Flight Simulator 2002

"Pretty good experience for my first flight sim"

Microsoft has really been busting their butts with simulations lately. Not too long ago, they introduced us to Train Simulator, which was a very nice looking game and it added even more substance to their sim line of products. As with Train Simulator, Flight Simulator, is aimed at a certain group of people. We're talking about PC aviator nuts. If you love railroads, Train Simulator was a game for you. If you love planes, this is your game. There's not a whole lot of action in these games, so this won't really appeal to the "typical" gamer.

This was my first experience with one of the Microsoft Flight Sim. titles, and I was very impressed with the level of detail. I should have known the level of detail, since I had the chance to try Train Simulator, which is very similar in many respects. Before I get right into the nitty gritty of the game, I'd like to suggest that you run down to your local game/PC store and pick up a joystick. The SideWinder line of products would be a very good choice. You can play the game with just a mouse, but where's the fun in that?

As in Train Simulator, Flight Simulator dumps a ton of data on your hard drive (nearly 2 Gigabytes), so be sure to make way for all of that. If you've not upgraded your PC in a while, now is the time, because this game needs some good hardware to experience everything that this game offers. My hardware recommendations are listed towards the top of the page. I'd seriously recommend getting one of the newer graphics cards (GeForce 3, Radeon 8500).

The interface outside of the actual simulation is great. I've seen screenshots of previous versions of the game, and it's much improved over that. You can do everything you need to, whether it's looking up statistics on a particular airplane or setting up a flight plan. The interface of the actual simulation on the other hand is just plain horrendous. As with Train Simulator, everything is just too big. Depending on which aircraft you fly, the cockpit control panel can take up 75% of your screen, thus leaving you only a "peek hole" to see out. Hit the [W] key to remove the massive interface, then you can actually see out of the darn thing.

Once you get past the large interface, the graphics in the game are simply amazing. Frame rates are impressive on low end (400-700MHz) PCs, thus proving you don't need the latest CPU to see everything properly, but you should throw in a good graphics card, because some of the features aren't even visible on the older (Voodoo 3, for example) cards. Ingenious new AutoGen scenery populates the terrain beneath you with appropriate 3D buildings, trees, and landscape elements. It's complemented by photo realistic cities and airports, clouds, jet contrails, weather, and great lighting effects.

With the addition of ATC (Air Traffic Control), you will feel completely immersed within this environment. While ATC is a great addition to make this more immersive and realistic, it can be more trouble than it's worth for non-experienced Flight Simmers.

As with previous versions of this game, there is the regular version and the Professional version. The Professional version gives you a copy of gMax, which allows you to create 3D airplane models and use them in the game. You also have the ability to create scenery. You'll also find more aircrafts, and an "Instructor's Station" option. If you're familiar with the game series and you've liked it, I'd suggest shelling out the extra $20 and getting the Professional edition.

Microsoft has come a long way in the past few years in its Flight Sim line of products. There have been many, many enhancements throughout the games. This is one of the most attractive-looking simulations ever made. I would have like to see Microsoft actually include printed manuals. This is getting more and more annoying as publishers are trying to save a few bucks by including them in .DOC or .PDF form on the CDs. This ends up costing us, because of the paper and ink it takes to print these hundreds of pages out. Printed manuals and handbooks should have AT LEAST been included in the Professional version, after all, it's $20 more!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/31/05