Microsoft Combat Flight Simulator 2: WWII Pacific Theater review (PC)

The centerpiece of Combat Flight Simulator 2 is undoubtedly the carrier operations, and these highlight the differences between a land-based European war simulation and a Pacific war simulation. Landing on a carrier is a completely different experience from landing at an airfield, and for inexperienced pilots, attempting to do so will often end in failure. Combat Flight Simulator 2 conveys orders from your landing signal officer through a window in the corner of your screen, which shows a figure giving flag signals as you approach, as text captions tell you that you're "too low" or "too fast." A mission isn't a complete success until you're safely back on your carrier deck, and if you're flying a damaged plane, the task becomes much harder. The experience of carrier operations adds a whole new dimension to the game, and one that's immensely enjoyable, even as you learn it.

Fans of hard-core simulations will find that Combat Flight Simulator 2 does have several shortcomings. The first is in the campaign. While Combat Flight Simulator 2 does offer a large, branching campaign, which includes over 120 possible missions and lets you fly either as an American or Japanese pilot, the experience offered by fully featured dynamic campaigns such as those found in Enemy Engaged, MiG Alley, and Falcon 4.0 is absent. While dynamic campaigns were once a novelty that attracted considerable attention simply for what they tried to achieve, the aforementioned games have done much to make this feature something that serious simulation fans expect in a truly complete game. Fortunately, the campaign in Combat Flight Simulator 2 does have a lot of replay value, and the powerful mission editor that's included - the same one the developers used to create the campaign missions - will add a lot more for some players. But there's nothing quite like the sense of a real dynamic campaign in a military flight simulation, and so it's too bad that Combat Flight Simulator 2 had to stick with scripted missions.

The game's multiplayer options are also lacking. You're restricted to deathmatch or team head-to-head play, which means that if you want to create a virtual squadron in order to fly single-player missions cooperatively, you are out of luck - although, with the lack of flyable bombers, such squadrons would be restricted in the types of missions they could fly anyway. This is also a shame, as unique experiences like flying early-war torpedo bombers go unrealized in Combat Flight Simulator 2. In fact, the lack of variety in flyable aircraft is another weak point in the game: seven types of planes (counting the two Zero models as separate planes) is pretty limiting. Flyable Oscars, Warhawks, and Airacobras are nowhere to be found. You'll encounter several of these as enemy or friendly aircraft throughout the game, but it's too bad you can't jump in the cockpits of some of these less common planes. Fortunately, the expandable nature of the Combat Flight Simulator series means that you'll probably see these in an expansion pack some time in the future.

Even with its problems, Combat Flight Simulator 2 still has a lot to recommend it. In fact, the game comes very close to being perfect for casual flight sim enthusiasts: The flight models can be adjusted for difficulty, the graphics are eye-catching, the campaign is varied enough, there are several good training missions, and the manual is always there to offer tips and explanations. Hard-core flight sim fans who are used to detailed dynamic campaigns and robust cooperative multiplayer options will find these aspects of the game to be lacking, but even the most experienced virtual ace should find the carrier operations to be both interesting and challenging. The carrier ops are easily the single most enjoyable aspect of the game, and just practicing traps on these early flattops should keep you busy for a long time. If you somehow get tired of this, you can still import aircraft from the original game (although you'll be stuck with the less attractive aircraft models) and fly as British or German pilots if you choose.

Due to its attention to detail and wide range of features, Combat Flight Simulator 2 has something to offer almost every simulation enthusiast. Besides, it's been too long since the last great Pacific-theater flight sim. Although it's not the definitive WWII flight sim, Combat Flight Simulator 2 was definitely worth the wait.