Basically, yes to all of that!

It's been many moons since I played BoB2 in Win 10, having got as far as I could in reducing the CTDs before getting an SSD and a copy of Win 7 so I could dual boot and play 2.13 as it was meant to be played. In Win 10 here may have been the occasional CTD other than on exiting, but that can happen anyway. The sim is certainly very stable on Win 7 with Multiskin, which is the main obvious gap in the version Felizpe's patch supports (up to 2.06).

The BDG patch history is in Appendix G of the 2.13 Manual which I can't find online but could email you - there's quite a long list of good stuff introduced after 2.06, tho it seems that version was still pretty good. As Multiskin was a separate mod until 2.10 (I think) it might be possible to enable that on top of 2.06. Campaign code changes made in 2.10 were said to be the biggest single change made to BoB2.

I have Cliffs of Dover and as a single player experience, BoB2 leaves it in the dust, as an immersive representation of fighting, and fighting in, the Battle of Britain. Apart from more detailed cockpits and systems - and BoB2 was above average there, for its time - CloD is pretty poor by comparison. The user-made variants of the scripted campaigns elevate it from cringeworthy to just about worth playing for the odd mission or two. So near, yet so far, it had potential but never came near to realising it, even in the current Team Fusion updated version. MP is probably its forté.

EAW I played to death back in the day and it had many great features, but of course the campaign missions were pretty repetitive and the air combat AI fairly primitive. BoB2 is light years ahead visually, the AI (in the air and in the Ops room) is mostly very good indeed (outstanding for air combat) and the overall experience, in its chosen field, possibly still the best any WW2 air combat sim delivers. Of course, instead of a conventional campaign with a named pilot serving in a chosen squadron, the stock, highly dynamic 'Commander' campaign is folded into a wargame (the Ops Room side) which enables you to jump into any squadron at any time from take-off. There is a 'Single Pilot Campaign' (SPC) and my current AARs will give you a sense of how that plays out; it lacks some of the features (no pic of your pilot, no details of squadron mates, logbook entries are extremely basic) associated with the usual pilot-based campaigns but is still very good. Both Commander and SPC campaigns really give you a strong sense of time and place; BoB2 is simply the supreme recreation of the Battle and still an outstanding air combat sim experience.

Thank you for the great write-up about this title. My perception of CLOD and EAW is similar to yours. BOB2 seems to me as very "special" title with enormous scope and immersion.

Is the version of BOB2 available at A2A Simulation https://a2asimulations.com/product-category/standalone/ the basic version that is good for patching or I should try to get CD box version ? Apparently, Matrix Game version which has been discontinued was not good for patching.

Hi Polak

This is the best answer I've seen to that question: https://a2asimulations.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=70972

I happened to have the Rowan/EA big box release, whatever that was (2.0? Seems from the above A2A sell 2.06), and so I just installed that in Win 7 and then updated that to 2.13.

I believe the original CD version will run fine in Win 10, possibly also seems it was 2.13 or thereabouts that introduced whatever brings on the Win 10 CTDs on exiting 3d. Felizpe has released a fix to his Win 10 patch which enables it to work with his Win 10 version so the options for that O/S seem to be:

1. Apply 1.23 to whatever version you choose to get and tweak to the point you get as few as possible CTDs on exiting 3d (more features but more frustration);
2. Buy an original CD & install, apply Felizpe's patch (which seems to include some 2.13 features, BTW) per instructions; or
3 Buy the A2A download (2.06, or possibly the Matrix version since it's reportedly also 2.06) and apply both Felizpe's patch and his fix for 2.06, carefully following the instructions in the link above.

Ideal of course is the Win 7 dual boot option, if your h/w isn't too modern for 7 (see https://www.kraftkennedy.com/fixes-installing-windows-7-newer-hardware/ , for example). Failing that, #3 seems the best bet.

Good hunting!

I will give serious thought to BB2, but it looks like it will need SSD with a dual boot to run it properly.

When one sees those escadras and squadrons of the bombers and fighters in the air you know that there is this sense of the scale properly applied to the game. Also of interest to me is perhaps not so much the air duel but also the factor and aspect of apprehending the opposite side in this Germans creeping through the air to make an attack on some perhaps not known to the British side at that moment target. I wonder how far they pushed post-development of this game? I can see that they corrected over the years a lot. Even from the outside for someone not really familiar with it It is such a great foundation and base to make a truly epic and great simulation with grand scope and scale. Which what I hear from you and what I am reading on the forum they have done and perhaps still they continue doing.

With all due respect to B17-M8 and that modern remake Microprose is making, Rowan's game engine of BOB2 is perfectly suited to show the grand scale and scope of allied bombing raids on Germany during WW2.

