Fly you are absolutely correct when you mention the visual being a huge selling point. If you gave some gamer the original Castle Wolfenstein they would probably be bored in about 30 seconds even though it is not that different to a modern day shooter.

It's what drew everyone's eye initially to IL2 because it looked better than any sim before it. Even if I don't like the whole idea of WOW I have to admit the visuals and what might be done with them gets me excited. The fact it also seems coded well to run smoothly on people's computers is a bonus too.

Refering back to the earlier point, trying to complete a fps level is usually allot more repetitive and tedious I would think. Most of them are a pre-determined loop where you know what is going to happen and where. At least with getting your plane off the ground you have accomplished an action that does not need to be relearned. It's a sense of accomplishment which should be more gratifying than blowing away endless waves of monsters, soldiers, whatever.

I'm just putting out an example of what types of tedium a player will go through to achieve their goals. Anyways, that was my point about levels of complexity being a good thing while adding goofy stuff like powerups and super weapon add-ons doing nothing beneficial for the sim genre.

WW1 flying is already stripped down enough as it is for gaming purposes because it is a game. It does not have to be Super Mario in the air though.

I guess your friends are more tolerant than mine. They just give me a strange glazed over look if I bring up the topic so I don't bother anymore.

As you mentioned fearlesslds, people talk about history being boring. That is why I was stressing any marketing needs to focus on the emotional rather than the historical semantics to capture their audience. Once they're hooked they'll find learning more about the time period more gratifying.

(Your comparisons between political ideologies were a lackluster ending to your otherwise interesting posts.)

I don't think a developer can create a good sim without having some passion or interest in it. If the developer's feel that they are good in that area, there is no reason not to pursue it. Some make good arcade games, some make good sims. Developers are not some homogenous group that doesn't have strengths or weaknesses in one area or another. A developing company that tries to force their talents and product into a gaming niche they have no experience with will only end up with a misguided product.

I guess they'll all eventually lower their standards hoping they make the next Tetris or something.

S!