.

    Noting more just a fair Arcade game in this stage, but far from a sim. It has named    i think this game a huge back step from a simulator for example CloD. They want to meet both the casual and the pro pilots requirements. Everyone know its impossible to achieve. Some FM model awful, like 109s negative G. And a russians planes originally was much harder to keep on the air than this game.

    Noting more just a fair Arcade game in this stage, but far from a sim. It has named sim just because you have a cockpit. Push the throttle then soot em' all thats of the content, the fan made mission better than the built-in. Available combat tactics so limited, litte mainstream and childish. Maybe the bombers has proper engine management (so-so).

    First look the game eye-candy, but you have to have a high end comp to run it well when you facing the crowds. The devs have promised 100/server, now 75/server barely can maintain. And about the campaign. Random generated stuff without conception. Few chapter, but dont try to find logic in it.

    I think they want to compete with War Thunder, but originally was IL-2 the game of sophisticated pilots not the casual ones.

    Conclusion:
    1. Casual player wont buy it because the controlling devices.
    2. For a Hardcore players it a weak game.    … Expand
  31. rpgielow
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Best game to fly WW2 bombers ever !!! Heinkel 111 is a dream and Stuka sirens spread terror on the battlefield !!! Multiplayer is solid with no lag. Servers and community evolving quickly. This is the game we gonna play for the next 10 years. A must have for warbirds lovers :)
  32. secret_squirrel
    Oct 23, 2014
    3
    Meh, I really want to give this game more but I cannot.
    The graphics are for the most part ok. One can really see the low quality of the textures when sitting in the cockpit. I'm guessing it was a toss up between performance and quality when using a game engine which still uses DX9. they chose performance. It's 2014, why not chose DX11? A poor development decision, and not the only one.    Meh, I really want to give this game more but I cannot.
    The graphics are for the most part ok. One can really see the low quality of the textures when sitting in the cockpit. I'm guessing it was a toss up between performance and quality when using a game engine which still uses DX9. they chose performance. It's 2014, why not chose DX11? A poor development decision, and not the only one. "power ups"? The developers have been in the flight sim game long enough to know that Multi-player is a huge part of the appeal of ww2 combat flight simulation for the punters. How can the dedicated servers,when the arrive, run COOP missions when the player base "power up" level is all over the place? It's mind boggling that the devs chose to implement such a bad idea.
    Flight models are not the worst but they are certainly not the best. This is NOT a combat flight simulator. It's somewhere between warthunder and il2 1946. It's an arcade flight shooter. Warthunder players there is no mouse aim and it's not free but if you have a joystick and you don't mind spending money to grind your way to "power ups" You may find it a small step up from warthunder.
    I really wanted to like this game, I really want to see potential in it but the developers seem to have taken no notice of the paying early access customers and made some pretty poor decisions. I don't hold out much hope for further development, aircraft, maps. The developer threatened to shut down the project when some bad reviews appeared. Who can tell if there will be further development when, one of the guys running the show, shows such a lack of faith in his own project?
    Meh and only meh.    … Expand
  33. sncollie
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    TL/DR Version: If you enjoy Rise of Flight, and like to see a WWII version of it...this is it.

    Longer version: I've played flight-sims since 1984. Probably the reason for my lack-luster College performance, and probably why my career's in the tank. I spend WAY too much time on them. So I've been through this dance before. The "OMG a new flight-sim is coming out, I can't wait!!"    TL/DR Version: If you enjoy Rise of Flight, and like to see a WWII version of it...this is it.

    Longer version:

    I've played flight-sims since 1984. Probably the reason for my lack-luster College performance, and probably why my career's in the tank. I spend WAY too much time on them. So I've been through this dance before. The "OMG a new flight-sim is coming out, I can't wait!!" dance...followed by the "Wow, this sucks after-all!" part. Fortunately, Il-2: Battle of Stalingrad (BOS from now on) isn't in that category.

    At it's core, it really is Rise of Flight updated to WWII aircraft and tech. And this is a good thing...mostly. Obviously the graphics are top-notch, the Flight-Models are believable, and the game-play is...well, a flight-simulator.

    Warning: I'm not a stickler for 100% accuracy...if the Me109 is 3 kmh slower than the real thing at 8K meters, I'm not gonna gripe. As long as it feels like I'm flying an WWII-era fighter, and not a UFO, I'm cool. Life is too short for that...I want a fun (but not arcade-like) sim.

    BOS feels right, looks good, sounds good, and it incredibly fun to play. Gunning down an artillery emplacement while Flak and small arms fire whizzes past your canopy is a rush. Watching smoke and fire billow out of a bomber as you pump cannon rounds into it s appropriately (or inappropriately, really) rewarding.

    Now onto the bad stuff.

    Let's get this outta the way...the Unlock system. Yeah, it's a bad design decision, yeah it kinda sucks, and yeah I wish it wasn't there. But it is not a deal-breaker...nowhere near it. In fact, I actually kinda liked it at first. But then I realized I was playing, not to have fun, but to get the next unlock that I thought would make the sim MORE fun. So I chilled, and just enjoyed playing through the Campaign.

    The Campaign does need some more work. Right now, it's very generic. No Squad name, no pilot names...just go here, blow this up, don't get killed. The missions themselves are fun, but still lack any sort of "connection" to history. What Battalion did I just attack? Which squad just saved my bacon from enemy fighters? What's my Wingman's name?

    Multi-player: not a big MP guy, so sorry can't help you there....yes I know the majority of complaints regarding the unlocks are from MP pilots...and I sympathize.

    Final verdict:
    I really wasn't sure what arbitrary number rating to give. So I just went with the fact that I'm having a really good time with this. I seriously can't wait to stop reviewing this and go play another mission. Is it worth $60? Well, I was an Early Access guy, so I paid even more. Am I still glad I paid more? Sure am. Would I do the same now that I know about the final product? Sure would.

    The end of the day it boils down to HAVING FUN. And BOS does that for me.    … Expand
  34. CBZ
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Amazing WWII flight simulator. Great feel, visuals and fun. The game has evolved tremendously since early alpha nd now that it has been released you can appreciate how far it has come.
    The gameplay is fun and as soon as user made server missions are created and the mission editor released to the public the game is going to be even better. This game will flourish with time, as other sims    Amazing WWII flight simulator. Great feel, visuals and fun. The game has evolved tremendously since early alpha nd now that it has been released you can appreciate how far it has come.
    The gameplay is fun and as soon as user made server missions are created and the mission editor released to the public the game is going to be even better. This game will flourish with time, as other sims have.
    It's not an arcade game although it can have some simplified controls if you wish. So don't expect a Warthunder experience. Expect more!
    I can only recommend using a joystick for this game, and if you can afford it, a HOTAS + TrackIR.
    Awesome game with a great community. I'm sure developers will expand the plane selection and maps in the future.    … Expand
  35. max_powers
    Oct 23, 2014
    0
    As a long time simmer I think I should clear some things up.

    BoS is the game that killed the I2 series. Jason Williams literally came to 1c and convinced them to cancel development on Il2; Battle of Moscow. The true successor to the Il2 series made by Il2 developers. Jason Williams is someone with no background in flight sims, someone who worked for a hardware manufacturer and saw an    As a long time simmer I think I should clear some things up.

    BoS is the game that killed the I2 series. Jason Williams literally came to 1c and convinced them to cancel development on Il2; Battle of Moscow. The true successor to the Il2 series made by Il2 developers. Jason Williams is someone with no background in flight sims, someone who worked for a hardware manufacturer and saw an opportunity in buying NeoGB – a company that made a WW1 flight sim.

    Under Jasons brilliant guidance, the renamed NeoGB started making DLC the likes of which that would make bethesda with their horse armor envious. He managed to milk the ww1 flight sim fans, at east the fanatic ones, for all they were worth. And in the process drove off all the hard core simmers, thanks to his complete disregard for historically accurate performance.

    Now this Jason Williams is tainting the Il2 name, one of the most esteemed in all of combat flight simming, by making a game that follows the lead of Rise of Flight. One filled with micro-transactions, with little care given to historical flight performance and no care given to the machines used at stalingrad. This is a game where the 190 is given free reign over stalingrad, even though it never served there. While the iconic Ju-52, which played a vital role at stalingrad is simply absent… I think some of this has to do with what planes will sell to the “light sim” audience 777 is targeting.

    For everyone who is reading about this game and might be thinking “this is a sequel to Il2″ – it is not. This is a cash grab by a developer who has shown a clear disdain for its community time and time again. A developer who cares more about making 1.99 off of colored scarves rather then updating the flight models of aircraft that are clearly inaccurate (they said it was too hard to do and their engine made changing fms impossible, but they added altimeters for money!

