CFS4 same old game

[Prowler1111]

I think a few people are getting the wrong idea here. FS9 with guns means CFS based on the FS9 engine. FS9 type scenery and clouds and visual models, not blowing up cities in "tooled up" 747's. What most CFS fans would like is a compatible Combat sim, set in the Pacific in WW2 or better still in Korea using the FS9 engine rather than the CFS3 engine.  

Roger that hawker!
Compability is the key (well..at least for me), ,who wouldn

[Woodlouse2002]

Do any of you fellows remember FS2000? That was absolutely riddled with bugs and defects just like CFS3. Now look at Fs2002 and FS2004. Two outstanding games that work well.

CFS3 was a huge leap in graphics and things. Fly low over land on CFS2 then do the same with CFS3 with the Autogen on. I think thats an amazing difference.

Sooner or later M$ needed to change the graphics engine used by CFS. CFS2 is just about the best that can be got out of that engine so to move forwards a change was needed. And CFS3 was that change. Of course there were bugs and glitches, there are in all software. Especially new software. CFS4 will have the performance of CFS3 with better graphics, better hardware compatability and fewer glitches. Remember the change needed to be made at somepoint. And M$ thought that CFS3 was the time to do it.

I personally like CFS3. The planes look good and sound good. Whats more I can fly around my part of the world and recognise features in the landscape. (If you hadn't noticed, CFS3 offers the most accurate terrain mesh I've seen in FS and CFS.)

I know Tempest misses the turning fights of CFS1 and 2 but I personally found these fights too easy. Especially when you could single handedly tackle a flight of 8 Oscars in a Hurricane. I find a duel with an Go229 in a Tempest MkV in CFS3 most rewarding. Especially when you finally get a good hit and you see his engives catch fire.

And as for future sims, I want an North Africa/Mediteranian CFS. Just think about launching an attack on Taranto with a dozen Stingbags. Sadly though this is unlikely to happen because the Yanks didn't really play a part in that theatre. And I don't think Americans are too willing to buy games that don't really involve their country in any way at all.

[HawkerTempest5]

I do agree with alot of what you are saying Woody old pal. M$ did need to make changes and CFS3 was a good starting point. I just think an FS9 based sim was a better way to go, at least for the moment. You will get no arguments with me about how much better the terrain looks and the low level ground attack stuff is just fantastic. But I do feel that this new engine is a bit too arcade game-ish. Maybe if M$ had paid a bit more attention to the fine details (yes, I'm still miffed about how much they screwed up my Beloved Spitfire) I would feel a bit better about it all.
[quote]I know Tempest misses the turning fights of CFS1 and 2 but I personally found these fights too easy. Especially when you could single handedly tackle a flight of 8 Oscars in a Hurricane.

[Hagar]

I still think they made a mistake. I cannot agree that the aircraft look good in CFS3. From Spot View it's like looking at a goldfish in its bowl.

Until CFS3 raised its head FS/CFS had always allowed ongoing development of the sim as a whole. My old friend Bill Potvin always used to say there is only one Flight Simulator. CFS is simply a version of it*. Each new version had some improvements over the previous one & 3rd party files were compatible to some extent. This allowed ongoing development that contributed to FS & CFS alike. They took a step backwards with FS2000 & CFS2 was the improvement it should have been. This allowed the DVC & multi-LOD models to be developed ready for FS2002. Right - we're back on course - until CFS3 arrives. Arrrrrgh........! They did it again..............! What a complete cockup. These people couldn't run a pissup in the proverbial brewery.

FS9 came back on course & proves that you can improve the graphics considerably without changing the complete format. I agree with the others that a CFS4 based on the FS9 graphics engine is what I would like to have seen.

As I said previously this is completely irrelevant as the format has already been decided upon. This means that FS & CFS will go their separate ways from now on. I think this is a darned shame.

*PS. FS2000 = FS 7, CFS2 = FS 7.50, FS2002 = FS 8 etc.

