So I flew more than 15 times on this campaign and didn't complete mission 4, here's why I'm so slow and why it's the most frustrating experience I had with DCs so far. I'm just gonna list all the problems I had so they can be fixed in the future :
Firs of all, the harrier bugs, I know it's not Eagle86's fault but it's killing a lot of the fun :
- Wheel chocks need to be removed before engine start
- Possibility to lock the IRMAV system and they can't be fired anymore
- Rockets pods loaded in mission one aren't on the plane anymore
- Wingman not being able to take off sometimes
- LOUD NOISES with the RWR and the incessant warnings (yes I know we are low altitude I JUST TOOK OFF)
- Moving target track is trash if you have street lamps in the way (killing convoy in mission 4 is so hard with laser guided weapons and you can't approach with rockets due to strella)
Secondly, there are all the little details that I found in the missions that aren't a big deal when I list them, but when you do the mission for the 1st time they'll make you bang your head on the wall
- 1st mission : if you don't know exactly what DCS mission editor calls a "garage" you might attack the 2 "hangar" and wonder why the mission doesn't go forward and you'll lose due to the time limit
- 1st mission : when they ask ou to support ground troops and it's just a few soldiers running around, théy're hard to spot if you don't know what you're searching for (you can think they're allies through the TPOD) and risk killing friendly forces
- 2nd mission : using the coordinate's with the TPOD is a pain in the ass and it takes a long time to spot the 3 groups of ennemy without using the F10 map. Especially because on is really far from the others and near the silkworms, I wasn't searching in that area at all
- 2nd mission : wingman killing himself on AAA every time
- 3rd mission : good mission but the helo bug prevents me from completing it, it's already been reported though
- 4th mission : everything starts well except when you get the coordinates from the drone, it's way less problematic than mission 2 tho. They're easy to spot from low altitude but my next point will explain why tha's not a good point
- 4th mission : THE F****** STRELLA !!! They tell you to go to 2000fts but you have strellas and manpads in this mission, how are you supposed to see them the first time you're playing it??? You can't bomb the convoy due to TPOD tracking bug, you can't approach to rocket them, and your wingman is just so bad at evading the SA-13. That's the perfect example of why I got so frustrated dying the first time because I followed what the JTAC said and just died because I didn't had any idea there could be a threat there.
- Minor typos in most briefings
The campaign is for me just a die and retry for me due to all the problems and I really don't like that feeling.
I was really hyped for the campaign and if I played each mission more than three times it's because I really like what this campaign brings to DCS and it's a really good mix between arcade and realism. I hope it'll be fixed cause I want more content like this in the future.
Still, congrats to Eagle86 and every other person involved, it's an amazing campaign and I'm looking for your next project !