| Peripheral Perfection
by Leonard "Viking1" Hjalmarson |
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I chose a single mission where myself in a squadron of four Sabres would engage an incoming flight of four MiGs. The first screen gave you a good look at the high res cockpit, as good as anything yet out there. The shot below shows you my padlock on a MiG at high 11 o'clock.
 MiG Alley: padlock. The F86 Sabre is not the most stable aircraft out there, but seasoned prop fans will have no trouble at high levels of realism. Most of the effects seem to be in place in this beta, and guns and buffet and stall are nicely done. Flight modeling in the P51 was not as far along as that of the Sabre when I flew this mission. Nevertheless, the sound and vibration transmitted via speakers and the vest were very effective. Here again, a force feedback stick is almost indispensable for real immersion.
 MiG Alley: P51 cockpit. I also made a quick and basic GC configuration for MiG Alley, using views and wingman commands as my starting place. I then fired up the mission and dove into the action. |
 MiG Alley: P51. I won't give you the play by play this time, but let's face it, the limited sensory abilities of a standard sound system and video display don't do much for the gaming experience. Add a few little niceties, however, and immersion becomes more attainable. MiG Alley is no different than EAW and RBII 3d in this respect. Voices are nicely done as is sound. With the Wingman Force and my cushion at my back, and with the sound cranked up to around 75% of capacity, I found myself in a very stimulating environment. The ability to order my wingman and squadron with voice commands not only saves keystrokes and time, but provides an imitation of the actual environment of military pilots. They have to change radar range with their hands, but they DO NOT have to issue orders by key press. In the first mission I flew I managed to take out a MiG before another one got on my tail. I called for help via voice, and my wingman responded immediately. I managed to keep my opponent guessing until my wingman arrived, but I made a bad move as he picked up the MiG and went into a spin. Whew, talk about getting dizzy! OK, running low on time now (it's almost midnight) I fired up M1 Tank Platoon II. Force feedback on the stick is less relevant than in an air combat simulation, but I do like the bump of the machine gun and main gun. You'll feel it when you get hit, and going over rough terrain is kind of nifty as well. Go to Page Five
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