    I think this article is a case of PC world not having enough experience to properly rate something as specialized as a flight sim. They hear the BS of the developers and take it a face value, whereas the flight sims fans already know the story.

    As a long time CFS (combat flight sim) and most of all, an Il2 fan, please don’t buy this game. It is a disgrace to the Il2 name, a fast and cheap money grab that takes advantage of people from lighter sims, like War thunder and World of Warplanes, to make money. This is IL2 dragged through the mud, with bad physics thrown in, and microtrnasactions tossed in.

    This is a game made by a man wanting money, with no love or care for aviation, let alone ww2. Dont give opportunists like this your money    … Expand
  36. LuseKofte
    Oct 23, 2014
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Excelent Game physics, very good models, FM is from mediocre to excellent, Cockpits are not in the same league as cod , but quite adequate, Personally I like the russian planes best.
    Damage model is adequate but wish for a little more complex one -1 . Singel player unlocks are to me not positive , and the single player campaign is a disappointment -1
    Some strange maneuvering can be provoked -1

    I can recommend this simulator for all skill levels, it is great fun and the dedicated servers are filled with dedicated pilots    … Expand
  37. Hooves_McG
    Oct 23, 2014
    7
    The sim aspects of this product excell! The feeling of flight, the faithful recreation of the period Fighters and bombers is excellent, the FM/DM all top notch.

    Where this GAME goes off the rails is its design decisions. A War Thunder-esque XP unlock system that, left in Single player would make sense (though its wrapped up in a sub-par campaign system). 1CGS has elected to force the    The sim aspects of this product excell! The feeling of flight, the faithful recreation of the period Fighters and bombers is excellent, the FM/DM all top notch.

    Where this GAME goes off the rails is its design decisions. A War Thunder-esque XP unlock system that, left in Single player would make sense (though its wrapped up in a sub-par campaign system). 1CGS has elected to force the sims content (weapons, mods, and paint jobs) to be unlocked before it can be used in Multi-player. Which seems completely backwards. It has dragged the MP community kicking and screaming into an environment they would rather not be in, and indeed many have just forgone the purchase of the sim/game to avoid the grind style of play of an MMO in a game that has admittedly rebuked (by the devs) that they are not an MMO. This design decision leaves a very schizophrenic taste in many a consumers mouths. Worst yet, is that up to this point they had all the ingriedients of a blockbuster return of the "legendary series", but muffed the ball on the 2 yard line. Leaving me no choice but to give it a disappointed 7 of 10, of what otherwise would have been a 9.    … Expand
  38. Flightsimvids
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    This sim, a successor to the venerable Il-2-series, is made by the team of Russian programmers that created WWI flight sim Rise of Flight.

    IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad may - if sales are good - be just the first in a whole new range of combat flight sims that will encompass many WWII theatres of war and planes of all nations. This first release only takes place over the frozen steppes of    This sim, a successor to the venerable Il-2-series, is made by the team of Russian programmers that created WWI flight sim Rise of Flight.

    IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad may - if sales are good - be just the first in a whole new range of combat flight sims that will encompass many WWII theatres of war and planes of all nations. This first release only takes place over the frozen steppes of Russia with just one major city modelled: Stalingrad. Let's hope upcoming releases will give us more than snow and ice to fly over, because the map modelling, lighting, weather and volumetric clouds are really top-notch and it will be wonderful to see green land, oceans, deserts and mountains making their appearance in this sim one day.

    If the map is a bit bland (being all snow-covered) the same cannot be said for the action taking place there. When playing missions in the single-player campaigns included in the sim you really feel as if you are flying over a live, heavily embattled combat zone. Huge palls of smoke hang over Stalingrad and other small towns on the frontline. Flak and tracer fire paint the sky and lots of action happens on the ground, where you see artillery shells crashing down constantly. A far cry from the sometimes sparsely populated maps of RoF.

    When it comes to the core of any combat flight sim, namely the planes, the flight and damage modelling, the dogfighting and the bombing, Il-2: BoS is frankly second to none. The graphics, sounds, the realism in flight, the sense of inertia and heft to the planes, the brutal clatter of machineguns, twisting smoke trails of cannon fire, the multi-faceted damage modelling... it is all just superlative and a really updated, intense improvement on all earlier sims. White knuckles and sweaty brows guaranteed!

    It is clear that the developers have aimed for high realism, without any compromises in the name of "balancing". If you take up a Russian LaGG against a Messershmitt Bf-109F prepare to be outgunned, out-maneuvered and quickly out of options! - It can be brutal, but also a real challenge, where superior piloting is the only thing standing betwen you and disaster. You don't get many simming experiences much more satisfying than winning a dogfight in BoS. It won't come easy, it will require a lot of practice and mastering a sometimes steep learning curve, but oh is it delightful to get there in the end and see an opponent (online or AI) going down in flames trailing a billowing smoke trail!

    The cockpits are beautifully modelled, even though they don't quite meet the (almost) ridiculous detailing of cockpits in Cliffs of Dover and the DCS series. No complaints though: the 'pits are definitely gorgeous and look fabulous with six degrees-of-freedom TrackIR. The sim will support the upcoming retail version of Oculus Rift, which is reportedly totally mindblowing in BoS (something I can easily imagine, having tried OR Devkit 1 with WarThunder).

    The campaigns in BoS are very good: much more lively than single-player fare in earlier sims such as Il-2: 1946 et al. A nice variety of missions that very often throw surprises at you and really let you try all kinds of missions, from escorting to groundpounding to intercepts and free-ranging dogfights. The AI is very impressive and can really give you a run for your money: much better than in earlier sims, even to the point of using advanced tactics and energy management. There are unlocks of secondary features (extra liveries and the like) that can be earned throughout the campaigns. This feature has strangely attracted the unbridled hate of a small group of flight simmers who think it is too "gamey", which explains some of the ridiculously negative reviews here on Metacritic.

    Multiplayer is (for me) where the real fun is, and it has been fantastic throughout the period in which the sim was in open beta. It doesn't get better than fighting live opponents in the excellent servers that are gradually popping up. BoS obviously offers rich opportuinities for mission creation and some servers are already exploring very advanced features, where players get very realistic missions to accomplish.

    All in all, Il-2: BoS is a great beginning to (hopefully) a new series of sims that I wish will branch out to many WWII theatres of war in the coming years. There aren't many high-fidelity combat flight sims out there: this is the most promising and the most ambitious. It is polished and surprisingly bug-free, a really solid release worth every penny to the discerning simmer who prefers realism and historical correctness to mindless shoot-'em-up gaming.    … Expand
  39. SimFlight22
    Oct 23, 2014
    3
    First off, if you see a 10 score, know that it is a biased "review" started from the official forums by the fanatics. Yes, go look up the official BoS forum and look at the campaign started by the fans. Its a disgrace. Its far from a TRUE score.

    Sadly, this game cannot stand on its own merits, therefore gets inflated by the forum users. Bottom line is this is not worthy of using the    First off, if you see a 10 score, know that it is a biased "review" started from the official forums by the fanatics. Yes, go look up the official BoS forum and look at the campaign started by the fans. Its a disgrace. Its far from a TRUE score.

    Sadly, this game cannot stand on its own merits, therefore gets inflated by the forum users.

    Bottom line is this is not worthy of using the IL2 name. From the arcade unlocks and xp points to the generic campaign. This is nothing like the good old IL2 1946.

    The main fault? The campaign. Supposedly 80% of BoS was centered around this part. Its arcade, boring, and just plain bad. Its random quick missions over and over again with no pilot stats, and no real squadrons from that time period. In fact, there are no squadron marking in the game. The campaign is not dynamic like Dgen or DCG for Il21946. It gets dull fast, but if you want unlocks you have to play it for xp points. Yes, xp points in a WWII "sim". This also carries over to multiplayer. You want to use unlocks and skins online? Go grind your xp in single player. It wouldnt be so bad if it was actually fun.

    Custom campaign options are also out. Custom gfx setting are also out. But having to be connected to play the single player campaign is in.

    There is also no dedicated server. You will not be moving your squad from another game. Nope you have a select few servers, that are at peak pretty barren. There is no mission editor either. You will not be creating missions. Again 2 things that old IL21946 did, and did well.

    Its sad when a company takes a name like IL2 and makes it War Thunder 2.0, then tries to sell it to the sim market. Its an insult.

