Su-27 Flanker

S.S.I.

In my opinion, flight simulators can be categorize into two reaction groups; you either like them or you don't. But when talking about Su-27 Flanker, the two groups reduce to one (you like them!). If my words do not convince you, I am sure that a familiar name like "Mindscape" would.

"For many years Western fighter pilots considered practically all Soviet fighters as MIG's. However, times have changed and they have come to know yet another formidable name - the Sukhoi Su27, unofficially called by Russian service personnel "Zhuravlik" which stands for Crane, and designated by NATO as the Flanker." That is how the Su-27 Team has described this magnificent flying beauty, how can I disagree with these people who have actually created the game and besides who are Russian! The whole aim in producing a game like this is, as stated in the manual, matching the technical characteristics and capabilities of the real Su-27 Flanker with the advantages of the PC format to come up with a product which is close to simulators used to train military and civil aviation pilots.

I do not know much about planes, but I have some general knowledge about flight simulators. Depending on past experience, I can easily state that this is one of the best flight simulators ever made. I am not just talking about the sounds and the graphics, but also the real world logic that is applied in producing the game. You will be able to witness the opening and closing of the landing gears, the sun getting into your eyes and a cockpit with signs written in Russian (afterall, it is a Russian fighter!).

I have to admit the fact that the game itself is a bit complicated, but is this not the case with all flight simulators! It is an issue of pushing the right buttons in the right order and at the right time. In Su-27, the complex produce has been simplified by the small pamphlet and mission instructions about how to perform certain movements. One example to that would be choosing the mission "Air-1" which instructs you on how to take off. As you choose this mission, the briefing lists the things that you have to do to take off. The given guidelines for take off were as follows: flaps down, wheel brake on (key W), power to 100%, wheel brake off, at 250 km/h raise nose 10 degrees, raise gear (key G), at 100 m raise flaps. Now, after reading all this, all you have to do is look at the commands, then refer to the small pamphlet that I have talked about and try to find the equivalent keys which will perform that action and then you are ready to take off. There is a also a demo mode for each mission in which everyting is done automatically. You can watch the demo first and then try to do the same thing manually by yourself.

If you want to learn more about the Su-27 and how it functions, you have two choices: you can choose different missions or you can start reading the thick manual. As far as I have understood, the manual is for the experts and for people who are really willing to learn about planes. It talks about the different movements that can be performed in the sky (precise descriptions), how to fight against SAMs, hitting ground targets and air combat. If you read and really memorize all the instructions in the manual, I bet you will be able to fly any Su-27 whether it is a flight simulator or a real one!

Let's talk about some technical stuff. First of all, you need a CD-ROM drive, Windows 95 and a windows compatible sound card to run the game. The graphics look almost the same as in any other flight simulator, but they are a bit smoother. You can view your plane from eight different angles. I recommend using F2 view when closing the landing gears (key G). Regarding the sound, there is no music just sound effects which is absolutely fine with me.

Conclusion:

Su-27 Flanker is a military flight simulator. The game not only gives you the chance to fly on this beautiful Russian fighter, but also the opportunity to learn everything (!) about it. I strongly recommend it to people who are really fond of playing flight simulators. For people who are not so much interested in flight simulators, I recommend that they watch one of their expert friends in flight which will persuade them about the gratification involved in this fabulous flight simulator.

System Requirements:

486 DX2-66 MHz or higher (Pentium recommended),
Min 8Mb memory,
Windows 95,
Hard drive required with 8Mb minimum (uncompressed HD recommended),
Double speed CD-ROM drive or faster,
SVGA video graphic card with 1Mb,
Microsoft mouse and 100% compatibles,

Joystick recommended

Creative Labs Sound Blaster, Pro, 16 and AWE32; Gravis UltraSound; Pro Audio Spectrum.

Developers

S.S.I. Inc.,
675 Almanor Avenue, Suite 201,
Sunnyvale, CA 94086-2901.

Technical Support: 408-737-6850
BBS: 408-739-6137 (9600, 14.4K, 21.6K or 28.8K baud modems)
BBS: 408-739-6623 (1200, 2400, 9600, 14.4K, 21.6K or 28.8K baud modems)
BBS in Canada: 403-473-9131 or 408-472-0178 (2400 - 14.4K baud modems)

Internet Support: S.S.I.

Publishers

In North America:

Mindscape,
88 Rowland Way,
Novato, CA 94945.

Technical Support: 415-897-9900
Fax Support: 415-897-2747

In Europe:

In UK:

Mindscape,
Priority House,
Charles Avenue, Maltings Park,
Burgess Hill, West Sussex RH15 9TQ.

Technical Support: +44-(0)1444-246333
Fax Support: +44-(0)1444-248996

In France:

Mindscape France,
74D Rue de Paris,
36069 Rennes Cedex.

Technical Support: +33-9987-5887
Fax Support: +33-9987-5888

In Germany:

Mindscape Germany,
Zeppelinstrasse 321,
45470 Muelheim A.D. Ruhr.

Technical Support: +49-208-9924100
Fax Support: +49-208-9924129

Ratings:

Graphics: 91%
Sound: 87%
Music: 85%
Gameplay: 90%
Interest: 94%

Overall: 90%