PPS. Compare the amount of 3rd party aircraft already developed for FS9 in the few months since its release with the handful available for CFS3. I think this says it all.

[Prowler1111]

Once in a while I read about licensing and permits, about freeware developers and such, and of course against payware developers.Ok. MS didn

[ATI_7500]

i'm no usual guest in the CFS 2 forum,but i gotta say that i really would like to see a dynamic campaign again in CFS4. not like in CFS3, i want it more accurate,just like in falcon 4. of course this will be a much bigger effort to develop since the theatre of operations is quite big, but most of it is squaremiles of empty water. although many factors would have to be analyzed and processed by the computer, i think that this isn't a real problem since modern hardware i capable of doing so.

just my 0,03

[Barnstormer1410]

My advice to anyone who wants realism and dynamism is to simply ditch ALL Microsoft's CFS sims and just load up IL2 Forgotten Battles. With add-ons (eg Battle Over Europe) coming on-stream now why anyone bothers with CFS is beyond me.

[Stratobat]

Can aircraft be created for IL-2?

I think most people stick with CFS because so much of it is compatible with the FS series.

Regards,
Stratobat

[ATI_7500]

Yup. I haven't seen any custom campaigns or airplanes for IL-2 yet. Concerning the overall simulation,IL-2 is far superior to CFS,but concerning the customisation possibilities, nothing can beat CFS.

[4_Series_Scania]

My advice to anyone who wants realism and dynamism is to simply ditch ALL Microsoft's CFS sims and just load up IL2 Forgotten Battles. With add-ons (eg Battle Over Europe) coming on-stream now why anyone bothers with CFS is beyond me.

CFS2 (With add-ons) betters IL-2 for me...... (I do own both IL-2 & F.B.) CFS3, hmm, don't start me!

[1danny]

After almost 2 yaers of being a cfs3 tweeker I had to put it down.cfs2,il2 andil2fb are it for me.I may when ever a new add comes out i try it but...

[1danny]

By the way there are beaucoup missions and campaigns for the russian game. Th emissionsand campaigns a very easy .Don't do quicks any more just make up my own.
Just like in this game

[snake eye NL]

Hi all

I have cfs 3 now over a year but I still return to cfs2 and il2 sturmovik and il2 sturmovik forgotten battles.

I love the many addons for cfs2, it's makes the game everytime interesting.

But what I miss in every cfs sim is the few wingman options, and that's what I like about il2. How can you do a intercept mission if you can't say attack bombers/fighters? and select target and than send youre wingman to it is not a option.

So that's my opinion of the cfs serries

[Woodlouse2002]

One nice feature of CFS3 to those of us on 56k is the fact that aircraft are a lot smaller in file size. You can have a fantastically detailed aircraft that comes in a smaller file than a mediocre CFS2 or FS aircraft. I don't think i've seen a CFS3 aircraft yet in a file bigger than 3mb. Where i've seen CFS2 aircraft in files as big as 11mb.

[Hagar]

I'm all for small file sizes Woody. One reason for CFS3 aircraft being comparatively small is the fact they have no 2D panel. Many CFS2 aircraft are over-complex or simply include a lot of unnecessary bumf - large images, doc files etc. that nobody ever looks at anyway. Special sound packages are all very well but WAV files don't compress much when zipped & they tend to be large files. The same sound package is often included with other downloads so you might already have them. I think they would be better posted separately for anyone who wants them.

There's no need for CFS2 aircraft to be large files at all. Fang's latest FSDS2 F-86 Sabre with multi-LOD model, full DVC & breaking parts comes out at just under 2.4 Mb. That's including Mike's latest 2D panel & gauges.

PS. In the original Fox Four campaign "The Hunters" you get all this including 2 versions of the F-86 player aircraft, terrain mesh Korea scenery + a 24 mission campaign. http://www.simviation.com/lair/cfs2korea3.htm
The package is self-contained & configured in 3 files totalling 12.1 Mb. This is smaller than many single aircraft downloads these days. I couldn't resist a little plug.