    People looking for a great sim experience might want to look at IL21946 (5-10 bucks) and get it modded. Want something more pretty? Cliffs of Dover with the Team Fusion patches (5-10 bucks). For $20 you can have tons more than BoS can offer right now, in single player and mulitplayer without spending $60 + bucks for BoS.    … Expand
  40. Anzac
    Oct 23, 2014
    4
    This game, and I call it a 'game' as opposed to a sim, claims to be the next iteration of the venerable IL series which set the benchmark for flight combat simulation on PCs for years. It is not. Far from it. Yes, it has very well developed flight models and the graphics are superb. This is all to the good. But, very significantly for those looking for a true successor to the IL series,This game, and I call it a 'game' as opposed to a sim, claims to be the next iteration of the venerable IL series which set the benchmark for flight combat simulation on PCs for years. It is not. Far from it. Yes, it has very well developed flight models and the graphics are superb. This is all to the good. But, very significantly for those looking for a true successor to the IL series, bad design decisions late in its development introduced gamey and arcade characteristics to the game. You have to grind through pointless missions, for example, to unlock certain points and weapons, planes etc. Like a War Thunder experience. As a single player, you will be left sorely dissapointment. If you like arcade WT-ish type games, with better flight physics, then this is probably the game for you. If you want a deep, well designed simulation, then stay away from BoS.… Expand
  41. ALROM
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    It is quite enaugh for simulator, i wonder how people can be so negative. I have not best computer with i3 3.5 GHZ and Radeon r 280 X and i run BoS at Ultra settings with 65-85 FPS.
    I really like to learn to fly Lagg 3 and Bf 109 and want to become really dogfighter.
  42. robtek
    Oct 23, 2014
    4
    First thing: disregard the 0,1, 9 and 10 scores, those are either fanbois, praising their idol to heaven or people with a axe to grind. IMO of course :D
    As I bought the game very early I fell into the trap to assume that it would be a improved IL2-1946 and at least as good as the abandoned IL2-Cliffs of Dover.
    I was wrong! While this game sports very nice graphics and sounds, it lacks    First thing: disregard the 0,1, 9 and 10 scores, those are either fanbois, praising their idol to heaven or people with a axe to grind. IMO of course :D
    As I bought the game very early I fell into the trap to assume that it would be a improved IL2-1946 and at least as good as the abandoned IL2-Cliffs of Dover.
    I was wrong!
    While this game sports very nice graphics and sounds, it lacks in the sim department.
    The flight model gives imo no real feeling of weight of the planes, especially when landing they float and float, very unlike as in real life where I occasionally dumped a Cessna the last 20 - 30 cm because of the stall.
    Not so here, too fast and you bounce and you have to become really slow to reach the stall.
    The FM has too many discrepancies, FW 190 roll rate, FW 190 Cobra manoeuvre, in general the twisty reactions of the axis fighters and rock steady (felt) reactions of the VVS fighters.
    The DM needs to be reworked also, attacked planes are loosing wings or other major parts waay to easy. Almost every hit gives at least a major leak, a fire, or with cannons a major structural damage.
    That disregards that at least 70% of the fuselage is empty and has no critically load bearing structures.
    The DM is clearly made for gamers, not for the sim crowd, as success is easy and spectacular.
    If you want a flight game -> you've found it, and a really good one.
    If you want a sim -> stay with IL2-Cliffs of Dover or wait for DCS WWII or even stay with IL2-1946.
    Same if you want to fly as a group, BoS doesn't deliver that, at least for now.
    Mission building will be available in the future, we'll see. Collapse    … Expand
  43. tzigy
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    Avid flight simmer, going back to RedBaron, Falcon 4, AOE, etc. Have most of DCS titles, ROF, etc. Many hours online in IL-2 1946, CLOD, and now BOS. This product is simply incredible. Yes, it is not perfect, and I would like some features changed (unlocks, having full controls over graphics settings and few other minor things). I have flown in RL. The feeling of flight/immersion in thisAvid flight simmer, going back to RedBaron, Falcon 4, AOE, etc. Have most of DCS titles, ROF, etc. Many hours online in IL-2 1946, CLOD, and now BOS. This product is simply incredible. Yes, it is not perfect, and I would like some features changed (unlocks, having full controls over graphics settings and few other minor things). I have flown in RL. The feeling of flight/immersion in this sim is second to NONE. Great job developers!!!… Expand
  44. Smurfy1967
    Oct 23, 2014
    6
    Everythings there for this title to be a future classic. The externals are very very well done, the landscape and general scenary are what you`d expect of a snow covered Stalingrad area. The little extras like the cylinder firing flashes etc etc are all very well done.

    The cockpits imo are not that great, definitley not as good as CloD or DCS and that`s a shame, they are dull bland and    Everythings there for this title to be a future classic. The externals are very very well done, the landscape and general scenary are what you`d expect of a snow covered Stalingrad area. The little extras like the cylinder firing flashes etc etc are all very well done.

    The cockpits imo are not that great, definitley not as good as CloD or DCS and that`s a shame, they are dull bland and lifeless almost as if someone has thrown a veil over them, possibly the SSAO but without full access to all the graphics options you are left with how they think you should see the game whereas a lot of us want to be able to tweak as we like, bad decision number 1 that one.

    I can`t comment of the FM or DM as I don`t spend hours analysing such stuff on the internet, the planes feel as though you`re flying them which is good enough for me. Again though the community threw a lot of info into the ring and were met with a less than welcoming response. They sent a project manager with poor English and a sarcastic bias to answer questions and then post responses usually comically negative to claims that were made. When you refuse to listen to someone who has flown all the recently built Yak 3 and 9`s you have serious self importance issues.

    The decision to force everyone to play the Sigle Player Campaign which is nothing more than some QMB style missions arranged into a campaign with childish Experience Points and Weapons unlocks is baffling to even the most ardent fan.

    For 80 weeks we were predominantly onboard with the direction BoS was taking, then the unlocks and XP bomb was dropped and hell broke loose on the forums, threats, forum tantrums between major devs and punters, threads locked , posts deleted, all left a bad taste in the mouth. The general feeling for myself is that they want control over everything and the paying customers opinion matters not if it doesn`t fall into line with their philosophy. 80 good PR weeks tainted by 3 spectacularly bad ones.

    Despite 90+ % expressing a less than favourable response to the unlocks poll, they still implemented it!!!! approx 1000 total voters over all btw. That says a lot to me, a real **** you attitude regards players wishes cannot be good for relations, the poll was a sham btw, never had a hope of anything being done.

    Anyway I personally won`t let three bad weeks ruin my enjoyment, it`s a good quality product that will only get better if the Devs wake up and realise a lot of us have been playing these games for years , we know what we want, we know what we like and some even know what they`re talking about. Get rid of the unlock farce, give us FMB and DS and the majority will be back fully behind you.

    Anyone voting less than 4 probably has issues beyond the game imo.    … Expand
  45. JagdNeun
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    I've been flying combat flight sims for the last twenty five years....and this game is the best quality flight sim to be released right out of the box, in all that time. If you want to experience some historical immersion complemented with great graphics....and atmospheric flight conditions rendered in superb authenticity, you really need to try this game. The learning curve is notI've been flying combat flight sims for the last twenty five years....and this game is the best quality flight sim to be released right out of the box, in all that time. If you want to experience some historical immersion complemented with great graphics....and atmospheric flight conditions rendered in superb authenticity, you really need to try this game. The learning curve is not overpowering, and the plans for the games continued support both by the company and third party enthusiasts has already began. This is the best flight sim to come out in years and I urge you to give it a try.

    In all fairness, the game uses a system of unlocks which can be viewed as equipment upgrades, so it is necessary to complete the campaign section of the game, one phase at a time. Some of the multiplayer guys are a little upset about the unlocking system, so you might see some lower ratings based on that situation alone. Had it not been for that situation and the lack of a better historical unit based career mode....I would have given this game a "10".    … Expand
  46. StarTux
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    Having also played Rise of Flight since almost the start I feel Il2: Battle of Stalingrad's release has actually been better, despite the negatives.

    Pro's: Feeling of flight: Each plane feels unique and feels as though it has mass, most flight sims really feel like you're on rails, this one certainly does not. Graphics: Excellent overall, from the soldiers walking around, start up    Having also played Rise of Flight since almost the start I feel Il2: Battle of Stalingrad's release has actually been better, despite the negatives.

    Pro's:

    Feeling of flight: Each plane feels unique and feels as though it has mass, most flight sims really feel like you're on rails, this one certainly does not.

