Here's the WWI Flying Ace - FCJ and other Questions

[Bub, Andrew]

I have RB3D and I remember enjoying it, but that was a long time ago. I've suddenly become very interested in WWI combat and when things like that happen I have a tendency to "immerse". So I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a good nonfiction book on WWI flight combat, any fiction on the subject (I had no idea how much Age of Sail era fiction there was until that recent Aubrey film), and opinions on whether or not Full Canvas Jacket is worth the money -- and worth the "2-3 week long wait" the website describes. I wish I could just download it.

[TimElhajj]

I was just considering whether to purchase FMJ myself last night. I stumbled on the 2-3 week wait too. I wonder how good it really is or if I would spend that much time with it, seeing as I would have to play it on my spare (voodoo5) machine. I know Jeff Lackey thinks very highly of it.

[Bub, Andrew]

Reviews say the Glide wrappers work... Add that question then because unlike Mr. Elhajj here I don't have a "spare Voodoo 5 machine" laying about. I have a GeForce 4

[XPav]

I've got a Voodoo5 5500 available.

Lets see how much they go for on Ebay.

$30.

Eh. I'll hoard it.

[Brian Rubin]

The reviews for FCJ were pretty positive. I've been wanting to try it, because I've been dying for some good WWI flying fun. I have to whip up a copy of RB3D somewhere, as I sold my copy last year when I lost my job. :)

[JeffL]

My two cents:

Yes, FCJ is worth it. I think that the historic flavor and campaign in RB2 make RB2 + FCJ one of the best sims you can play right now.

The glide wrappers do work. The best advice is to go to the RB forum at SimHQ.com and do some reading. There's usually a newbie thread updated with Q&A on getting the glide wrapper to work plus any other issues. Very newbie friendly forum.

I'd have to look in my library for WWI air fiction - haven't pulled them out in a while. Same for WWI non-fiction. I'd imagine an amazon search would pull some up, but I know a couple of my favorites I found on eBay and they were out of print.

Here's a start: http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?query=air&catref=C3&from=R2&sacategory=29343&BasicSearch=

Take my opinions with the knowledge that I'm a huge WWI air buff - I found and purchased a strip of fabric cut from a WWI fighter, with the serial number intact. ;)

[MarchHare]

So I'm wondering if anyone can recommend a good nonfiction book on WWI flight combat


"Winged Warfare" by Billy Bishop, or "The Courage of the Early Morning" written by his son Arthur.

[John Reynolds]

Anyone else looking forward to KoE? I did an interview with the game's producer at SimHQ last fall and I gotta' admit the game looks damn good. Just hope Aspect can balance the fun and realism.

Edit: KoE = Knights Over Europe.

[Incendiary Lemon]

Anyone else looking forward to KoE? I did an interview with the game's producer at SimHQ last fall and I gotta' admit the game looks damn good. Just hope Aspect can balance the fun and realism.

Edit: KoE = Knights Over Europe.

Very much so, i'm burnt out on world war two and missile combat is a stunning bore.

[Schplamm]

FCJ is pretty darn solid. I play it about twice a week (working through a German campaign) and i’ve had only a few sporadic crashes here and there...overall, it's functioned quite well. Andrew, FYI, I'm using a Gforce4 w/latest glide wrappers on xp...i had no problems getting it up and running...just don't expect IL2 graphics and you'll be fine.

And definitely looking forward to KoE...i heard a rumor that Gary Stottlemeyer is working on this?

Cheers,
C

[Sean Tudor]

Anyone else looking forward to KoE? I did an interview with the game's producer at SimHQ last fall and I gotta' admit the game looks damn good. Just hope Aspect can balance the fun and realism.

Edit: KoE = Knights Over Europe.

Yes I am very much looking forward to KoE. Be aware though the hardcore WWI community is already trying to get their hooks into the devs to make the game as realistic as possible. :roll:

[Sean Tudor]

And definitely looking forward to KoE...i heard a rumor that Gary Stottlemeyer is working on this?

Cheers,
C

Yup - from www.aspectsimulations.com -


Gary Stottlemyer
President / Technical Director

Growing up as an Air Force "brat", Gary developed a healthy respect for aviation and combat aircraft. After sprouting his own wings, and earning degrees in both Computer Science and Physics, he applied his skills to
such notable titles as: Falcon 3.0, Operation Fighting Tiger, MiG-29, F/A-18 Hornet, and Red Baron II. When he's not writing flight models, artificial Intelligence, physics engines, ballistics code, and multiplayer systems, "Scary" Gary spends his free time doing aerobatic maneuvers in his Pitts S1-S.


