Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 2: Pacific Theater Review

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(More customer reviews) I had trouble getting this one to run, but finally was successful.I am running an AMD/K6-2 (350) CPU, with 64 Mb of RAM, and a Diamond Monster 3D II accelerator, with a Flightstick Pro and rudder pedals.According to the package, I meet all of the requirements.My operating system is Microsoft's Windows ME.

I loaded CFS2 twice, but when I tried to play it could not get past loading the scenery, when my screen went black.The machine locked up!Finally after trying the new drivers for the Diamond Monster, which I found on their European site, I got it to run properly.

You would think, though, that Microsoft, with all of their expertise, could design a game that would run without so many hassles.

The game is good.Graphics are superb, sound is good, and the scenery is excellent.The game runs smoothly, when you finally get it to run.I found some fault, of course.

First, I dislike the annoying cones that point you at the nearby enemy.They are certainly not realistic.Also, the enemy planes flit about in a most unrealistic fashion, and make them unrealistically hard to track.Even closing at a combined speed of 600 miles an hour, another aircraft should be more easily followed.However, Microsoft is no guiltier than many other simulation designers in such matters.

Modeling of the aircrafts' flight characteristics is not bad, but not entirely realistic, either.I took an F6F "Hellcat" up to 10,000 feet above Kwajalein atoll, an airstrip from which I have flown, and put her into a spin.This is an aircraft that was relatively easy to fly (I soloed in 1946 in the real thing.)Although I kicked reverse rudder and neutralized the controls properly, she would not recover from the spin and go into a dive.The F6F was not notorious for having bad spin characteristics.

Also, dropping your landing gear at a couple hundred miles an hour should not result in "gear damage."Pilots often did it in combat, to get a sudden reduction in speed.

Another problem is the slow reaction of the machine guns to the gun button.And after the button is released, they inexplicably keep on firing for a couple or three seconds.

The copy writers who wrote the Pilot's Manual fell into the same trap as everyone else in comparing the F6F with the F4U "Corsair."They claimed that the F6F is "far from the fastest U.S. fighter" but that it was in the "top rank of American fighters in the Pacific theater, along with the Vought Corsair."They claim a top speed for the Hellcat of 327 knots (376 mph) at 17,300 feet, while the Corsair is credited with a top speed of 363 knots (417 mph) at 19,900 feet, making the Corsair seem much faster.One gets tired of hearing such unfair comparisons.

I've got news for them: an article in Flight Journal last year by Corky Meyer (a Grumman test pilot) described a side by side test of the Corsair and Hellcat, flat out at the same altitude (they had the same R2800, 2,000 horsepower Pratt & Whitney engine, but different dash numbers) had them performing at the same speed over the ground, but the Corsair was indicating a higher speed due to the different placement of the pitot tube.

Because of its wing design, the Corsair had a quicker roll characteristic than the Hellcat.It was also more unstable and difficult to fly, and taxiing and landing visibility was hampered by the long engine nacelle.They called it the "Ensign Eliminator."Otherwise, they were very evenly matched in their performance characteristics.

The copy writers call the Corsair "big, tough, and fast," which it was of course, but the F6F pilots shot down over 70 percent of all air-to-air kills in the Pacific war.It is a vastly under rated airplane, by the desk jockeys.

Here are some figures:The Hellcat is credited with 5,156 air victories during WWII, and 306 Hellcat pilots shot down 5 or more enemy planes (the definition of an "ace.")Corsairs shot down 2,140 enemy, and made only 93 aces, although they enbtered service in the Pacific first.The famed Mustang was credited with only 296 kills, and made only 5 aces.The little F4F "Wildcat," with 1,006 kills made 58 aces, and was bad-mouthed as being obsolete at the war's beginning.Looking only at results, one wonders at the critics remarks.

But, this is a fine game.The graphics are right up there with Jane's WWII Fighters, and it will be a source of much pleasure for a lot of people.

Joseph Pierre, USN (Ret)

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Product Description:
In Combat Flight Simulator 2, you'll expereince an era of history that defines the future -- you'll become a combat pilot during the Second World War!

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Zoo Tycoon Complete Collection Review

