Review by Armchair General

[VBF-12_Stick-95]

I haven't seen this posted here and couldn't find it in a search so I thought I put it up.

 

http://www.armchairgeneral.com/il-2-sturmovik-battle-of-stalingrad-pc-game-review.htm

 

 

This is not part of Metacritic rating either.  Not sure how it might become incorporated.

Edited December 20, 2014 by VR_Stick

[vonPilsner]

Nice review, thanks for sharing it.

 

Armchair General Rating: 92% at current development

[Streiff]

92 out of 100, more or less perfect in other words......riiiight.

Edited December 20, 2014 by Baron

[79_vRAF_Friendly_flyer]

Looks fair to me.

[II/JG17_HerrMurf]

From his review it appears he is, as am I, primarily an online guy. The text and review is good but more probably a lower score, particularly based upon what he wrote, would be more accurate. If I read the review and then guessed what score he was giving it I would have guessed closer to 72-82%. I love this game but he loses a little bit of credibility with a score that high. I agree with much of what was written and personally give it a 7 or so.

[33lima]

This applies just as much to my own review at CA but I'd suggest that the overall score is the part of any review we should pay least attention to. That part's almost pure opinion, very liable to be different to our own. I'd suggest that we should instead form our own opinion from the reviewer's - and other knowledgeable reviewers' and commentators' - descriptions of the sim's features and characteristics. Based on what's important to you, you may go higher, you may go lower. Doesn't mean the review is bad because you'd come up with a different score, or good because you don't.

Edited December 20, 2014 by 33lima

[Bearcat]

92 out of 100, more or less perfect in other words......riiiight.

 I think this review is fair and honest...  for me this sums BoS up perfectly.

 

 

Debriefing

Without a doubt, this is a nice addition to the IL2 series. It almost feels like a reboot of the original IL2, taking us back to the Eastern Front with a select set of planes on a new gaming engine. The graphics and level of detail for the planes, cockpit, landscape and ground units are superb. Dawn and dusk visuals are simply beautiful as the sun beams through the clouds. The game runs flawlessly; I’ve yet to see a game crash in the countless of hours I’ve been playtesting. Some gamers have experienced lockups or crashes, but these may be limited and the developers try to quickly address them.

I have only three complaints, which I’m sure will be polished since the developers are still working on the sim since its official October 2014 release. The first is that the single-player campaign can become stale after several missions. The mission briefings do not provide any background for the mission or the campaign; it just tells you what you need to do to technically complete the mission. The second is that the unlocking of plane modifications and skins can feel like a chore, but this can be a good learning experience for those new to the sim. The third is that there aren’t many multiplayer options. The number of servers is limited, along with the number of missions in their rotation, and players cannot create their own servers yet. For many who are part of an online squadron, this can be a frustrating wait since many may want to learn and experience IL2-Battle of Stalingrad with friends.

Overall, I can’t complain about the sim too much, since it is still really in development. It is a welcome addition to the IL2 series, and it is visually immersive. I expect to keep flying this sim, but mostly online.

Armchair General Rating: 92% at current development