    Graphics: Excellent overall, from the soldiers walking around, start up effects, the ambience is excellent! Night flying is a beautiful sight to behold.

    Campaign system: I like the way this has been separated by narrative into different phases, each in turn unlocked whilst playing it. Some may dislike this, but for a campaign it is excellent. Some of the flights I have undertaken have resulted in sweaty palms for sure, especially when coming back to home airfield to see it under attack.

    Control scheme: Not much different from ROF, easy to set up.

    Damage modelling: About spot on, cannon shells or a few rounds of even machine gun bullets going through and engine will spell its end quite quickly. Even a well aimed, or lucky shot onto a wing will blow it off (there are good camera footage from Ww2 showing this).

    Graphics: Brilliant overall. Weather and night effects as well as aircraft models are top notch.

    Cons:

    Campaign unlocks: I don't multiplay much, but feel these should be dealt with server side and not subject to the single player system, hopefully this will change.

    Cockpits: They're not bad, just not as high def as the ones seen in Clod or DCS, they seem to lack as much depth.

    Career: There is currently no career, I see career and campaign as separate entities. I do hope to see one someday with a full pilot career being available with the usual RPG elements we all love.

    For a new series this a great beginning, I don't buy into a flightsim for just a quick 'game' once, rather with luck and success they can continue to grow over the years to come with new aircraft, theatres and mode. Indeed, just allowing co-op mode within the campaign would add a lot to the sim already.

    I give it a 9/10 a great solid start.    … Expand
  47. Zami
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    New coming of Il-2 is pretty impressive. Just after a year or so development first version of the game is launched.

    Starting with eye candy it is really top notch, really good atmosphere and feeling of cold Stalingrad and planes are really beautiful. Same goes with sounds, they are working. Flight model feels like flying, not going on rails. Every plane has a very unique feeling and    New coming of Il-2 is pretty impressive. Just after a year or so development first version of the game is launched.

    Starting with eye candy it is really top notch, really good atmosphere and feeling of cold Stalingrad and planes are really beautiful. Same goes with sounds, they are working.

    Flight model feels like flying, not going on rails. Every plane has a very unique feeling and are fun to fly. Damage model is on good level, planes taking hits and damage on different parts of plane depending on hits taken.

    AI is using same flight models than player which is good. AI is decent at the moment and gets job done most of the times. Although it could use some work still and it will be improved further in future updates.

    There are quick mission builder, separate missions and campaign available to the single player. QMB is working tool for testing and quick fights with AI up to the 16 planes. Separate missions include 14 different kind of missions at the moment.

    Campaign is not a traditional career type. There are 5 chapters in campaign and you progress through them by flying succesful missions and gathering experience points in the process. Experience points unlock wide variety of new features for planes. They range from new cannons and bombs to additional armour. You can choose every time different plane and different type of mission on any stage of the campaign. It is working quite well for what it is. I would prefer career type campaign but still I have played current one with great pleasure. Missions generated have been very fun to play, I have played it through already and still keep flying. Hopefully at some stage game gets proper career campaign but this is a good start.

    Overall its been a good experience past year from early access to first release. Development is going to continue, foundation is good.    … Expand
  48. RegRag1977
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    One can be impressed by what the dev team achieved in such a short period of time! The game is already very good and really belongs to the IL2 1946 family. Some so-called experts will tell you that the FM are incorrrect or strange when they actually never flew any WW2 fighter and don't know much more about WW2 fighter piloting than the average sim pilot... Well don't be impressed, try forOne can be impressed by what the dev team achieved in such a short period of time! The game is already very good and really belongs to the IL2 1946 family. Some so-called experts will tell you that the FM are incorrrect or strange when they actually never flew any WW2 fighter and don't know much more about WW2 fighter piloting than the average sim pilot... Well don't be impressed, try for yourself: you will enjoy this sim, and you will learn a lot more from it than from their boring and patronizing ranting and whining :) Try it, you wont regret it!… Expand
  49. Georgio41
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    A worthy successor to the all time classic flight sim; Battle over Stalingrad takes IL-2's banner and runs with it. The most realistic feeling of flight without actually getting into a WW2 aircraft and bodes well for when Oculus Rift's CV1 is released to realise new levels of immersion that can only be dreamed off.

    Quite simply the best.
  50. IIN8II
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    The game is beautiful and immersive. The multiplayer experience has been my favorite aspect so far, especially when teamed up with some other pilots over teamspeak. The feeling of flight is very satisfying as well, even more so with the weather and wind effects. The game has the ability to attract newcomers to flight sim games from the very popular Free-to-play titles, by offering easierThe game is beautiful and immersive. The multiplayer experience has been my favorite aspect so far, especially when teamed up with some other pilots over teamspeak. The feeling of flight is very satisfying as well, even more so with the weather and wind effects. The game has the ability to attract newcomers to flight sim games from the very popular Free-to-play titles, by offering easier setting for more novice pilots without sacrificing realism until they can get comfortable with complex engine management.. Some people seem to be turned off by this and turn their nose up at these types of players and the dev team for trying to appeal to a broader market. Bringing in players who's interest has been sparked by the arcades style games and want something more is essential to the survival of the genre as a whole.
    The single player campaign is fun and immersive as you may stumble upon patrolling enemy fighters on your way to the target, or witness a dogfight taking place off in the distance. You can also see tank and other battles going on in the distance as well, which is very immersive. I will say that it does lack the career mode like ROF which would have been a nice touch. The lack of this feature can make the campaign feel a bit like a single mission generator at times.

    I think the biggest negative aspect of this game was the decision by the developers implement an xp/unlock system. In order to used field mods for your aircraft in MP, you have to unlock them while playing singleplayer. This has upset a lot of MP only players who don't want to have to grind out xp in the SP campaign in order to have their desired load out in MP. I agree that the SP and campaign should be separate and all unlocks should be available in MP unless restricted by server settings.

    It's easy to compare BoS to other games that have been out for years and have been heavily modded and say that it lacks certain content. However you have to remember that those games were much the same when they were released. All in all I would have to say that I am very pleased with the game so far and that my money has been well spent. I look forward to the future of this game.    … Expand
  51. IanJeremiah
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    Gorgeous graphics, a wonderful feeling of flight and for me rock solid performance. Some people don't like the campaign and unlocks and personally I wasn't sure how they would affect my enjoyment of the game. But after playing it the campaign missions are so immersive that I'm actually loving it. The unlocks are nearly all minor items that were rare at the time so they shouldn't affectGorgeous graphics, a wonderful feeling of flight and for me rock solid performance. Some people don't like the campaign and unlocks and personally I wasn't sure how they would affect my enjoyment of the game. But after playing it the campaign missions are so immersive that I'm actually loving it. The unlocks are nearly all minor items that were rare at the time so they shouldn't affect your enjoyment of the game even if you don't want to play through the campaign. Currently waiting for the release of the dedicated server and mission builder, both of which have been promised by the developers. Once they are in I'll give it 10.… Expand
  52. JG1_Baron
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Simply - the best simulator from WW2 era. Beatifull graphic, great FM etc. I think that this IL2: BOS is really nexgen game for simulator fans, especially for Eastfront.
    As i said before - the best sim.
  53. mprhead
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    Good, solid foundation to build on. Works "out of the box", also with bit older computers. Graphics are good and so is feeling of flight. Realism options will help beginners to jump in. Single player campaign is not the most immersive at least at the moment and unlock system doesn't really feel right. At least not the way it's implemented now.
    Multiplayer have potential also, and there is    Good, solid foundation to build on. Works "out of the box", also with bit older computers. Graphics are good and so is feeling of flight. Realism options will help beginners to jump in. Single player campaign is not the most immersive at least at the moment and unlock system doesn't really feel right. At least not the way it's implemented now.
    Multiplayer have potential also, and there is some variety of servers already, some of them being pure air-quake and some others offering more historical approach with full realism settings. The question how many players servers can accommodate is still to be answered, atm largest have limit of 100 or something like that.
    At it's current form, it's by now means perfect, but the core is solid, so there is a lot of potential to build on. Hopefully in time we will see more (user made) content and all the small things (like problem with 3 monitor set-ups) fixed.
    All in all, I would recommend buying.    … Expand
  54. 312_Jura
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Great sim so far, can't wait too see what the future development brinks. Title worthy of the Il-2 Sturmovik name. Participated in the Early Access of the title.
  55. 150GCT_Veltro
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    It still need improvements but the game just looks superb! Immersion is stunning as for the flight feeling and physic engine, the best land ever seen with a superb bump mapping. This provide really a great immersion when you fly at low altitudes with clouds and snow. Graphic is really very good even if the game is till in DX9. In DX11 it would have been much better however.
    Multiplayer is    It still need improvements but the game just looks superb! Immersion is stunning as for the flight feeling and physic engine, the best land ever seen with a superb bump mapping. This provide really a great immersion when you fly at low altitudes with clouds and snow. Graphic is really very good even if the game is till in DX9. In DX11 it would have been much better however.
    Multiplayer is still WIP (YOU STILL CAN NOT HOST your own missions) but it's really good now with the last update (75 players on-line without any problems if not some lag sometimes), but the on-line experience is great and really immersive: fly the He-111 with friends, and you'll dream!
    We are still waiting for a FMB as for the Dserver but they are both WIP. We'll se, this game can only improve.    … Expand
  56. Bongodriver
    Oct 23, 2014
    5
    So IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad has finally arrived, many people praising it's realistic feeling of flight, sadly none of them have ever experienced the real feeling, this game has some of the strangest flight modelling I ever experienced, damage modelling has some nice touches but is very simplistic visually, the game looks nice enough, the DX9 game engine hasn't done too bad but it is waySo IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad has finally arrived, many people praising it's realistic feeling of flight, sadly none of them have ever experienced the real feeling, this game has some of the strangest flight modelling I ever experienced, damage modelling has some nice touches but is very simplistic visually, the game looks nice enough, the DX9 game engine hasn't done too bad but it is way behind some of it's contemporaries, it is still a game with arcade style features despite a huge community protest, it is still missing many key components like a full mission builder and Oculus rift support.… Expand
  57. avlSteve
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Long time flight simmer, experienced in IL2, CLOD, FSX, DCS, ROF, and many more going way, way back (think subLogic on a C64). This title, even at release, is the most engaging and addicting flight simulator I have ever used. The 'feeling' of flight is akin to DCS, but with more aircraft selection and a historical WW2 setting.

