Elite

Oddly enough though, Brian Cox went up in a lightning for one of his Wonders of the Solar System episodes to go high altitude in it. I recall him mentioning that he couldn't disclose the ceiling of the plane (or the max speed, can't remember which!), which indicates some of the spec's are still classified?

Thanks for the replies - I guess until we hear from the horse's mouth, we'll never know for sure what the reasoning is. EtherealN - thank's for your reply, particularly the detailed breakdown of my original post. You're correct in that we are really discussing supposition regarding sales etc, I still believe it is better to rebrand FCS3 as a new title! Although I mentioned using "DCS" for the brand due to FCS3's planned connectivity with BS and A10C, I do accept your reasoning for not doing this. However I do still believe that FCS3 should be rebranded to "something else" because other possibilities come to the forefront if ED do this. If we remove all technical constraints (needing LO CDs etc) due to licensing contraints (with Ubisoft etc), then suddenly we can start distributing via FC3 (or whatever it's called) via Steam and other platforms, and that should be a huge marketing lift for ED. This really is the point of my original post. Although acquiring LO is simple enough for the likes of you and I (although there's no need: I already have it and I suspect you do too ;)), it's never going to reach critical mass with those kind of constraints. And it'll never hit Steam either! I want ED to find massive success so it can spend that money making more DCS titles (and quickly)! Unfortunately I think the "Lock On" brand itself is actually aiming for the same crowd who these days in one and the same as the "dedicated sim crowd", who let's let's face it are going to be well aware of any ED release anyway (either directly or via the forums they hang out in). So in my admittedly layman POV of this whole affair, there's kind of no need for the LO brand anyway! I don't see how sticking with LO and the constraints it brings, outweighs the benefits of Steam distribution, etc. Again though, the above is to be taken with a pinch of salt, as it literally is my tuppence worth, and not meant to rub anyone up the wrong way! :thumbup:

The point is surely that ED must decouple FC3 from the original Lock-On CD however it can, as it is limiting the market considerably. FC2 could have been a much bigger success as a standalone game. Can you imagine the number of potential players that would have seen the requirements for the original Lock-On, and be turned off by that? How easy is it to pick up Lock-On these days with diminishing retail space in stores for PC titles etc? And don't mention eBay - that's hardly the route for great sales of a new title. I'm surprised FC3 hasn't been rebranded completely away from Lock-On and brought under the DCS moniker, which ED have no trouble with marketing. Particularly with the announced inter-operability of FC3 with A10C and BS. Just my tuppence worth...

..Advanced Strike Fighters. http://www.evolvedgames.com/JASF-english.htm Probably consolified to beggary, but it's good to see "Jane's" name again, as there have been some classics in the past. :)