B-17 Flying Fortress: The Mighty 8th

Many of the negative reviews here are simply unfair. This is an excellent game. I played it a ton when it first came out and I had a chance to go into a real B-17. I was shocked at how accurate the sim was. The problem some people have is in how they play the game. I hardly ever actually piloted the B-17. It is an extremely enjoyable game when you let the computer fly and you manage the crew. There are some very tense and harrowing moments, especially as you approach the target, since just getting to the IP is a task in and of itself. The crew must be cared for and there is a lot of fun in manning the guns. The times I did have to take control of the plane, however, is when I had to nurse a wounded bird back to friendly territory. The autopilot wasn't very good at flying a damaged plane back, so I often had to do it myself, which was a huge, but rewarding challenge when pulled off. So if you get this, read the manual, set the autopilot to fly when the mission starts, and then enjoy the ride. You can compress time after setting the autopilot, which will put you right into the heart of the formation and on your way to Germany or France. I give this game a full 5 stars.

This is by far one of the best B-17 simulators there ever was. The game is superbly immersive, and if you play it realtime (which I used to do during weekends when I first got it). It provides hours of fun. What better way than to experience what the airmen flying long missions over Occupied Europe went through than to start your day at 5.30 am, (after having planned a mission extensively the previous evening and saved it). Get your black coffee, your toast, scrambled eggs and spam, and go to the briefing. Then on to the dispersal where your bomber is waiting. Using the manual and starting the bomber up in full realism mode, as well as waiting till your engines are all warmed up. Then off to the runway in a long string of bombers, forming up above base and leaving for that nasty ball bearing factory yet again. All events during the missions are realistic to the core. When your crew is hurt you hear their shouts and have to guide crewmen to them to provide first aid or even a moral boost. Switching between all stations during the long missions is also very realistic. Bombing using the Norden sight has a learning curve but when you know how to it is a ball. Just the fact that at times you cannot bomb and have to realign back to the IP is also realistic, as are the Flak noises, rattling of shrapnel through your plane and men, and the enemy fighters you have to fend off. Of course you can get less realistic by jumping from plane to plane, use outside views, be a little friend on an escort mission or even an enemy pilot gunning for that fleet of Dicke Autos.... The joy of returning to base after 8 hours of flight, having baked beans and a sausage and go to your debriefing to see whether you hit your target is exquisite. However, as SQN commander you need to write those saddening letters to the family, take care of your crews and administration too. If you have a vested interest in WWII USAAF History, this is the game for you.

I had the pleasure to be a friend of Retired USAF Major Joseph Worsley who was a consultant and designer for the implementation of the Norden Bomb Sight in this Combat Flight Simulation.He was a trained Bombardier and combat veteran in the USAAF during the second world war on B-29's in the 462nd Bombardment Group.He had a much longer and very impressive career in the later USAF. My father himself was a B-17 Flying Fortress Pilot combat veteran too but in the 15th Air Force in Italy. I remember driving 60 miles to a mall to obtain this when it was first released.It's a classic the best and most comprehensive heavy bomber simulation so far. I even recommended this particular title to GoG several years ago. I am shocked and extremely happy that they finally acquired it.By the way it's the sequel to the much simpler B-17 Flying Fortress World War II Bombers in Action.

Pros- - Fun Gameplay - Nice looking graphics - Great sound - Don't need a high-end computer to run great - Ability to play as bomber and fighter roles. Cons- - Steep learning curve - Control menu is absolute garbage - Flight dynamics of the B17 are not even close to being accurate - Some of the information is wrong, comparing to the real thing. Overall, this game is a blast. The emersion factor is outstanding as you form a tight relationship with your crew on board. The sound is outstanding, with only a few reused sound nosies. The flight dynamics are not even close to the real thing, but considering you don't even have to pilot the aircraft, its just a small thing. The control menu is terrible. With no way of clearing a control, and the game automatically assigning every axis to the wrong thing, I ended up having a axis that I just assign everything I don't need to. A real wast of space. The game does have tutorials, but they don't teach you anything. They are just there to help you master skills. If you want to learn then you will have to go to the games manual, which is very helpful and easy to learn from. That is if you take the time to read it all. Overall this is a fun game to play and a steal at $5.99.

I want so badly to love this game, and yet the games makes this so hard. B-17 Flying Fortress: The Mighty 8th sets out to create a historical flight simulation of unprecedented accuracy. Leaving no stone unturned, the team recreated every switch and every detail of the B-17, down to the fuel mixture for the individual engines. The graphics have aged remarkably well, and the crew management adds a challenging and intriguing dimension that makes it feel like a cross between a flight simulator and a naval simulator. At the time of its release, rumor had it that B-17 was facing delays that forced the team to cut a planned multiplayer feature, and this time pressure is evident in the final product. Play the game for a few hours and you start to notice that the parts of the game not concerning historical accuracy feel very glossed over. Time acceleration feels thrown in at the last minute. Most radio traffic is not logged to the radio book (why?) and if you are flying at 8X time acceleration, the radio text will be on-screen for - you guessed it - 1/8 of the time. This includes critical messages like "I am bleeding to death" from your pilot. Its such a simple thing to fix, but its clear there was no time for it. Speaking of, on return from a recent bombing mission, I was using the navigator as we approached the English coast. Suddenly, with no flak or fighters in any direction for over an hour, two crew members announced that they were severely wounded. No explanation. Five minutes later, a bomber from my formation fell out of the sky - no smoke from the engines, no radio traffic. I get it - realism dictates that sometimes bombers have mechanical problems. Realism also dictates that the crew should alert their formation to this fact! Good luck configuring your joystick, you'll need it. This a game that should have been delayed a few months to get the polish it deserved. Recommended only for the die-hard WWII simulation geeks.