Q. Damage modeling has been another growth area lately. Can you give us a feel for how damage effects and resolution will work in Nations?

A. Each plane has up to 12 different damage areas that all affect the dynamics of the plane. E.g. if you shoot the right wing of a plane that wing will have increased drag from the torn fuselage - in the case of a bomber there is a chance of a possible fuel fire.

Q. Team Apache has introduced weather in a big way this year, as will Panzer Elite and Apache-Havoc. What will we see in nations in the way of turbulence, wind and weather effects?

A. With Nations we have tried to make the weather as realistic as possible. Generally, planes tend to be less susceptible to adverse weather conditions than combat helicopters and as a result the effects on the planes will be less noticeable.

Q. Will we see training missions? How are these modeled?

A. There are four training missions that cover the basics that all pilots need to know - taking-off, manoeuvrers, target practice and landing. To ensure that players are able to experience all of the various characteristics of the planes they are able to select any of the player planes to practice in.

Q. I understand that the campaigns are not dynamic. How are scenarios structured? What connects one to another? What will contribute to the immersion factor?

A. We hired a researcher to work from the British Public Records Office and he came up with about 90 missions that were totally historically accurate. From these 90, we then chose 15 missions for each of the nations (Britain, USA, Germany) which we felt would offer the most variety and would be the most fun and challenging to play.

In so doing, we found that it was unlikely that a single pilot would have flown so many different types of aircraft over such a long period, so we decided that to keep the game as authentic and realistic as possible, we would have a series of unconnected missions that would allow us maximum variety and scope. The stunningly realistic graphics of the aircraft, landscapes and virtual cockpits, and the superb flight models all make the player feel like he's really flying a WWII fighter.

Q. Other than dynamics, a factor that contributes to immersion is enabling the virtual pilot to care about his squadron. How does Nations give us that feeling of connection?

A. The large range of atmospheric radio chatter in the 3 nations' languages, with many different pilot voices for each nation, really makes the player feel like he's connecting with his squadron. On top of that, the player decides when and where to give orders to his squadron and he'll want them to do as good a job as possible.

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Q. Is there any other interaction using the radio? Can I communicate with ground control or other flights, for example?

A. The radio cannot be used to communicate to the AI planes in your squadron. What we do offer is the ability to talk to other people playing the game by using a microphone, allowing network players to communicate remotely without necessarily using a console.

Q. Computer controlled pilots have become very sophisticated this year, including becoming subject to g forces, losing sight, panic, morale, growth in ability etc. What can we expect in Nations?

A. The AI pilots will be rated according to the difficulty level of the game. The higher the difficulty the more realistic the AI will behave. It has always been the intention that the AI will be able to do exactly what a human pilot could do - they would not be able to perform impossible aerobatic feats, for example.

Q. Obviously models are unique for each aircraft. What sources are you using for the data? Will you have real pilots testing the models?

A. The models have been tested by an RAF test pilot (who is currently on the Euro-fighter project) who has flown many of these planes as a hobby. The actual plane data comes from a large variety of sources including WWII intelligence data.

Q. Will AI pilots use the same flight model? Will enemy pilots have the same g-force limitations as the virtual pilot?

A. All planes in the game use the same flight models and have the same limitations and advantages, including g-forces, ammo, etc as the player. The game cannot actually tell the difference between an AI pilot and a network player.

Q. Formation flying is routine but boring in WWII. Will there be an easy way for the player to accomplish this?

A. You will be given the option to start close to the action - a 'quick start' that places you within a few minutes of the action. Should you wish to do a long haul bomber escort, time compression is available for you to use. Taking off and landing are also options that can be turned on and off.

Q. What forms of multiplayer support will be provided and what kinds of multiplayer gameplay will be included?

A. The game supports deathmatch and team multiplayer games with up to 64 players, as well as a special multiplayer game we call V1 football. It can be played over the internet as well as locally and uses several new techniques to eliminate the lags you normally experience over the internet. As a special feature you will be able to talk to other players on your team using a microphone.

Q. What kind of future expansions are likely to appear for the game?

A. We will be releasing a mission editor for the game via the Internet that will allow people to create their own missions and multiplayer games. Rather than us imposing missions onto players we decided that a greater degree of freedom would be afforded to players by doing this.

Thanks, and best of luck with a very promising sim!