    The game mechanics, maps, flight model and damage model    Long time flight simmer, experienced in IL2, CLOD, FSX, DCS, ROF, and many more going way, way back (think subLogic on a C64). This title, even at release, is the most engaging and addicting flight simulator I have ever used. The 'feeling' of flight is akin to DCS, but with more aircraft selection and a historical WW2 setting.

    The game mechanics, maps, flight model and damage model are sound, and the game has been getting updates and attention weekly during early access, and they are continuing to make improvements. The development team (777) is very active and responsive to the community; Check out their forum.

    Joystick will be required, at a minimum. Personally, I've been obsessed with it for months.    … Expand
  58. jamesstewart200
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    BOS is a fantastic game, it is just now released and it does still needs some polishing. Im sure more planes and maps will be added like Rise of Flight. More servers will be added and the flight and damage models and excellent. No regrets with my purchase.
  59. Zettman
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    Coming from War Thunder (FRB/SB) and having no pre Simulator experience (I consider WT SB mode as a soft sim) I notice a few things right away. First the planes flight models (FMs) including the ground handling are much more realistic or atleast they feel that way for me. WT and IL2 BoS FMs are worlds apart, that said I can not compare them to DSC or older IL2 titles, cause I haven'tComing from War Thunder (FRB/SB) and having no pre Simulator experience (I consider WT SB mode as a soft sim) I notice a few things right away. First the planes flight models (FMs) including the ground handling are much more realistic or atleast they feel that way for me. WT and IL2 BoS FMs are worlds apart, that said I can not compare them to DSC or older IL2 titles, cause I haven't played them.

    Graphics are good, definitely better than the ones I have seen in WT, especially the cockpit models (all gauges, levers and switches are working and animated). The landscape is mostly snowy planes with roads, some cities and forests on it. Close up they look good, but winter is not really my favorite landscape theme, but that is just a personnel task.

    Difficulty is okay, taking off is a bit more difficult than in WT (SB) but with some practice it feels nearly as easy. Spotting (if you play on expert with no markers) is easier than in WT. Aiming and flying can be compared to WT, guns do actually do damage and I experienced no issues with hit registration so far. Planes with damaged wings can still fly, even if a 1/3 of one wing is missing, which is realistic. Don't expect to be able to go back into combat with such damage, but flying back to the airfield is possible.

    The game offers a Single Player campaign, which was just released as I wrote this review. It is still in development, so don't expect to much from it in this state. Multiplayer is great, servers allow joining and leaving at anytime (no queues like in WT). Despite being still in development and not released, the number of players is already big. There are two modes in Multiplayer, 'normal' with markers and automatic engine management and 'expert' without markers and with complex engine management.

    It may has fewer planes than WT, but the few it has have great FMs, alot of skins and highly detailed cockpits which are fully animated (gauges and levers). The Heinkel 111 has all gunner positions fully modeled. Also each planes offers alot of diffrent configurations and weapon loadouts. The Ju 87 D-3 for example can be equipped with bombs up to 1800kg bombs, 3.7 cm cannons or underwing machine gun pods with 6 guns in each pod.

    The developers recently introduced an unlock system for skins and weapon modifications. I for myself coming from WT am used to this. IL2 BoS unlock system doesn't take that much time compared to WT, but it is only available in Single player, so you have to play the SP campaign to be able to use certain skins and weapon load outs in multiplayer.

    All in all this sim feels great, one of the best WW2 flight sims out there. Switching to this game from WT was the right step, as I prefer historical matchups and realistic FMs over quantity of planes. I am giving this title a 8 cause the unlock system is in my opinion spoiling the fun for the MP players that don't want to play SP to get them, even if it is way faster than the unlock system of WT.    … Expand
  60. harsh_penguen
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    BOS has very nice and detailed Plane Models and Graphics and a nice big detailed historical map.
    The flight models are quiet good and dynamic, aircraft don't "slide" on the Ground like in other older Sims.
    During the early access programme the devs very clear what they could acive in the very limited time they had to develope it. The SP campange is NOT a dynamic Carrier as many may    BOS has very nice and detailed Plane Models and Graphics and a nice big detailed historical map.
    The flight models are quiet good and dynamic, aircraft don't "slide" on the Ground like in other older Sims.
    During the early access programme the devs very clear what they could acive in the very limited time they had to develope it.

    The SP campange is NOT a dynamic Carrier as many may had hoped, rather randomly generated missions that fit in the time of the Battle you choose.
    If you want roleplay you have to add that yourself.

    The unlocks are not great, but the most important ones are very easy to get, 2 or 3 missions/plane will get you there for most parts.

    MP is quiet good at the moment already, the SYN Server runs now games with 75 players and more to come soon.

    The devs have stated that they are currently working on the Dserver, skin making tools and the FMB, and in December we will get a roadmap for futher development .

    This Sim might not be perfect from the start but it is working good and has huge potential and will hopefully evolve as Il2 1946    … Expand
  61. Vaxx
    Oct 23, 2014
    3
    If you like your WWII sims like a sandbox, with a strong single player dynamic campaign, historic and interesting MP including Co-op, look elsewhere. If you like random quick missions campaign, non-historic squads, air-quake MP, and xp points in your game....this might be for you.

    Could have been good, but BoS made too many bad decisions. Starting with the fact you have no custom    If you like your WWII sims like a sandbox, with a strong single player dynamic campaign, historic and interesting MP including Co-op, look elsewhere. If you like random quick missions campaign, non-historic squads, air-quake MP, and xp points in your game....this might be for you.

    Could have been good, but BoS made too many bad decisions. Starting with the fact you have no custom graphics setting. Nope, you get presets. You have to be connected to the 777 master server for your profile and to play the SP campaign. In the campaign you cannot set a custom setting. You get two options.

    So the SP campaign BoS gives you is as follows:

    You pick your plane (no historic squad to choose). You pick an airfield (again not historic to plane type). No pilot name, no squad info. You pick between short (air start) or long (ground start). Now at plane setup, all your skins and "upgrades" (ie removed headrest, wing cannons for the 190) are "locked". So you take off/or air start and you have a silly non-historic way point system. Your starting point. Your first way point. Your "Action Point". And your "Exit Point". Yes, your action point is where the enemy will spawn, where you have to shoot 2 planes (yes...you have to shoot 2 planes its in the briefing ). Your exit point is what you have to reach to have a successful mission. Now you can land or just hit ESC to end the mission. You will know this by the bright flashing text on your screen telling you. Then you get your XP points, and a little measure bar showing how much XP you got for the mission. You get enough you can unlock a skin or a new modification. No AAR report. No info on the front. Nothing else. Its that generic.

