It's early in the evening, and you have wandered into a bar run by a toothpick-chewing barman who seems to spend most of his time vigorously polishing glasses. luke can be seen propping up the bar, staring moodily into the distance.

Hey there Limey, have a drink with me? Jack, this is that Brit intelligence guy I was telling you about. Man, I was just pondering over whether to get myself a 3D card or not. I think I will actually, it seems that every new flight sim is supporting them.

Janes Combat Simulations certainly are. You remember that cool simulation of the Longbow Apache they produced? Well, they have taken any criticism on board, and this Fall they will be rolling out Longbow 2! This will give the sim a whole new look, whilst at the same time delivering everything that was asked for by those that loved the first one. To be specific, Longbow 2 will have comprehensive multiplayer capability, two new dynamic campaigns, two new helicopter types you can fly, and brand new 3-D graphics, plus a whole slew of new graphic options.

Yeah, in addition to the AH-64D Longbow Apache (and the AH-64D without the Longbow radar), you can also fly an OH-58D Kiowa Warrior scout helicopter, or a UH-60L Black Hawk utility/transport. For each helicopter you can play as either the pilot, the co-pilot/gunner, or handle both positions yourself (and yes, I know the Black Hawk doesn't have a CP/G - the second position on that bird is a door gunner). The differing functions of these three helicopter types allow Jane's to realistically portray a greater range of mission types than we could with just the heavily armed Longbow. Here's a list of features;

• Developed by the team that brought you AH-64D Longbow, 1996's undisputed Flight Sim of the Year.
• Comprehensive multiplayer support, including cooperative (pilot/gunner or individual aircraft) and head-to-head play.
• A suite of new, lethally armed helicopters, including the Kiowa scout, Blackhawk transport and Longbow attack gunship.
• All-new graphics engine with dynamic lighting and four times the object and terrain detail of its predecessor, plus 3Dfx accelerator support.
• Dynamic campaign engine that can generate a new war every time you play, for nearly infinite solo and multiplayer flight action.
• Step-by-step training missions, giving you all the skills you need to survive in combat.
• Also: advanced physics and avionics modeling, realistic AI systems and an interactive Jane's reference guide.
• The Official Guide to Jane's Longbow 2 available simultaneously with the game.

Hell, take a look at those screenshots! I was (and still am) a great fan of the original Longbow, so if this turns out to be better then I'll be in seventh heaven!

Janes haven't forgotten about fixed-wing pilots though. They're developing a simulation of the F15 Eagle, an aircraft which I have flown. All the incredible speed and firepower of one of the world's deadliest strike fighters will be at your command with F-15. Produced by Andy Hollis (F15 Strike Eagle series, AH-64D Longbow) with cooperation from Jane's top military analysts, F-15 is the next-generation jet combat sim from Jane's Combat Simulations. Presenting the most realistic graphics, physics, avionics and gameplay ever designed for the PC, F-15 delivers the blood-pounding thrill of high-speed air combat - the way it was meant to be. Whether your mission is intercepting bandits or stamping a tank convoy, F-15 packs enough punch to handle every situation. The F15 is an extremely versatile and capable airplane, and the sim promises to deliver everything you'd expect and more in the first quarter of 1998;

• Fly the legendary F-15, the fastest fighter in the US arsenal with top speeds exceeding Mach 2.
• Enjoy F-15's advanced graphics engine - bringing smooth, cutting-edge visuals to today's most popular hardware.
• Feel the heat of combat in two realistic battle campaigns created with the assistance of Jane's top military analysts.
• Explore the world - missions cover 2.5 million square miles over southwest Asia.
• Make your own history with the comprehensive mission builder - it expands the adventure and extends the replay value.
• Experience the next generation in flight sim realism with F-15's stability and control derivative flight model designed with hands-on cooperation from real USAF F-15 pilots.
• Exciting multiplayer combat provides the ultimate test of pilot skill.
• Take control of both the pilot and co-pilot cockpit positions, with instrumentation and avionics modeled to precision.
• Destroy the enemy, both in the air and on the ground, with more than 24,000 pounds of ammo, missiles, rockets and bombs.
• Look up detailed specs, diagrams and illustrations in the Jane's Interactive Reference Guide.
• Find the answers to all your questions in The Official Guide to Jane's F-15.

If I know Janes, their F15 will be as close to the real thing as you can get on your PC. Should be completely excellent.

