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B-17 Flying Fortress: The Mighty 8th
Redefines Air Combat Simulations As We Know Them
By Joe "Impaler" HighmanEnough Talk! I demand Action!
The installation process itself is quite straightforward. Simply insert the CD into the drive and either use the autorun process or browse the CD for the Setup.exe file, open it, and then click on the “Install” button. Follow the on-screen instructions, which in the UK version include excerpts from an American bombardier, and that’s all there is to it. Although optional, most players recommend that you allow the program to create an optional graphics cache for greater performance.
The UK B17 setup window
There are some caveats, however. Please make sure that your system exceeds the “minimums” quoted by the manufacturer. One should even attempt to exceed the “recommended minimums” as well. This title loves memory, so the player should equip the system with at least 128MB of RAM, although 256MB is best. Another tweak to help performance is to manually boost the size of the Windows swap file to a full 400MB or better. With hard drive space becoming as inexpensive as it is, this is one requirement that should not be outside of the reasonable for many gamers. Again, note that many players have reported that upgrading to DirectX 8.0 has eliminated several problems. Most of the fan sites, including the forums here at COMBATSIM.COM and others like Bombs-Away.net offer technical help from players themselves.
During the initial pre-game setup, the player gets the opportunity to configure graphics, sound, and caching options. The software offers a check box to allow the player to enable Hardware T&L and to enable A3D support. Simply put, if your hardware does not support these options, do not enable them! You will save yourself time and headaches if you heed this advice.
In addition to manually altering the Windows swap file, one may also choose to create a graphics cache on the local hard disk drive. This will optimize the performance of the software by reducing the need to return to the CDROM drive when new information is required. Enabling this cache file does not eliminate the need for the game CD to be in the drive to run the game. Again, with the price per Megabyte of hard disk storage, it makes sense to do anything that you can to optimize performance.
The game does require the use of a DirectX compatible joystick. There are no keyboard commands to control the axis of flight or the panning of the bomber’s machine gun turrets. However, all of the commands that might otherwise be mapped to buttons on a joystick have been keyboard mapped as well, so one can get by with a simple one or two button joystick. I use the Logitech Wingman Rumblepad for my controller and frankly, it is a wonderful device for this title. The two analog joysticks allow me to freely switch among the delicate controls of the bombardier’s Norden bombsight, the controls of a gunner’s turret, or the yoke and throttle controls of the pilot. All with the same device.
Pick a card, any card...
One of the remarkable aspects of this title is that it requires that the player make an important choice right in the beginning. The player may opt to command an entire Squadron consisting of 12 aircraft and 120 crewmen, taking on complete responsibility for all aspects of aircraft maintenance, crew management, reconnaissance planning, and mission planning. Or the player may instead opt to simply be an aircraft commander, with a ten-man crew that wants nothing more than to complete their 25-mission tour of duty and return to the States.
You care more about them if you give them names of real friends
Both modes offer their challenges; however, for purposes of this walk-through, I will discuss the Bomber Commander mode. After all, this title is a simulation, and the truth is that there were far more individual aircraft commanders than Squadron commanders out there, so the experience offered here seemed more true to life.
Before beginning the actual mission, there are some changes to the configuration screens that might help the player to enjoy the simulation more. If you enter the game configuration menu, reset the Crew Initiative to Normal. This will ensure that crewmembers act upon events in a realistic manner. Also, enter the sound configuration menu and reduce the engine volume from 5 to 4 (out of 5). This minor offset will reduce the noise of the engines just enough to where you can still enjoy their roar while increasing the likelihood that you will hear radio messages and other ambient sounds. Accept all of the other default settings for the most rewarding simulation experience.
Configure your sound effects for maximum enjoyability