    Nothing dynamic. Nothing interesting. A snore fest.

    Now you will have to do this SP campaign to unlock anything for your planes. This includes people wanting to play online with unlocks. You are forced to play this shallow campaign in order to unlock things for online use. So not only do the SP players get screwed, but so the MP ones.

    Now, lets see what we can do in building our own missions and campaigns, since the devs gave us nothing on their end. Oh, never mind you cant. There is no full missions builder. It might come later, but no idea when. Nice.

    There is also the Digital Nature engine. A modified one used in RoF. Considering large amounts of air/ground cannot be made with it, this concerns me. Without having access to the Full Mission Builder, its not known what can be done with it. It seems so far that massive battles are not possible. Small scale is what you will have to deal with. Thats not for me.

    Spent money on Early Access of BoS in hopes that it would continue the IL2 series. It didnt. It went far to make sure it didnt. MAYBE in 6month to a year it would be worth it. As it is right now it does not offer anything that I enjoy in my sims from IL2 orginal modded to CLoD TF modded.

    If you are like me, wait. Then wait some more until modders make this game enjoyable. Then see if it has made any progress.    … Expand
  62. pavig
    Oct 23, 2014
    8
    Excellent sim, and a complete reboot of the IL2 franchise based on a new engine and development team. Great FM on expert, and good balanced helpers for newcomers to the genre. Really atmospheric graphics - don't get put off by the bright snowy screenshots everywhere, having such a reflective landscape makes for great evening/night mission visibility, and gamma controls are built in to takeExcellent sim, and a complete reboot of the IL2 franchise based on a new engine and development team. Great FM on expert, and good balanced helpers for newcomers to the genre. Really atmospheric graphics - don't get put off by the bright snowy screenshots everywhere, having such a reflective landscape makes for great evening/night mission visibility, and gamma controls are built in to take the edge off.… Expand
  63. Einfall
    Oct 23, 2014
    4
    This rendition of IL-2 has a long, long way to go before I would suggest it for purchase by a hardcore simulation fan but I would likely recommend it if you are a casual gamer just getting in to the genre.

    On the foundation: The feeling of flight is well captured with the Digital Nature engine, but some of the nuances in flight modeling are questionable at best and are hotly (and    This rendition of IL-2 has a long, long way to go before I would suggest it for purchase by a hardcore simulation fan but I would likely recommend it if you are a casual gamer just getting in to the genre.

    On the foundation: The feeling of flight is well captured with the Digital Nature engine, but some of the nuances in flight modeling are questionable at best and are hotly (and normally, unprofessionally) contested by the developer. Second to that, there is no transparency in the documentation used to draw the conclusion on why the VVS historically overperform and don't suffer from production quality issues like it should be modeled, but any changes in flight modeling initiated by the community requires complete disclosure of sources and a whole lot of tooth pulling. The damage model is absolutely horrendous and is built primarily around HP counters and badly modeled break-points, black 2D holes on the wings, no spars in the wing, hitboxes, etc. The simulator is built around a terrible and embarrassing XP system designed to make you toil away to unlock standard loadouts. The "campaign" is a slightly-more-advanced Quick Mission Builder, is not dynamic and completely lacks any form of historical/squadron-based immersion - the only difference QMB and the "campaign" is that AI are placed on the map for you and you are dealt a very generic, repetitive series of missions/briefings that have no effect on the outcome of the battle. Not to mention, repetitive flight paths/objectives. Achieving victory in the campaign is repetitive as the criteria for completion is always the same - meet target at action point, shoot, fly to exit point. AI is deplorably broken and will not function (even when commanded to do so) in the campaign. Hit sounds and feedback do not perform properly and were dismissed with poor excuses about game-engine limitation. Overall, the things that BUILD a flight simulator are ultimately underwhelming and not so convincing.

    For the MP guys: Digital Nature has difficulty providing the large-scale multiplayer experiences that we have come to expect in the IL-2 series and equally proves to be the largest limiting factor for the entire experience. If you are expecting SoW, SEoW or any other large-scale/dynamic multiplayer experiences, look elsewhere. I am not convinced the engine will ever support them.

    777 as a company is deplorable and incredibly difficult to work with or give the benefit of the doubt to, due to all of the times they managed to shoot themselves in the foot. Their communication is poorly translated (from Russian) and the cultural differences between Russian society and the Western consumer will leave you feeling undermined and dismissed if you are ever granted an audience to make a claim. Jason, their American business partner (and the only major redeemer to their communication), has had to clean up their publicity/business mistakes more than once.

    TL;DR - Stay away for years. It will take that long to mature, if it ever does.    … Expand
  64. Mike1960
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    I have been playing this game in early release for about a year now and I think it is the best WWII flight sim on the market. The feeling of flight is captured better here than in any other simulator except maybe Rise of Flight. The unlock system was, imho, a poor one but it is not nearly as bad as some of these reviews make it out to be. All planes are available out of the box. WhatI have been playing this game in early release for about a year now and I think it is the best WWII flight sim on the market. The feeling of flight is captured better here than in any other simulator except maybe Rise of Flight. The unlock system was, imho, a poor one but it is not nearly as bad as some of these reviews make it out to be. All planes are available out of the box. What you unlock are some skins and some field modifications and some weapon load out choices. But you can hop online and compete on an even field without unlocking a thing. If you are into WWII combat flight sims, this is a must buy.… Expand
  65. Rumcajs
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    BOS is a very well done sim when it comes to flight modeling. It's level of aerodynamic simulation goes far above what original IL2 had or IL2 Cliffs of Dover has. It's a sim for people who search for realistic FM. Each of the planes has its very unique behaviour. It's not exactly easy to be successful in combat with those planes but when mastered it's rewarding. This sim is probably notBOS is a very well done sim when it comes to flight modeling. It's level of aerodynamic simulation goes far above what original IL2 had or IL2 Cliffs of Dover has. It's a sim for people who search for realistic FM. Each of the planes has its very unique behaviour. It's not exactly easy to be successful in combat with those planes but when mastered it's rewarding. This sim is probably not for everyone. A good joystick + rudder pedals + Track-IR are a necessity. A fast PC and a good gaming monitor are necessary too. Graphics is simply stunning - great visibility of aircraft, great implementation of weather, clouds, fog, sunset and so on.

    The offline Campaign is not so great. Is serves its purpose but is lacking more depth. Night missions are great though. There are plenty of ground targets around. AAA gets interesting because of its visual effects. Light-beams may blind you. Trucks have lights on. The overall feeling is much better than during day missions when everything is black and white.

    This game is a great choice for seasoned flight simmers and WW2 enthusiasts. It's not too friendly to gamers new to this genre. But this will probably change over time when there is more community created content available including detailed tutorials with all the tricks.

    10/10 my two cents.    … Expand
  66. 1iJack
    Oct 23, 2014
    0
    IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad has excellent graphics, sound, and attention to detail in the plane models and map of the Stalingrad area, but the gameplay and campaign are set up for a pre-teenager. It will please neither audience as it is too dark and full of history and realism for the kids, and is so dumbed down that someone in their mid to late teens or an adult will feel silly playing it.IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad has excellent graphics, sound, and attention to detail in the plane models and map of the Stalingrad area, but the gameplay and campaign are set up for a pre-teenager. It will please neither audience as it is too dark and full of history and realism for the kids, and is so dumbed down that someone in their mid to late teens or an adult will feel silly playing it.

    It is a crying shame that the IL-2 brand has come to this, but Battle of Stalingrad is a wanna be pretender made by a company that has no clue how to manage the IL-2 brand which they purchased for the release of this product. Make no mistake, this is not an Oleg Maddox IL-2 premier game design that you might be familiar with over the last 10 years.

    The campaign has no role playing aspect and no dynamic aspect. It is not even a linear campaign. It is a bunch of randomly generated missions strung together that tell no story at all. Instead of earning higher ranks and medals from your success, you'll earn things like the "Young Pilot's Badge" and bigger bombs for your airplane. And you'll get messages of congratulations for just taking off in your plane "Good job. You took off!" You will get no sense of history at all from this game while it insults your intelligence at the same time.

    Who would I recommend this game for...I can't think of any audience. MP players are forced to grind through the SP Campaign to earn skins and technology for MP play and SP players face a campaign made for kids. And the game's too mature and difficult for kids. Get ready for a huge disappointment if you purchase IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad no matter who you are.…    … Expand
  67. IgorND
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    Excellent.

