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| The cockpits of the planes are pretty well modeled... |
...and so are the planes. |
The PC game Battle of Britain is more than just an air combat simulator, although it can be used solely in this role. The game allows players to take on the role of commander of Fighter Command or of the Luftwaffe, and manage strategic aspects as well as tactical ones. AS the RAF, you will decide what bases to use, set production and repair priorities, use your radar advantage to intercept the German air fleets, and try to stop the German air offensive. Your command will be pushed to the limit, just as the real RAF was in the actual campaign.
As the Luftwaffe commander, you will have two airfleets at your disposal, Luftfotte (luftfotte is an Airgroup, complete with fighters, bombers and recon aircraft, Germany had six of them at the outbreak of WWII) 2 and 3, based in western Belgium and northern France. Your job is to fly recon missions, select targets, assign bombers to missions, and try to neutralize the defending RAF, so that a cross channel invasion can be mounted. You don't have forever to do this, as the invasion must go before winter sets in, and operations become impossible.
The aircraft available to each side are the planes actually available in the real campaign. As the RAF player, you have the reliable and numerically more important Hawker Hurricane, and the superb Supermarine Spitfire. Britain used several other types in the battle, but they were not included, nor need they be (For purists whom might be curious, the other types were the Boulton Paul Defiant, and Gloster Gladiator, a bi-plane, as well as the Bristol Blenheim, used as a night fighter). Both British types can be flown in the flight simulator mode, which I will discuss later.
As the Luftwaffe commander, you can fly the two principle German fighters, the BF-109E single seat fighter, and the BF-110 twin engine fighter bomber. You can also fly the JU-87 Stuka dive bomber, as well as play as the gunner of one. Germany's three medium bombers are available in the game, the Donier D0-17, the Junkers JU-88, and the Hienkel HE-111. You cannot pilot these planes, but you can serve as a gunner on each type.
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| The meat of the game will take place in the air over Britain, as the name implies. |
Flying the planes can be quite difficult until you get the hang of it. |
The meat of this design is the air battles over Britain, where you take to the air. This game system stresses air maneuver in combat, with violent turns, dives, climbs, all simulated quite well. The Spitfire and BF-109 can both turn quite tightly, and the effect on pilots is even simulated in the game. One of the better parts of this is, you won't have a one on one feel in the skies, as literally hundreds of aircraft will be buzzing about. Its very important to keep checking your tail, as its easy to get caught up chasing what is in front of you, while forgetting what could be behind you.
The game is structured in such a way that you can plan your missions, and watch them unfold, or you can fly a plane in any mission, and engage in the simulator aspect of the conflict. Unlike many simulators, this one is quite difficult to use, the tutorial, while helpful, isn't complete. Flying the planes is quite difficult until you get the feel for it. But I don't feel this seriously distracts from the game as a whole, as it simply takes practice to get better.
The game's graphics and looks are nice, they fit the setting well, and there are no serious distortions in the way the planes look and fly. The sound quality is good, the roar of the engines and sound of the guns is well simulated and add to the flight experience. The interface is adequately laid out, and is not overly difficult to use.
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| It's very satisfying to set a handful of enemy fighters ablaze. |
It takes quite a bit of sharp maneuvering to avoid enemy fire. |
ROWAN'S BATTLE OF BRITAIN VERDICT
If you are a fan of flight simulators, especially of WWII, by all means get this game. Be forewarned, it is difficult to get the hang of, but once learned and understood, it is quite a lot of fun. I would say this game is aimed more at the hard core fan, casual gamers should look elsewhere for their flight time, until they are ready to take to the skies over Britain.
TOP GAME MOMENT
Out-maneuvering a bogey on your tail, ending up on his six, and gunning him into oblivion.