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(More customer reviews)Zoo Tycoon Complete Collection is the video game my daughter was waiting for.
A quick overview:In the original Zoo Tycoon, you are in control of a Zoo building scheme, similar to other "tycoon" games on the market.The original game had many animals and features, and allowed you to solve problem scenarios and create you own free form Zoo.However, I thought the original Zoo Tycoon had rather limited selections for the money.
In the first expansion pack, Zoo Tycoon Dinosaur Digs, they went a little way to solving the limitations by giving you Dinosaurs to create your own version of "Jurassic Park".It also added (finally!) some themed concessions to make your Dino park even more of a time travelling adventure.But, it too was fairly expensive for an expansion.
In the second expansion pack, Zoo Tycoon Marine Mania, "Sea World" type attractions were added, along with some new theming concessions and other things that went a long way to solving the problems of the original limits of the game.
For a long while, some other additions were only available online.Several Endangered animals and some weird ones like Yeti and the Loch Ness Monster took quite a bit of download time to add to your park creation capabilities.
But now, in Zoo Tycoon Complete Collection, we have a truly complete collection.Not only is the original Zoo Tycoon included, but the Dinosaur Digs expansion, the Marine Mania expansion, =and= all of the previously only available by download material.
The added feature of being able to see a few facts about your animals in a special window could make this game an educational experience.Making sure your animals have the proper terrain teaches that animals prefer the environment they originally lived in, and may help reinforce people's thoughts to preserving the few endangered animals that are in the wild.
I'm almost a Tycoon game addict, I love this package.I've played this so much I can see it in my sleep.I really enjoyed the effort the company made to include the previously downloadable only material.The four sections of the game crate a truly complete collection, just as advertised.
When considering Christmas presents for children, or a special treat for tycoon game loving adults, I find myself telling people about Zoo Tycoon Complete Collection, where I never did while it was all available in separate parts.Former fans of Zoo Tycoon will enjoy the fact that everything's included.New players will enjoy the easy scenarios, while experienced Tycooners will have the real tough problem scenarios they love.Highly recommended.

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Product Description:
MODEL- MS-CD44532WI VENDOR- MICROSOFT CORPORATION

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Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight Review

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(More customer reviews)I've owned every version of MS Flight Simulator, since years before Microsoft bought Sublogic's Flight Simulator and made it the basis for Microsoft Flight Simulator.
I've spend many entertaining hours playing Microsoft Flight Simulator, and for the most part, they've added new and very, appealing and worth-while features in each new release. This is also the case in Flight Simulator 2004. I upgraded the day FS 2004 was released, and I've never looked back.
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004 is a highly entertaining, very realistic looking, and quite realistic acting flight simulator. Overall, I consider it the best Flight Simulator out there. Some people will argue that X-Plane has more realistic flight models and they're probably right. MS FS however, is a close second, and when it comes to the overall gaming experience and look and feel of everything - the MS FS is a clear winner!
IF YOU'RE UPGRADING FROM FS 2002:
* Greatly improved dynamic weather system - You can now have the system automatically update itself in the background with real weather conditions as often as every 15 minutes. The clouds look a lot more realistic than in FS 2002.
* New weather themes - Gives you both static and dynamic weather themes such as a brewing thunderstorm etc.
* Enhanced ATC (Air Traffic Control) - Altitude changes in flight, ATC at all airports, request new flight plan en-route (especially useful if your current one gets cancelled).
* Better 3D virtual cockpits
* Some scenery enhancements, such as signs on taxiways. Most scenery changes are quite subtle.
* Old GPS system has finally been scrapped, and instead replaced by two real life looking Garmin GPS's (slightly stripped down versions, but quite impressive still - Color and all).
* The rain has been improved - Looks more realistic.
* New planes of course - all of them are historic aircraft such as Douglas DC-3, the "Kitty Hawk", the "Spirit of St. Louis", Piper Cub etc.
IF YOU'RE NEW TO MICROSOFT FLIGHT SIMULATOR, OR YOU HAVEN'T UPGRADED IN A WHILE:
* Real-World weather - with dynamic updates and dynamic weather changes. Multiple cloud layers. Plain and simple, the clouds look fantastic!!! The rain and snow need some improvement, but is still very good.
* Worldwide scenery with accurate 3D terrain.
* Scenery Auto-Generation - Buildings are generated on the fly based on what type of area you're flying over.
* More than 24000 worldwide airports - a lot of them very realistic looking.
* 2D and 3D cockpits.
* Various types of planes - Boeing 737, 747, 777, Learjet, Cessna 172 and 182, Extra 300, a couple of more propeller planes, a sailplane, a helicopter, and of course all the historic planes that are new to this version.
* Jeppeson NavData database - ILS, VORs, NDB data etc.
* Landmarks all over the world - Eiffel tower, Statue of Liberty, Alcatraz, Empire State Building, USS Nimitz, the Red Square/Kremlin in Moscow etc.
* Multiplayer capability - Can play over network or internet (MSN Zone).
I still miss the World Trade Center Towers, and the Concorde, but realistically enough, they're both gone from this version. *sniff*
Conclusion: I highly recommend this game, both as an upgrade or if you're buying MS FS for the first time... FIVE STARS!!!

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Product Description:
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2004: A Century of Flight is the next milestone in the award-winning Flight Simulator franchise. Celebrating 20 years of developing and perfecting computer flight simulation, A Century of Flight will allow aviation enthusiasts to experience history at the controls of historic aircraft, such as Charles Lindbergh's Ryan NYP Spirit of St. Louis, the Douglas DC-3 and the world's first successful powered aircraft, the Wright Flyer.

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