    The planes themselves feel very faithfully modelled, both visually (particularly the damage modelling) and in terms of flight characteristics. The narrower selection of planes means that each has been finished to a very high standard, although the developers have already made some suggestions about planes being added following release. The visual effects are obviously    Excellent.

    The planes themselves feel very faithfully modelled, both visually (particularly the damage modelling) and in terms of flight characteristics. The narrower selection of planes means that each has been finished to a very high standard, although the developers have already made some suggestions about planes being added following release.

    The visual effects are obviously excellent and the sound is generally very good, although a few effects appear to be missing (eg some hit sounds on your own airraft), but that can probably be put down to the game still being in early access.

    The AI is also very impressive and provides a very challenging opponent without resorting to any cheating: the AI follows the same rules as the player, has his vision constrained by the cockpit and controls his plane via control inputs as well. I've occasionally forgotten that I was fighting the computer rather than players online.

    AI gunners also man the gunnery positions in the Heinkel, Pe-2, the Ju-87 and IL-2, however they can also be manned by other human players. Gunnery stations in each of the planes that have them are fully modelled from a first-person pov.

    The multiplayer is also very fun, even at this early stage where it appears to be a basic team deathmatch placeholder. Servers offer two difficulty settings; Normal (icons, automatic engine management, navigation assists) and Expert (no icons, manual engine management and navigation).

    EDIT: From reading the community page, a lot of people seem concerned that the La-5 and FW-190 premium aircraft are some sort of pay-to-win issue. They're intended for enthusiasts as neither played a significant part in the Battle of Stalingrad itself, and neither are the highest performing aircraft on either side: multiplayer is still largely a contest between the Yak-1 and the 109s.    … Expand
  68. King_Hrothgar
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    This is a midcore CFS, not as complicated as DCS but much more realistic than war thunder and similar games. Complexity is about the same as Rise of Flight or the original IL-2 series from early/mid 2000's. With that in mind, it has superb feeling flight modeling and impressive damage modeling. The sounds and graphics are also very good, especially given that it's actually using DX9.

    In    This is a midcore CFS, not as complicated as DCS but much more realistic than war thunder and similar games. Complexity is about the same as Rise of Flight or the original IL-2 series from early/mid 2000's. With that in mind, it has superb feeling flight modeling and impressive damage modeling. The sounds and graphics are also very good, especially given that it's actually using DX9.

    In terms of gameplay, the multiplayer is top notch. Even at this early stage, we have 60+ player servers with a buddy of mine looking at doing a 120 player server. Combined with a powerful mission builder (in closed beta as of this review, but with some of those custom missions being made available to all), the multiplayer maps are incredible. There is the possibility of player made fully dynamic online campaigns and complex missions in general. This is the MP CFS to play for the next few years at least.

    Sadly the game does have one major short coming and that is the single player aspect. The career/campaign is basically non-existant. In its place, we have what basically amounts to an advanced quick mission builder (QMB) in addition to the regular QMB. It has some historical background in cutscenes and an historical frontline at various stages, but the player doesn't have an assigned unit, plane type or even nationality. The player is everyone and no one at the same time. Terrible design decision imho. That said, functionally it works just fine. I simply hate the design of it.    … Expand
  69. von_queca
    Oct 23, 2014
    9
    A very advanced flight dynamics engine, after all the same behind Rise of Flight, astounding graphics that, even restricted to the area of Stalingrad and Winter time, have a quality and impact in overall immersion and sensation of being there that is truly UNIQUE among the whole flight simulators I ever used. Even weather rendering and modelling is simply superb.

    You can play at online    A very advanced flight dynamics engine, after all the same behind Rise of Flight, astounding graphics that, even restricted to the area of Stalingrad and Winter time, have a quality and impact in overall immersion and sensation of being there that is truly UNIQUE among the whole flight simulators I ever used. Even weather rendering and modelling is simply superb.

    You can play at online servers, missions, single player Campaign mode, online, or offline in mission and Campaign modes.

    AI, both in the air and ground, is plausibly modeled and you can really get into extremely realistic scenarios.

    A flight simulator that will get you addicted for sure - I am!    … Expand
  70. Jaklar
    Oct 23, 2014
    6
    Been playing simulators since "Jet" on the Atari 400, RoF fanatic (with all planes owned)...so I was really looking forward to the devs getting a hold of this franchise and hopefully moving this long-troubled franchise in the right direction. Such is not the case, I fear. Game feels half-assed, hampered with deeply questionable design choices, an intrusive and inelegant interface, datedBeen playing simulators since "Jet" on the Atari 400, RoF fanatic (with all planes owned)...so I was really looking forward to the devs getting a hold of this franchise and hopefully moving this long-troubled franchise in the right direction. Such is not the case, I fear. Game feels half-assed, hampered with deeply questionable design choices, an intrusive and inelegant interface, dated graphics and an uninspiring campaign system.

    The flight-models are good...but that's about it. Doesn't merit the price tag and ultimately feels like a huge step backwards for both the dev and the IL-2 franchise.    … Expand
  71. MarxStax
    Oct 23, 2014
    3
    NOT a remake of the classic.

    Sadly 777/1c has used the IL2 name in an attempt to sway people who loved the original to buy this. The only thing in common with the old IL2 is the name and its a WWII flight game. This is not a good sandbox type sim. This is not an immersive WWII air combat sim. Its very linear, and very strict. You can forget it being old IL246 with updated graphics.    NOT a remake of the classic.

    Sadly 777/1c has used the IL2 name in an attempt to sway people who loved the original to buy this. The only thing in common with the old IL2 is the name and its a WWII flight game.

    This is not a good sandbox type sim. This is not an immersive WWII air combat sim. Its very linear, and very strict. You can forget it being old IL246 with updated graphics. You can forget doing a COOP campaign, or a good SP dynamic campaign. You can expect a HUD that is out of star wars, and a campaign about as fun and interesting as watching grass grow.

    The devs are trying to get the War Thunder crowd, and having the sim crowd pay for development.

    Good:

    1. Graphics are nice. NOT CLoD graphics, but better than old IL2.
    2. FM are ok. Not great but passable.
    3. Land graphics are nice. It IS all snow, but its done well.
    4. 8 regular plane is nice.

    Bad:

    1. SP campaign is horrible. Its a bunch of quick missions. No historic squads, no pilot info, no squadmate info, and no dynamaic campaign. Blow up and airfield in one mission, its back the next.
    2. Always on connection. You have to be connected to the 777servers to play the SP campaign, and access your profile.
    3. No full mission builder. Forget making your own missions. They *might* release one later down the road....maybe.
    4. No Dserver for MP. Again they might release one later....maybe. For now enjoy the slim list in different timezones, and mostly just quick dogfights.
    5. Unlock and XP. Yes, in order to unlock different loadouts you HAVE to the play the SP campaign. This even goes for online players. You are forced to play the boring SP campaign to get weapons and skins.
    6. Graphic presets. No custom graphics settings. Why? According to the devs people are too dumb to set up their graphics options.
    7. Hollywood smoke and damage effects. No planes go down without huge plumes of smoke and fire. To the point of over the top.
    8. Simplified damage model. Hitboxes without internal componet damage.
    9. Old digital nature engine running the game. Using DX9 tech. Severely limits how many objects can be in a battle. Dont expect to see large bomber formations, or large scale ground/air battles.
    10. Limited modding. User made mods have to be approved before it goes into the game, including skins. This is another reason for the always on master server.
    11. The development team. 80% of "founders" who bought the early access game did not want XP and unlocks. Everyone gave them feedback, but they basically said too bad. You play the game the way we want you to. Same with the graphics presets, and no custom setting in campaign. They think they know better on how you play the game than you do.
    12. No triple screen support. There is not one "sim" from racing to flying that has been out for the last few years that does not support triple screens. Well, here you are.
    13. Price. For what you get, simple dogfight MP, random generated quick mission campaign, a quick mission builder, no dserver, no full mission builder, and no way to pick your graphic settings, its just a shallow game.

    The only saving grace is hoping that next year modders can make this game more of what made old IL2 fun. Considering the restrictions by the devs, that might not ever happen. We can hope.

    In the meantime CLoD with Team Fusions patches, and IL21946 with HSFX mods, are much better (and way cheaper) alternatives to get a good WWII sim fix.    … Expand
  72. AstronHaizer
    Oct 23, 2014
    10
    I played Il2- Forgotten battles, I played SB War Thunder, Rise of Fligt etc. So far, Il 2 BOS the best and perspective flight-simulator.

