Erik "EinsteinEP" Pierce reviews the latest version of the popular helo sim.

http://www.simhq.com/_air14/air_504a.html

Thanks for the nice review.

Just one question, do they (DCS) still intend to someday link the sims together (Black-Shark, A-10, future titles) ?

What's disappointing is the way one has to obtain this stuff.
Call me outdated but I'm still VERY VERY restrictive about where I post my Credit-Card information.
Of course, doing it that way will bring more cash for them, but is less convenient/secure for the one wishing to purchase their product..

very excited to read and see what the new edition offers.

as for credit card purchasing over sagepay. even if you did it, you'd like get an error anyway. that particular agency is notoriously inept. this is something of an issue if the response on the official forums are any indication, so hopefully they'll get the message and do a retail version.

Nice review but with all the time they spend on design you think they could implement a dynamic campaign.

Thanks for the review. A more detailed look into the improvements would have been nice, tho.

FokkerDVIII,

I wouldn't hold my breath for seeing a dynamic campaign in an ED product in the foreseeable future. The impression I have is that they view DC as a complete waste of dev resources. Still, you might like the new mission generator. It is not bad at all.

Good review and nice screen shots. Unfortunately, I kinda gave up on BS because I found the AIs ability to shoot you through trees meant I had to adjust my tactics to suit the game rather than the mission (especially in the flat areas with lots of trees but few hills). It's a shame really because I'd like to buy this upgrade, but I guess for me it would ultimately be unforfilling.

You just have to fight like the USMC and Army learned in Iraq...shoot while on the move!

Too hard to do in a single seater? Well, the Russians agree, hence they're not buying any more 50s and are instead getting 52s and Mi-28Ns.



The Jedi Master

Thanks for the feedback, Lurker! In this reviewer's opinion, the single biggest improvement was the graphics, and I tried to capture that in the screenshots I uploaded. I hit quickly on a few of the other differences I had noticed (Mission Generator, mission editor, etc.) and there are a number of other improvements that I didn't fully evaluate.

http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=81117&highlight=black+shark+flight+model

Some things I plan on exploring in the future are the new helicopter AI and the updated radio comm logic, but all in all the remaining "differences" were introduced to the community in A-10C and I really wanted to hit on the new things for Black Shark 2.

Yes as in multiplayer compatible. A-10C patch within a week (apparently) will make A-10C compatible with Blackshark.
Then missions can be run with both aircraft.

IMO the review shouldn't have mentioned the pricing/upgrade/patch argument - it would have been better to have remained impartial by simply ignoring it.