Today, I am delighted to begin a new series of posts, which I am entitling "CaptSopwith Plays WOFF." I thought I'd start a new thread since most of you have been playing this amazing sim for over a year now. Anything I say will probably be a repeat of the experiences you've already had. But I also wanted to share my first impressions on WOFF as someone who has been playing since OvS sent me a copy of Phase 1 way back when. This post includes some broad impressions, as I'm still getting my new computer set up and running. Again, my sincere thanks to Hellshade. Without his kindness, I would not have a copy of WOFF 2 to even play! Thank you again my friend!

First Impressions

The most noticeable difference between WOFF and its predecessors is the ease of installation. I've kept my game backups on an external hard drive for years and my OFF folder was a bit of a jumble: I had my OFF disk, the various patches that followed, the HiTR expansion and its patches, and screenshots of how I set up my nVidia settings and configured OFF's graphics to run smoothly. I was prepared to learn a new routine - knowing that the rewards would be more than worth the learning curve. But I was astounded at how easy it was. I ran WOFF 1.0's installation file, made a cup of tea, and returned to see that it was already finished. Then I ran 2.0 and before I had finished a few sips of Twinnings English Breakfast, it was also done. Lastly, I added on the latest update from the site and before I knew it, I was ready to play.

The "fit and finish" if you will, of WOFF is astounding! The quality of the menus, the feel of the interface, the sense of immersion that drips from every pixel from the moment you start the game and see the old phonograph spinning, is remarkable. And it's the small details that made me smile time and again. I just toured the Imperial War Museum's new WWI exhibit this summer, and the interface - with it's mix of film, newspapers, photographs, hanger renderings, and gorgeous maps, made me feel like I got to bring part of that experience back home with me. I love all of it and I shook my head time and again at the level of detail, the insane dedication to getting it right - and right to a degree that only the most die hard First World War aviation enthusiast or, a scholar who makes a living studying this time period - would ever notice. The type set on the reports, the font and official stamps on the log books, the pilot photos, it's all fantastic and I cannot congratulate the team enough on a job well done. The level of accuracy is such that, if I could teach my dream course on WWI, I would have a WOFF station set up to rotate my students through so they could get a glimpse of the experiences of these men. An idea, I should add, that first came to me when I played Red Baron as a teenager - only now, I think I could actually convince other people of the idea!

The other massive difference is the score. Matt, you've really outdone yourself this time! I couldn't help but smile when some of the themes from OFF's previous scores came through, but the new material, especially the music for the briefings, really provide you a sense of for-boding and dread. It captures the mood, the spirit of the period, without making it into caricature. It lands the mood brilliantly.

I also love the additional information in the menus! (Note, we haven't even gotten in the air yet!) The pilot logbooks, the detailed information on my fellow pilots, their moods, their abilities, their morale, all give me a sense of flying with living people, who want to survive this terrible conflict they've been dragged into. I also LOVE the intelligence menu. The addition of knowing where the enemy is - to the best of our knowledge at least - and what types of machines they are flying, is fantastic! I also LOVE the renders of the machines. They have a hand drawn artistic quality to them that I spent a lot of time admiring. I also enjoyed the Gothas. After seeing smaller scouts and reccy planes in hangers, seeing the Gotha sitting outside in a dark and stormy landscape was perfect. Well done!

The final part of the interface I'd like to compliment is how easy it all is to set up! I no longer load up the CfsCongig utility and look at my screenshots to see what boxes to tick. I simply started the sim with the settings it came with. The results? The graphics are jaw-dropping and on my computer, even a full furball in quick scenarios, the sim ran at 60fps with only the slightest pause if the action became incredibly intense. Fantastic!

One last thought for the day before I go: the AI is remarkable! I feel like I have to learn how WWI dogfighting worked all over again - and for real this time. I am no longer facing enemies that either fight to the death or plod along straight and level until I can flame them. These pilots feel alive! I tried a quick mission in a Camel (more about the incredible cockpits in another post!). I wound up chasing an enemy, and watched as a he rolled and dived for the deck. I've seen this trick in a hundred other flight sims - the enemy dives, hits ground level, and then tries to turn fight you until you shoot him down. But now this time, he hit ground level and kept running! I suddenly realized that I was fighting a new pilot and he was running scared, trying to get over his lines before I could catch him!

Mind. Blown.

I've never seen such complex AI before. I've also been shot down three times and I've flown five missions... so they are also lethal to a degree that I've never seen.

Ah, so much to say. So much to compliment! There will be many more posts. I also need to start taking screen captures to go along with these updates.

My God, guys! What have you done!? I'm never going to finish this bloody dissertation now!

Cheers!