IL-2 Sturmovik: Birds of Prey Review [360]

03 Sep 2009 at 15:43:46 by
Systems used to review this title: (360)

If you've not read the preview of the game then you'll not know how much we were looking forward to this game.  So much so, in fact, we even did a video preview.  You see, with any flight sims trying to make it on the console there are inevitable problems.  Of course, the first of these problems is the control system, and it's here that most consoles fall down.  Not only is it difficult to map complicated functions to very few buttons, but the control pad really never does a flight sim justice.  It's all about the flight stick and being able to feel that movement rather than gesture it.

What IL-2 does brilliantly is map the buttons to the control pad really well.  What is initially fiddly and confusing becomes intuitive and easy.  By using WWII aircraft, you automatically negate the need to have multi-function buttons (like having the left bumper button as a shift button, a system I'm surprised hasn't been explored).  Because you're flying in one of the truest senses, all you have to worry about is your altitude, your airspeed and your maneuverability, which is dependent on the aircraft you're in.

And there is a selection of aircraft at your disposal in the game.  As part of the Ally, you'll be given access to the Spitfire, Hurricane, Mustang and Yak, as well as the infamous Ilyushin.  You'll also have the opportunity to fly other aircraft, but generally your air steed is dependent on the campaign, which sees you fighting all over Europe.

There are several campaigns to work through, each placing you at the turning points of the battle for air dominance over Europe.  You start off in Dover, getting your basic flight training in the Hurricane, moving to the Spitfire for more intense training.  As soon as you've got the hang of flying, you're asked to intercept bombers, and it's here the game begins proper.

As defender of Britain, and pilot of the most iconic aircraft of the war, you're initially unfazed, until you see the sheer amount of bombers clouding the sky.  Not only does the impending feeling of doom sink in, drawing you deeper into the game, but learning how to avoid the Axis' infamous fighter escorts, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, while taking on the bombers really does get your heart going.  There is a variety in missions too, ranging from dogfights to escorts to bombing runs, and a huge amount of missions within the campaigns, starting with the Battle of Britain, across and over Italy and ending in Berlin.  Couple this with the most beautiful of graphics, and you have a game that draws you into the timeline of the war so seamlessly it's almost sickening.  Why sickening you ask?  Well, simply because Microsoft, with all the most powerful PCs in the world, and all the drivers, and dedicated graphics to flight sims can't even get the scenery in MS Flight Simulator right.  If you dare fly below three or four thousand feet, you're met with a pixelated and unattractive world.  IL-2, using photo-realistic scenery and maps from the period, has recreated an absolutely stunning gaming world.  You can fly as low or as high as you like, and the quality of the scenery is never compromised.

But it's not just the attention to the scenery, it's how the aircraft interacts with the world that makes IL-2 so special.  I mentioned, and demonstrated, in our video preview that even by flying wing first into a tree, you wouldn't explode in a Hollywood style manner, but instead loose your wing, sending you into a spinning frenzy.  I also showed how the damage on the aircraft was unique and beautifully animated, allowing you to literally look through your aircraft.

What I didn't talk too much about was the control mechanics, and although I've touched on it briefly, I'm sure some of you would like to know exactly how this game does work on the consoles.

Moving the aircraft is easy enough, you simply use the left stick to bank, climb or descend.  The right stick deals with throttle, so up accelerates, while down decelerates, and moving the stick left and right is mapped to the rudders.  The right trigger button is you primary weapon, which is always your cannon, while the right bumper releases bombs.  You won't have a bombs on all missions, but the left bumper fires rockets.  The back button deploys your landing gear while the d-pad offers a variety of orders to your wingmen, from attack my target to cover my six.

All ...

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