After months of preparation and planning following our big announcement this past Fall, we are proud to announce the Release of version 3.005 and launch of Early Access for both Flying Circus - Volume One and Tank Crew - Clash at Prokhorovka. They are now both available for purchase in the IL-2 webstore and making a purchase gives you access to new content as we roll it out and before the product is final.
Today we would like to tell you about what we plan for Flying Circus – Volume One and show you some WIP screens of our first two aircraft which are ready for Early Access release this month! But first, let’s take a minute and talk about how we came to make Flying Circus and the challenges that we face in developing it.
Our Early Access program for Bodenplatte begun recently with its first two aircraft become available - the Bf-109 G-14 and Spitfire Mk.IXe. They both have unique features – the G-14 has a water-methanol mixture injection system MW 50, and for the Spit has an optional G.G.S Mk. IID gyro gunsight. Many virtual pilots were surprised with the accuracy that can be achieved using it. Positive user feedback and their interest in this device and how it works motivated us to write this extensive description of how it works and what difficulties we had to overcome modeling it in the sim. It is also useful as a guide on how to use it in combat.
Let's see an overview of why this device was developed in reality. Obviously, shooting accuracy is paramount in an aerial engagement, that's why future fighter pilots spent a lot of time improving their gunnery skills. First, cadets learned the theory of estimating the deflection required to hit a moving target and then they practiced in it by attacking an aerial target. In the middle of the last century, they usually practiced on a towed fabric cone that was attached to another aircraft using a long cable. These cones were usually towed by low-speed aircraft that didn't attempt sharp maneuvers, so a fighter trainee could plan his attack conveniently. Of course, this led to a dramatic decrease in shooting accuracy when new pilots encountered a real enemy instead of fabric cones. Even Winston Churchill, himself noticed this problem in 1939. An average fighter pilot often chose a much smaller deflection than was required. Bomber gunners had the same difficulties in hitting enemy fighters.
The modern world as we know it comes from the great joint victory over Nazis. The victory which wasn't possible without the blood of the Soviet people, which begun on this day, June 22, 1941.
This new project of ours is our tribute to this memory. We tell about the machines of WWII and the fighting in the skies above its battlefields. And starting this year, we'll also tell you about the fighting on the ground. We'll begin with one of the most famous and critical battles of the war - the battle of Kursk. In 1943, the Wehrmacht gathered all available forces, which in 1943 were still considerable and far from defeated and attempted to turn the tide of the war after the setbacks in 1941 and 1942 in one coordinated all-out assault. It can't be said that this attempt was entirely hopeless, the German forces nearly broke through the last lines of defense, but the Red Army held and counterattacked. And with that, the final outcome of the war became clear. The symbol of that battle, of course, is the armored combat machines that defined the battlefield – TANKS! Tanks alone are little more than expensive metal heaps without their human crews. This new project - Tank Crew: Clash at Prokhorovka - is dedicated to the crews who bravely went to battle in them.
Today's update is focused on Steam support, it brings required functionality to support Steam requirements for the distribution of a new content. In addition to purely technical stuff 'under the hood', this will make running the game through Steam more streamlined, without entering login and password.
