In response to Hell SQN Protos
I am not taking a "personal" side in this debate. But if i am allowed I will input my opinion on it
If it is just about fighters, then why is the SU25 & (t), a-10 included. They are not fighters. They are dedicated ground pounding platforms only.
So if we have learned to accept aircraft such as the 25 and a-10 as acceptable airframes included in this sim, then i see no reason why the black shark would not fall under the same catagory.
I originally thought "who cares" when they announced black shark.
But the more i hear about it, the more it sparks my interest. A supposed 300+ page manual and growing (as stated on another thread), AFM, 6DOF and full clickable cockpit. Those things alone encompass the ideals behind a sim.
Take into that consideration with better ground textures and the "supposed" additional fixes to other areas of the sim outside of the BS that have been disregarded for so long. And that may be enough to warrant a look at the expansion in itself.
Using the justification of the words "Fighter Sim" to denounce the BS add on is unfounded in my opinion. Purely becuase dedicated ground attack platforms have been an important part of this sim since day one.
1) BS is a dedicated ground attack platform.
2) It fits into the realm of battlefield that Lockon has created.
3) It may be the most indepth simulated aircraft in the lock on world yet and possibly the most indepth helo sim in the entire genre.
For those reasons alone, it is a justified expansion wether its your idea of fun, or not.
Of course. This is all conjecture as i, like many, have no idea of what it will be like. And until then i can only go by what i read (which sounds promissing). But i will not purchase it until i understand a lot more about it in case it does suck monkey butt.
As for your last statement that no one will purchase this when FO comes out. I am not sure i share your sentiments.
FO has no planned release date. My estimations would be end of 2007 earliest (but i could be horribly wrong). And the first release will be the UPT training only. Combat aircraft will be released in the addons later, provided the original sells to expectations.
FO sounds on paper what I and a lot of people want. It has set itself a very high standard. Yet it still won't encompass PC helos (well not for some time). Therefore BS will still hold a place in the market for some time. Even if it is only to a neiche market.
But who knows.