Also, seeing the game roster of the Rowans creators and noticing MigAlley on the list the picture becomes pretty clear that we are dealing here with something extra unusual and special. And to top it all I just am learning that the mind and "soul of creation" behind all this was Martin Kenwright which to me is one of the best, if not the best, authors of airwar simulations, With TAW -Total Air War (by DiD, which he created after leaving Rowan Sim) being paramount and perhaps very close to dynamic campaigns of Falcon4 by Klemmick. Yes, all clicks in rather clearly and this is not just pure coincidence what we have here.

Thank you for this deep and nice introduction here 33llima and I will give it a serious thought indeed!


EDIT: perhaps my association of M. Kenwright with BOB2 and its unique game engine called "Merlin Air Combat Engine" was a little out of sync with the dates and the fact that what made Bob2 special were people at Shockwave Productions. This is where the credits fully belong!

I got a boxed version of BoB2 with what appears to be version 2.00 . Windows 10 patch 2.13 is to be installed on 2.01
.

Do I need to patch to 2.01 first before running the 2.13 patch? I guess so, but to make sure I decided to ask. Thank you.

Hi Polak

not sure what you mean by 'Windows 10 patch 2.13' since 2.13 has the 'CTD on quiting the 3d world' problem with Windows 10. the patch that seems to work with Windows 10 is Felizle's, which with an added fix is compatible with up to 2.06 and I believe has some 2.13 features tho not multiskin and is probably the best bet for Win 10 - unless you're wanting to try 2.13 in Win 10 for yourself and see how stable you can get it.

Anyway no you don't need any previous patches, per the 2.13 Installation Readme which I have cut and pasted at the bottom of this post.(less images). If you grab 2.13 here... https://a2asimulations.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=51298 ....then you should find the readme included.

If wanting instead to install Felizpe's update - which I see he describes as 'this is Battle of Britain II: Wings of Victory Patch 2.13 files adapted over 2.01 exe made to run on Windows 8 / 8.1 / 10 .' , I haven't tried this since I'm on Win 7 for BoBII and can only suggest following his own instructions from this thread: https://a2asimulations.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=68917 Tho it says that this won't work for anyone starting with 2.06, there's a fix to get that working too, later in the thread.

[Felizpe's patch update instructions from the above post on A2A BoB2 forums]

BOB2 WINDOWS 10 PATCH (RELEASED)

INSTALLATION

(Attention: This Patch requires BOB2 Original CD Release since it needs original registry. It will not work on BOB2 Matrix Games version since it comes with 2.06 Patch included. So if you installed any previous patched versions before uninstall it first and install old BOB2 Original CD Release again to restore registry)

1-Install original "Battle of Britain II: Wings of Victory" game from CD

2-Install this "BOB2 Windows 10 Patch" over your bob2 game directory at: C:\Battle of Britain II

3-At the end of the installation a window will open and ask you to Install DirectX End-User Runtimes (June 2010). Install it since it's needed for BOB2 works on Windows 8 / 8.1 / 10

4-Always run "bob.exe" as Administrator and in Compatibility Mode "Windows XP" (Or else you may have mute radio chat sounds and other bugs)

5-On Game Main Menu go to Options / Menu / Controls / Key Mapping

Find "EXITKEY"

And then Clear [Alt+X] command and replace it to another key of your choice like [End] for example, then click save. (It helps in case your Windows uses Alt+X for some system shortcut command causing the game to crash)


