If you've ever played this game, you know it is like time travel to 1942...
The German planes open fire. Sturmovik red 2 is hit, and you manouever your own craft just in time to avoid a piece of shrapnel flying from the enginge cowl. Luckily, your friend manages to bail out as his wings plummet, flaming to the ground. Next, you yourself are under fire, so you go into a battle turn and your gunner manages to score a hit on the Messerschmidt above you. You release your bombs just as the enemy comes round for another pass, and you open up with your MGs and cannons...
Atmospheric, isn't it? The sound of wind rushing past your cockpit as your struggle with your controls in a storm over Smolensk.
Stunning, isn't it? The view from 7000 feet at dawn over Moscow.
Amazing, isn't it? That all this is just a computer game. Half an hour to pick up and learn, almost a lifetime to master. With realism that will transport you back to the second world war, IL-2 is truly a gaming masterpiece. When was the last time, for example, a "flight sim" (although this virtually transcends that genre into something else) allowed you to mercilessly gun down the German paratroopers in their slow descent to a Russian city? The radio, too, is a source of amusement all of its own, using authentic Russian and German language recordings (with subtitles, of course) to transmit your orders. The accuracy of the landscapes is stunning, as well, with towns placed just the right distance away from glistening rivers and dark forests.
As you may have guessed, I am a major aficionado of this game.
All things, however, have disadvantages. The choice and accuracy of aircraft cannot be faulted, but with only three pre-loaded maps and a very difficult to use custom content editor, the replay value lies entirely in modifying tactics and aircraft choices. The campaign is just the right length, but perhaps a little too demanding at times (for me, anyway :P).
Over all, though, this is a diamond in the rough, a real gem of a game which is often sadly overlooked when people are just starting out in flight sims. Very good for beginners and fighter aces alike, with excellent realism and immersive gameplay. Truly, at the top of the flight sim ladder.