    Guys, dont forget how much content there was in Il 2 sturmovik in 2001 y. Almoust nothing,
    Now Il 2 BOS its a platform made to make a game of our dream,but not in one day.
  73. Wizzleteats
    Oct 23, 2014
    4
    I bought in very early into the early access release of the game based on the strengths of the studio's previous release, Rise of Flight, and the promise from the developers that the game would strongly focus on the single player aspect.

    I was very, very disappointed when, very late in the development cycle the single player "campaign" was finally released. I put the term campaign in    I bought in very early into the early access release of the game based on the strengths of the studio's previous release, Rise of Flight, and the promise from the developers that the game would strongly focus on the single player aspect.

    I was very, very disappointed when, very late in the development cycle the single player "campaign" was finally released. I put the term campaign in quotes because there really is no campaign to speak of. The "campaign" is basically a random mission generator that is very repetitive in nature, bug-ridden, and ultimately unfulfilling as there is absolutely no sense of continuity between missions. You choose your starting base, the type of plane you wish to fly, and then a basic mission type (intercept, escort, ground attack, etc) from one of 5 options and the game then generates a semi-random mission. The victory conditions for each mission type are always exactly the same and there's very little variety between them. Flight plans are nearly always the same 4 point diamond pattern (start, 1st waypoint, action point, 3rd waypoint, home). The briefings are generic, repetitive, and lacking important details. They're also full of errors. It often informs you that your target will be at 500 meters when they turn out to be at 5,000m or vice versa.

    The AI in the missions is broken. Friendly ground attack AI wingmen will not attack targets, no matter how many times you order them to. They'll just circle over the target until they're shot down by AAA, furn out of fuel, or you RTB. Enemy AI fighters almost never engage bombers or ground attack aircraft if escorts are around. Air-to-air AI is a bit better in that the AI will engage the player but the challenge level is low. They're all too easy to shoot down and never seem to present much of a challenge at all. There don't seem to be different skill levels between pilots. They all fly in a uniform and predictable fashion.

    Even if they do manage to shoot you down, it doesn't really matter as there's no penalty for failing the mission. The reason for this is that you don't actually create a single, online pilot. It's a truly baffling omission.

    Even the most rudimentary of campaigns in other flight sim titles allow the player to create a virtual pilot and then track their progress throughout the campaign. Even Rise of Flight allowed this. Battle of Stalingrad does not. You don't create a pilot. You don't join a squadron. There are no historic markings, bases, aces, or dynamic battlefields. It doesn't matter if you shoot down 2 enemies of 20, nothing will change on the battlefield. Nor does it matter if every single one of your AI wingmen is shot down. The game doesn't keep track of them. They have no names and there's no penalty for losing them. As the AI kind of sucks anyway, there's absolutely no point in caring about what happens to them. They tend to be more of a threat to you than an aid anyway as they will sometimes ram you if you're both chasing the same bad guy. Rather than creating an immersive, historically accurate representation of the battle with player and squadron stats being tracked and updated, the developers came up with a truly idiotic system wherein the player is expected to grind for XP in order to earn unlocks. The system lifted straight out of an MMO or Battlefield-esque FPS and has no place in a flight sim.

    Your only goal in the game is to earn enough XP to unlock plane modifications such as rockets, bombs, or new plane skins. Earn enough XP and you can unlock the next of 5 chapters in the campaign. These chapters are largely pointless as the battlefield in each chapter is completely static and you're always fighting over the same map with the same weather regardless. The only difference is the position of air bases and front lines. It's all just crushingly dull. What makes it even worse is the fact that the developers have removed choice from the player.

    For the longest time during the pre-access stages, the players had the ability to select custom difficulty options to tailor the game experience in such a way as to get the most enjoyment out of the sim. For some unknown reason, the developers took the difficulty customization away from the campaign portion of the game and instead force the player to select either "normal" or "expert" difficulty. I prefer to play in full-realism mode with external views turned on but I can no longer do so in the campaign. I have no idea why they refuse to let me.

    The unlock system carries over into multi-player as well. If you want the planes and unlocks for use in the online portion of the game, you'll have to grind through the single-player portion in order to earn them. The MP community has suffered as a result as players can't join missions if they don't have the unlocks required.

    It's a huge disappointment because the flight dynamics are great. Shame the game itself is so bad. Avoid it.    … Expand
  74. Beebaboo
    Oct 22, 2014
    6
    A good core is hampered by poor design choices in IL-2: Battle of Stalingrad. As I play the game, more and more it feels like a shinier version of Wings of Prey or Birds of Steel for the xbox 360.

    Yes, this game has one of the best physics engines in flight simulator history. All the aircraft have their own unique "feeling" that make learning each one's nuances very satisfying and    A good core is hampered by poor design choices in IL-2: Battle of Stalingrad. As I play the game, more and more it feels like a shinier version of Wings of Prey or Birds of Steel for the xbox 360.

    Yes, this game has one of the best physics engines in flight simulator history. All the aircraft have their own unique "feeling" that make learning each one's nuances very satisfying and fun. The Engine-related systems are all modeled as you would expect in a simulator like this, although the lack of clickable cockpits is very disappointing.

    The graphics are very good in this game, with reflections on the planes/glass, realistic smoke and fire, excellent lighting effects, and clouds that look almost real. The sound engine is a work of beauty as well, when it works properly.

    Unfortunately, there are some big problems with this game. First, and most obvious is the lack of any type of campaign or career mode. The built in "campaign" is only there to serve as a mission generator for the main focus of this game: Unlocking equipment for your planes by earning experience points in the campaign. The missions in the campaign are what can only be referred to as boring. Autopilot is disabled and time compression is limited, so there will be significant stretches of time where you sit idly and do nothing. Doing nothing is not fun.

    The unlock system and the random mission generator would be interesting components if they were not so tied together with the profile system. Instead of medals, there are achievements, of which there are many to earn and some that are pretty challenging. Unfortunately your pilot profile also is tied to the unlocks system, so even for multiplayer and quick missions, you will have to play the campaign to unlock equipment.

    The multiplayer component runs well and has a very simple server browser that anyone can use. When there are people playing, multiplayer is very fun in this game, however the plane set for this game has shown to be chosen very poorly.

    First, the German fighters are the best planes by a wide margin. Superior to Russian planes in most performance measure with the exception of turn radius vs the Yak, these planes have next to ruined the online atmosphere. Russian pilots are outnumbered 2 to 1 by better aircraft nearly every single game. That is not an exaggeration. While this situation is easily overcome by an experienced pilot, for new players this is extremely off-putting and for early access players like me has become a very frustrating feature of this game.

    Also in the multiplayer you will notice that more often than not, you will not hear when your plane gets shot. This is a bug in the sound engine that causes your plane to outrun the sounds of it being damaged, essentially.

    Avoid this game if you do not like to grind for exp, and also avoid it if you are looking for a deep, involved single-player campaign: there is not one here. As there is no way to get out of grinding for unlockable airplane components, the game's experience will be severely hampered even if you are a MP exclusive pilot.

    On the other side, if you can stand to play the same missions over and over again so you can unlock the rear turrent on your IL-2, then buy this game. If you want to fly one of the most graphically and technically impressive flight sims of all time, and can stand to play or ignore the horrible unlock system, then get this game.

    Pros: Excellent graphics, Excellent Sound (mostly), Excellent physics, Excellent Server Browser for MP
    Cons: Terrible forced grind, shallow and boring campaign, no career mode, no advanced graphics options

    One more thing: There is a screenshot and movie recording functions built into this game that are very easy to use and work very well.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

36
#36 Most Discussed PC Game of 2014
53
#53 Most Shared PC Game of 2014

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
74

Mixed or average reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Jun 14, 2015
    74
    Il-2: Battle of Stalingrad boldly seeks to renew the genre by adding modern game design elements to the admittedly often sterile genre of flight simulators. Unfortunately not only does the bold attempt fail spectacularly, the developers also seem to have completely forgotten what made the original Il-2 a legend. The Rise of Flight legacy shows in the rather impressive visuals and physics modeling, but strangely a lot of its nice features didn't make the cut either and the “sequel” falls short of its predecessor in many ways. [June 2015]
  2. GameOver.gr
    Feb 10, 2015
    70
    The excellent handling and the immense realism that Battle of Stalingrad offers, manages to balance out the poor single player campaign and some of its design flaws.
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  3. PC PowerPlay
    Feb 8, 2015
    70
    The lack of content and generous helping of bugs can be easily forgiven thanks to the developer's high reputation. [Feb 2015, p.16]
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