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Battle of Britain II BDG v2.13 Installation
BDG v2.13
1
Battle of Britain II BDG v2.13 installation. The installation process is an easy one consisting in the following steps:
 Download the v2.13 patch (BDG v2.13.7z)
 Uncompress it to a temporary folder
 Read the Release notes document.
 Execute the file "BDG v2.13.exe"
NOTE: A previous "Battle of Britain II" installed version is required (any version will do from 1.0 to v2.12) PLEASE read this document thoroughly as it contains very important information about the v2.13 path.
BDG v2.13
2
Index
1. Installation Notes ..................................................................................................................... 3
2. Installation explained ............................................................................................................... 5
BDG v2.13
3
1. Installation Notes
Please read through the following notes carefully before installation. There are several things to be aware of, particularly if you haven't done a patch update before. Note 1: This update will bring *any* previous version up to 2.13. You do not need any previous patches at all. Note 2: You will not be able to run (load) old campaigns with 2.13. If you are partway through a campaign, you may want to finish it before doing an installation. To run a v2.13 Campaign the SAVEGAME folder should be cleaned out completely except for these 3 files: DIR.DIR inputcfg.dat settings.cfg On a fresh CD install only these 3 files will be there. Note 3: You will need the latest DirectX 9.0c to run 2.13. Higher version numbers of DirectX do not include DX9.0c extensions - if you have DX10 and 11 you must still have the latest DX9.0c. You will get a missing .dll error if you do not. When the 2.13 installation update finishes, it will offer the opportunity of running the official online Microsoft DirectX installer (Internet connection needed). You may also update to DirectX9.0c (June version) by yourself. Unfortunately, there are multiple versions of 9.0c so if in any doubt, update. Note 4: The MultiSkin files needs a graphic card with at least 1GB RAM to be sure to run without issues. Note 5: How to manually back up your existing settings from earlier BoBII updates.
Buddye's installation guide in this thread Back up your file and folders: Bdg.txt (files) 2dGauge (folder) keyboard (folder) these files/folders contain all your settings and joystick buttons. Note 6: If you have a low end system and experience a crash once into 3D, go to your bdg.txt file and set LANDSCAPE_TEXTURE_SIZE = 1024 (the default is 2048). This will reduce the landscape texture resolution by a factor of 4 and should help users with low system memory.
Note 7: The minimum requirements for BoBII have changed very significantly since initial release. To run 2.13 successfully we recommend Win XP/7, 2Gb RAM, 1Gb Video card, strong Dual or Quad Core processor. Alas, BoBII is still unable to run reliably on Win8/8.1. It has been
BDG v2.13
4
reported that it works OK with Win10. Investigation of Win10 is ongoing, please check the forum, both General and Tech Supt, for the latest. Note 8: Vista and Windows 7 (and later) users may need to apply (or reapply) the 'Vista/Windows 7 fix' to your desktop shortcut as a fresh 2.13 install will overwrite the previous shortcut.
 Right click on shortcut and go to properties.
 Go to the compatibility tab.
 Check "disable desktop composition" and check the privilege level, run this program as an administrator.
Note 9: Currently, Windows screen text size must be set to 96 DPI. We will try to address this for 2.14. (in Win7 this is found under Screen Resolution by right clicking the desktop background, or under Control Panel>Display) Note 10: Forcing VSync with ATI card
There is a known issue with some (most?) ATI cards and VSync. See this thread. In short, you need to right click your ATI tray icon and enable through that (Wait for vertical refresh -> Always on). Note 11: Framerates over densely populated areas of 3D objects. Object rendering is not as efficient as we hope to make it in the future. Be prepared to check your Ground Object Density settings in densely populated urban areas. See below.
Note 12: To run 2.13 with max settings you will need minimum of 3Gb RAM (ideally 4Gb). Players with 32 bit Windows7 will need to enable the "/3GB switch" to their system. See this thread. You will also require a fairly muscular video card, with at least 1Gb of Video RAM.
Note 13: To see in-menu videos with Win7, see this thread. or install the Indeo codecs: Note 14: Your newly patched install contains a full manual describing everything you might possibly want to know about Battle of Britain II, in pdf form in the Docs\ folder, along with several other useful files. This sim is intended to be as fully user-configurable as possible. You can run it as it comes "out of the box" or you can spend as much time and effort as you are inclined, to modify its behavior to your liking. The user definable options extend far beyond what is apparent in the in-game GUI, via the configuration file bdg.txt, fully described in the manual.
BDG v2.13
5
2. Installation explained
These are the steps you should go when executing the installation file "BDG v2.13 .exe"
This is the first screen you will see after launching the v2.13 update. Nothing to do here, just click on the "Next" button to continue the process.
BDG v2.13
6
The installer will try to detect your "Battle of Britain II" installation from windows registry and the found directory as the default destination. If the installer can´t find your "Battle of Britain II" installed directory, the "C:\Battle of Britain" will be used as default. The installation directory can be changed using the "Browse..." button. After verifying the destination folded click on the "Next" button to continue the process.
BDG v2.13
7
This window will remind you that the selected directory is NOT empty and the contents will be updated. It´s just a reminder, press "Yes" button to continue.
Now it´s time to select the components you´d like to install. You have two options, install the v2.13 files and/or install the Multiskin v2.13 files. Select one or both options and click "Next" button to continue.
BDG v2.13
8
Choose the desired ingame language to be used. By default the English language is installed. Change the default language if you want to and click "Next" button to continue. NOTE: The BDG group hasn´t got the knowledge to update the German, French and Italian languages. Only the English and Spanish ones are completely updated to v2.13. The other three languages will work but are not as accurate as the English and Spanish ones. Please keep in touch with the BDG group if you wish to update the German, French or Italian languages.
BDG v2.13
9
These are the installation options you may change:
 Preserve current settings. If you have a previous installed version and wish to keep your current install settings preserved, leave this option checked.
The backed up files will be saved in a directory named "BACKUP.<Date Time>" within BoB II installation directory (Battle of Britain II) NOTE: See the note 5 from previous chapter for a list of the files to be preserved using this option.
 Default BDG.txt file. Also, If you have a previous installed version and wish to keep your bdg.txt modified file, uncheck this option.
IMPORTANT: If you don´t know anything about this file or want to start with a new default one leave this option checked. NOTE: In the Docs folder you will find an incredible "Battle of Britain" pdf manual with all the game options explained including this file.
 Choose type of effects?. Change the game effects from realistic ones to more visual ("Hollywood") ones.
Realistic option is more historically accurate. Hollywood is more visual stunning. Change the options to your likings and click "Next" button to continue.
BDG v2.13
10
This is a "review" screen with all the selected options before the update is installed. You may go back ("Back") to change the selected options if you need to. Click "Install" button to continue.
BDG v2.13
11
Just an information window showing the installation process. Click "Cancel" button to abort.
BDG v2.13
12
The installation is over!. Click "Finish" button and enjoy with the "Batlle Of Britain II" simulator. Select "DirectX v9.0c online installation" option and click the "Finish" button if you´d like to launch the online Microsoft DirectX installer. This program needs an Internet connection to work properly. You may install DirectX v9.0c by any other method you´d prefer but remember that the simulator needs DirectX v9.0c to be installed.
BDG v2.13
13
Just follow the installer if you´d like to install/update your DirectX or press "Cancel" button to install DirectX by yourself.
The BDG will be happy to see you again in v2.14 update! Meanwhile go to the BDG forum to keep in contact and stay up to date.