A popular aircraft to simulate is the A-10 Thunderbolt - a pig-ugly airplane that is both rugged and heavily armed. Interactive Magic (makers of iF-22 - look out for a review soon) are the next software company to have a pop, with iA-10 Warthog. This simulation will use iMagic's DEMON2 technology. This new engine is very similar to the DEMON1 technology, but DEMON2 features much better low-level ground texturing -- it looks great at 200ft. iF-22 looks fantastic with DEMON1, because it's optimized for flight at 20,000-30,000ft. When you get down low, it's not quite as pretty as it is at 30,000ft (without a 3D accelerator). iA-10 Warthog shows the same photo-realistic detail at 200ft above the ground as iF-22 does at 30,000ft! This is important, because as the A-10's nick-name ("Tank Killer") implies, this plane was designed to hang low. The cockpit looked slick and realistic. Like iF-22, iA-10 will feature a fully interactive cockpit (you can manipulate everything with the mouse) and a completely dynamic campaign generator. The second titled being developed in-house by iMagic Labs, iA-10 should be released in the spring of 1998.

Online gaming is very popular at the moment, what with the recent introduction of 56k modems and all. One of the most popular online flight sims is iMagic-Online's (used to be ICI) Warbirds, which is set in WWII, so there is no bvr (beyond visual range) combat here - it's all about pumping your opponent full of lead at 500 yards! Soon to be released is Warbirds 2.0. WarBirds 2.0 will implement many visual improvements, one of the being a (much needed) slick new interface. Impressive black clouds of smoke and the sound of exploding shells will be ringing out around you, and the sun's glare is visible as the aircraft turns towards it. You will be able to see ships sinking - not only will they sink, but they may sink differently from one another. One may go nose first, another may roll sideways, etc. I've been told that if you decide to ditch your aircraft, it can sink as well. Also, you won't be restricted to four letter IDs anymore, because 2.0 will allow six-letter IDs. Rolling terrain has been implemented. Hundreds of years ago, man believed the world was flat, and up until now anyone that played WarBirds would have thought the same. Not anymore! No more flying over non-elevated terrain that resembles the flat green surface of a pool table. From the map view, it looks as if there are four corners, all featuring different colours of terrain. Up at the top, it sports a snow-capped look, whilst another portion of the map along the bottom has a brown desert-like scheme. WarBirds 2.0 will offer much more variety in this department. AAA will now come in four varieties - the new 88MM flak will fire in burst patterns trying to guess where you might be. The slower firing (but deadly) 40MM will be in there as well, along with the 20MM and the good old 50 cal. variety. A few new aircraft will be added to the already massive arsenal of classic WWII military planes. These include the ME Bf110 C-4, ME Bf110 G-2, Hurricane I with 8 mounted 303s, Hurricane II-C with four 20MM cannons, ME 109E4 (Battle of Britain model), an early Spitfire 1a, and the TBF Avenger 1-C with opening bay doors for dropping torpedoes. WarBirds 2.0 will also feature the new MEGAvoice™ technology, which allows on-line WB pilots to communicate via voice over the internet while flying, a feature which was added in an earlier update to the sim. Now this sounds really interesting, and if iMagic-Online pull that one off then it could mean big things.

I've just got time to say a little about updates to SSI's Su-27 Flanker, a sim that a lot of people swear by because of it's accurate flight model. By the time you read this, Su-27 Flanker 1.5, an expansion disc for the acclaimed hard-core flight sim, should be available. More than just a mission pack (although it does include 150 new missions), Flanker 1.5 adds 16-player network play, an extended mission editor, which allows you to create mission scenarios that last a period of days, and a comprehensive manual with plenty of tutorial information. Although it still uses simple polygon graphics, it does support Direct 3D, so 3D card owners will see smoothly Gouraud-shaded graphics. In the works is a far more dramatic update: SU-27 FLANKER 2.0. A dynamic campaign complete with resource management highlights the gameplay improvements; a mission editor will still be available as well. The sim's terrain will be based on previous classified Russian geographic data derived from stereographic satellite photos. Damage modeling should be significantly more detailed, and there will be visual indicators of damage. The update will also address FLANKER's biggest weakness, its primitive graphics. The new engine will feature support for 3D cards, MIP-mapped textures (which eliminate pixelation at low altitudes), alpha blending, and fogging. The game will also support resolutions up to 800x600 with 32,000 colors. If your hardware isn't up to it all, you can toggle off new features - the minimum requirement for the sim is still only a 486/66. The 16-player multiplayer mode will allow pilots to join games already in progress, and for those intimidated by the first FLANKER, the new Quick Start mode simplifies things so you can learn the ropes without dying quite so often.

OK guy, you better start saving those pennies, as it's looking like you might need 'em in the coming months! Catch ya next time!

See you next month!

Lt. Luke 'Quick' Silver for Game-Over!