There has been a handful of Word War Two based flying games on the Xbox 360, however most involve arcade style battles and not so much realistic flight mechanics. For anyone who is looking for something more simulator based, then IL-2 Sturmovik may be the answer. The original game has somewhat of a cult following on the PC, fans claim it was a solid combat simulator with good attention to detail in many departments. Fans of the original have waited several years for a sequel but it has arrived this time Xbox owners will also get a chance to soar over the English Channel and engage in dogfights with the Luftwaffe. Many people can be put off by flight simulators on the PC due to the high minimum specifications needed to run the game but us console gamers wont have to worry about that.

Its obvious from the informative introductory film to the first campaign video that the developers are keen on their history – the videos really are a delight to watch. The game opens up with old footage of dogfights and a general overview of WWII which then changes to exciting in game footage of aerial combat showcasing the game's excellent visuals. The game isn't exclusively for die hard historians or hardcore flight fans though. The single player mode has several campaigns from different theatres around Europe such as the Battle of Britain to the defence of Stalingrad and the Invasion of Sicily, with each campaign containing a number of missions.

Gameplay:

A handful of tutorial missions covering the basics of flying manoeuvres to bombing and using missiles is where most players should go before jumping right into the campaign. The controls at first may seem awkward and will take some time to get used to. The right analogue stick isn't relied on for controlling a large aspect of the direction of the plane but the speed (throttle to be exact) but along the X-axis it is used to turn the aircraft, but not cause it to bank. Depending on the gamers style of play, this can be useful for fine tweaking the plane to get the cross-hair in the right position for shooting. The left stick is used much like the actual joystick in the aircraft itself and controls the most important rudders and is used for the crucial manoeuvres and changing altitude. There are several missions in the tutorial and a few must be completed to unlock the 'Realistic' and 'Simulator' difficulty tutorials which must be completed to offer the respective difficulty setting for the single player. For gamers not so familiar with flying virtual propeller planes, then the default arcade setting is probably best to start with. This offers a number of aids such as giving an on screen target where to shoot in order to compensate for the velocity and distance the bullet has to travel in respect to the plane being targeted. Selecting an enemy in arcade mode is done with a simple press of the 'A' button – 99% of the time it works on the target you want and were aiming at but there will be slightly annoying times where it selects an unwanted choice. Like stated earlier, playing on the Arcade setting is good for beginners however its so forgiving it hardly makes the game different from any other arcade type flight game which will leave newcomers wonder why the game has such a good reputation in the world of flight simulators.

For a more challenging experience, Realistic is the way to go. This mode takes practice as going into a stall and watching your plane spin crazily to the grounds is frustratingly easy to do. The player must remember that they are flying in 1940's technology in machines made from wood and fabric in some cases so being too violent with the flight controls will result in disaster. This means staying calm in pressure combat situations is key. The jump from arcade to realistic is a big one, so patience is vital, but getting kills in a hectic dogfight is much more satisfying. Its harder not only because the plane is less forgiving but also thanks to less aids and damage model differences. Dogfighting is a large part of the game, but players will also get a chance to reign hell on ground units like tanks and boats. This means using missiles and bombs. Bombing targets can get tricky as the marker is positioned at the bottom of the screen which means can often get obstructed depending on the camera angle and the position of the players aircraft. Although not exactly authentic, there is a useful box which appears in certain situations with a live video feed. For example when a player opens fire on an enemy, the small box will show a video of the external of the enemy plane which lets the player see how accurate their fire is thanks to the tracer effect on the bullets or if a bomb is dropped is will follow it along its whistling path all the way to the end – that could mean a Panzer tank or a hay bail in a field if it was a bad miss. Players are also able to issue simple commands to their wingmen/squad such as covering the flank and attacking targets but I regularly found myself concentrating too much on flying to fiddle about with the D-pad.

Graphics:

The planes themselves look excellent, light shimmers off the sea and shines over the wings. The overall detail looks great but the damage model is even better. A shot up plane will have holes in the wings, smoke trails and enemy planes will leak oil which can obstruct the players view should it land on the players plane. Clipping an enemy plane will result in part of your own wing being ripped off exposing the delicate frame work underneath – unfortunately this will only be observed when your plane is spiralling out of control due to the damage taken. The camera zoom function can also help the visual presentation at times, engaging and destroying an enemy plane in front of the player is pleasing as the camera remains focused on the burning wreckage as the players own plane continues on in a sort of cheeky fly by. As a whole the game looks very pretty, there's even a slight tinted effect noticeable towards the corners of the screen to give it that antique look. The detail for ground models and the landscape is obviously not as good as the aircraft, but given the size of the battle area complaining about that too much would be very pedantic, from the air it looks nice enough.

Sound:

There is some excellent narrative on both the historical films and the diary excerpts revealed at the end of a mission. The music is done in the typical fashion given the war theme – orchestral with plenty of trumpets that comes across like a pilots theme tune. Anyone who gets a lift from hearing those old engines roar will have no complaints here, whether its the sound of your own plane or an enemy flying past after an encounter. The actual voice acting doesn't stand out, it seems as if there is only a few sentences the enemy pilots will come out with in German and friendly radio chatter is mostly mission based although there are a few classics in there such as 'Tally Ho!'.

Longevity:

On the arcade difficulty setting the main campaigns can be completed in a few hours, perhaps three or four at the most. Anyone wishing to tackle the game on the more authentic difficulties will get a lot more playtime out of the game due to missions taking longer and most likely replaying failed missions. The online modes will also add something to the game for those who wish to prove their flying skills on Xbox Live.

Overall:

IL-2 Sturmovik is strange in a sense that for arcade flying fans it offers a reasonable package with a single player that seems to cover almost every type of mission possible for the type of game it is. It might seem a little short, but playing on realistic settings it seems that's how it was supposed to be and that's the reason the developers have the fan base they do. Fans of flight combat simulators will surely spend plenty of time doing missions and unlocking the extra aircraft but simply put, the game offers little else that stands out for the average gamer.