It is all a little confusing with that patching but not really when you look at readmes closer.

My dilemma was with the boxed version of the game V2.00 do I need to apply v2.01 before WIN10 patch and the answer apparently is - NO. So I went about that in a little perhaps "over the top way" by still applying v.2.01 to my v.2.0 out of the box and then doing Win10 patch which does not really make any change to the version cause I have still see that I have 2.01 and all is pretty much working on Win 10.

So far, all appears to be working except my Saitekx52 controller which has a minor problem with Propeller Pitch assigned to the throttle slider and this does not seem to be smooth and goes on and off in a haphazard way. Need more time to test everything else and if I like the simulation then I will eventually go for SSD with a dual boot as you have.

For now, I am looking for video or text tutorials on how to properly fly the assets in BoB2 and so far I see only Bf109 having a very good takeoff video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHgaVKEOjus. I need more like that.

Video tutorials I haven't seen for ages, but I'd recommend downloading 2.13 for the sake of its manual. While it describes some features earlier versions won't have, it does include good, screenshot-illustrated instructions and checklists for start-up using the click-able cockpits and recommended speeds for various situations and conditions. It's worth emphasising the need to release both right and left wheelbrakes before beginning to taxi, to avoid a nose-over - this is mentioned in a common takeoff checklist in the 2.13 manual (based on the actual pilot's handbook for the early Spitfires) but not in the ones for each individual aircraft. The 2.1 manual is closely based on the excellent printed original from Rowan and included good primers on everything, including campaign set-up and play. Presumably you'l have an earlier version of the manual in your Battle of Britain II/ Docs folder.

Bump! And for 33lima´s great shots

Still a great sim, which ever way you play It!

Things not going well for me...


No Antialiasing options, so some sawtooth here and there but still looks great.

Red

From time to time I return to this WW2 air battle simulation but each time persistent crashing it to a desktop does not allow me to continue for any longer period to learn it better.
I can see that a lot has been done to this sim and it sure has a potential.

Are there any good videos with training and a review of its gameplay? I would like to hear some videos with a commentary because just silent ones do not well do for me.
It also seems that development has ceased and is no longer supported. Except for how to make it work on modern OS like W10 and now W11.

For what it is worth I followed the installation instructions in this video: https://www.youtube.com/live/0ELxc-DGAiU?si=jNjbtu7Imtbftxlb and installed it in W11. No CTDs but I haven’t played it much since then. Possibly W11 experiences some confusion over the DirectX9 I installed, but nothing apart from a occasional message at start-up or powering down the PC.

There’s also some gameplay introduction in the video and the manual is quite a fine ressource too. If you search YouTube there are some videos around of people playing it but I don’t think there are specific tips on what to do in your campaigns as that is left to the player’s discretion.

I’ve owned this sim and its predecessor upon release in 1998 or thereabouts and I still have a very limited understanding of what to do. Put up stranding patrols? Probably not. When should I scramble? Which orders to issue? The flying is the most straight forward part of this sim.

Thank you for your prompt helping post.
I have watched SmartWarGames short review and introduction to BOB2 before, now rewatched again and found it interesting. In fact that was the only found so far "voiceover" video found so far and that made me a little wonder as to why.

I have also found some of the older posts on Matrix forum:
https://www.matrixgames.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=11069

and perhaps unique and worth watching campaign tutorials by Heinkill:
https://www.matrixgames.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=11069&t=166491
it was without any commentary although great period music and songs.

I will try to hang longer on this simulation and will post any new findings.