Neal Hall
Vice President / Lead Engineer

Neal has been a software engineer for approximately ten years. He spent six years working for GeoAccess where he developed spatial algorithms and core technologies as well as working as a senior manager helping
to grow GeoAccess to a company of more than 200 employees. Neal entered the computer game industry in 2000 through a position at Terminal Reality where he worked on the terrain engine for FlyII. Neal has been an avid computer gamer for twenty years preferring detailed, realistic flight simulations and strategy games. Other interests include cartography, remote sensing, playing both guitar and piano and spending time with his family. As you can see, he doesn’t get out much.


Mat Herman ('JP4')
Producer

Growing up in a small farming state, one of Mat's earliest memories is of watching World War II movies with his dad on Saturday mornings. After his father introduced him to the world of model airplanes, Mat joined
every model aircraft club he could find, and much of his boyhood was filled with books on aircraft and those wonderful plastic creations… until the PC came along, and he became an avid gamer.

When it came time for his higher education, since universities didn't offer degrees in game design, Mat majored in Biology/Pre-Med. Three years later, a job with a game company presented itself, so Mat packed up his family, sold his home, and moved to Houston, to work on the Close Combat and Kohan series for Atomic Games and TimeGate studios. When Mat isn't playing games or working on a game concept, he enjoys time with his family, close friends, movies, air shows, and outdoor photography.


David Dohan
Staff Artist

Dave's early years are somewhat shrouded in mystery, the only thing we can confirm is that he grew up in Florida. During his formative years he stayed pretty much below the radar scope. In 1994 Dave emerged to start his
formal training as an artist at the Ringling School of Art Design. Majoring in Computer Animation Dave received his BFA in 1998, at which point he pretty much dropped from view again, only to resurface in 2000 as a manager at a palm tree nursery.

In 2002 he landed his first Art gig here at Aspect Simulations. What Dave lacks in work experience he more than makes up for in talent. He's created much of the artwork for Knights Over Europe. When not at work Dave enjoys the company of close friends and family. He also has interests in Botany, Marine Biology, Chemistry, and Remote Controlled Mechanics.


John MacKay ('BUCKEYE 2')
Art Contractor

With both parents having been WW2 veterans of the RCAF, John was raised to have a love and respect for airplanes. During his early school years, he found that he had a real talent for art. Driven by his passion for
aircraft and art, John spent much of his time creating planes. When the time came for his higher education, the choice was easy, and in 1974 he earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Columbus College of Art and Design. After college John served in the Navy for four years and went on to work as a graphic artist for a government agency for the next sixteen. During this time, his father introduced him to gliders and tow aircraft, and he started logging his own hours in powered parachutes.

In 1995 John began work on his first flight simulation project for Eidos, which was followed by three additional projects as a 2D/3D artist and animator. After leaving Eidos, John contributed his talents to a number of other flight simulation projects and, in his spare time, works on an animated movie of an event recorded in his father's pilot logbook from WW2 (check it out at http://home.att.net/~jmackay99/).

[CindySue22]

Two outstanding WW1 aviation fiction titles:

War Story and Hornet Squadron, both by Derek Robinson. The first concerns Fe2's and the second Se5a's. Both are good, but I think the first could possibly be called "great".

[GMicek]

Take my opinions with the knowledge that I'm a huge WWI air buff - I found and purchased a strip of fabric cut from a WWI fighter, with the serial number intact. ;)

Nice! I have a modest selection of stuff, but nothing that cool! Mainly photographs of aces and posters from the era. Two things that I have that I love to look at are a couple books. One was published in 1918 and is called "Aeroplane Construction and Operation" by John Rathbun. It's practically a manual for WWI planes, the detail is pretty mind numbing. The other is a huge tomb of a book that has all all the issues of Stars & Stripes from WWI. Always interesting to read stuff from back then.

As far as books go, I remember having a difficult time finding stuff specifically on the air war. There's no lack of titles covering the war as a whole, but the air war is seen as tactically insiginificant from what I've read.

That said, I've enjoyed reading Ace Of The Iron Cross by Ernst Udet about a thousand times (it's extremely short). I guess it's a little tough to find these days, but you're more than welcome to borrow my hardcover version of it. A 'Pictoral History of WW1' by John Keegan is good (of course), even if it doesn't focus entirely on the aviation aspect, it has some good shots. 'Germany's First Air Force: 1914-1918' by Peter Kilduff is one i've gone back to a number of times as well.

There's more, of course, but I would have to look around more.

[Bub, Andrew]

I got Full Canvas Jacket and got it to work and I call it "Good!"
Definitely good looking and good playing enough to stay on my playlist for a while.

Screw jet simulations!
Propellers, Canvas, and machine guns are where it's at!

Of course now I'm thinking about seeing how much a motorized flying Sopwith Camel model airplane costs....