What attracted you to flight simming or simming in general?

[WildBillKelsoe]

To me, my trip to four countries (my first out of Egypt as a vacation in adult life) in 2008 was a big motivation to drag my feet off subsim (which hardcore to my status at the time was an understatement). Most route was airliner so the experince in an adult (me) at that time was first hand.

 

Add to this, I tried FC2 at a friends computer and really enjoyed the complexity.

 

I then discovered that there is a dedicated community to these games, dedicated hardware, dedicated controllers, and of course, the big magnet was Blackshark 1.0

 

What about you guys (and gals)?

[VincentLaw]

I have been simming for 20 years now. I think a better question is why I am still here. The simple answer is that if I left, there would be a void in my heart that nothing else could fill. It is much more cost effective and convenient than the real thing, and the ever improving quality of sims has kept me around.

 

I think all humans have an innate desire to experience flight, and this is the most practical way to do it, well to simulate it. I realize it has nothing on the real thing, but I don't get vertigo in my desk chair.

[lazduc]

Free Beer....sorry thought you asked "What would attract you to..........."

[Rapier-VCG-]

When I was privileged to be able to take a flight in a CF-18a when I was a lad in air cadets. It fired my love of military aviation. Unfortunately though, due to vision problems I was never able to pursue it as a legitimate career. So flight simulations became the next best thing for me, and combat simulations became my preferred type.

[Sharpe]

My granddad had a bit of a career as a nco naval aviator during ww2 and as airforce officer (he switched services) after that. The way I see it, I inherited my passion for aviation from him.

 

Much later I started out on those old gems that were the Aces Over series, from there I moved on to Janes and much later Il2 until a certain plane captured my attention and brought me over to this excellent sim.

[Flagrum]

[url=http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=121851][/url]sort of relevant ... http://forums.eagle.ru/showthread.php?t=121851

[Aginor]

Well, for me it is clear: It's my father's fault. He had a computer and played "Aces of the Pacific" and the original Falcon (on Atari). Both wouldn't be called "sims" nowadays, but back then they were.

We're a family of aviation fans, so it came naturally that the computer geeks in the family would also play sims.

But we all do, from FSX to DCSW, everything halfway realistic.

[WildBillKelsoe]

Well in my old fathers clinic there was a gateway 2000 with probably EDs product Russian fighter. Menu had a weird noise but i'm sure of it. My father was showing me an immelmann but I didnt know at the time anything and thought it was boring (I was a big fan of ddave and prince of persia)

[rajdary]

My first "Sim" was F29 Retaliator. Ive always thought that you actually learn usefull things in simulation, its enriching.

[Pepec9124]

Missiles, huge canons.

I have learned basics in GTA San Andreas :smartass:

[Revan]

I have had the privilage to do some discovery flights in some Cessna 172s and 152s. this sparked my intrest in flight. I wanted to pursue a carrier in the US Air Force, but i have vision issues so that was out. My first flight sim was combat flight simulator 2.

[joey45]

Air cadets and I wasn't allowed a console...... Only a PC where I found Jane...

[Sel94]

I always thought planes where cool, but it was the Ace Combat series that really got me into planes. After spending tons of time with the series, I got into DCS and later flew a real plane! While DCS doesn't have the crazy flying aircraft carriers or flying through the barrel of mile long super weapons(btw please add those to DCS please), learning about how real aircraft work and training to be efficient with combat systems is very fun.

[Lizzard]

back then..I got a copy of Gunship for the C64..I liked it..so I continued..but I´ve never been a hardcore Simmer..

[Scoggs]

Living by (at the time) NAS Miramar and my Dads friend used to be a E-2C pilot. He showed me some of his flight sims back then and I was hooked.

 

So it was something I wanted to do IRL but didn't end up going that way. So now I can be a fighter pilot in my spare time. Although I spend more time lurking here than I do in DCS :)

[BIGNEWY]

Military service, working in and around helicopters :)

[TimeKilla]

My grandad playing B17 Flying Fortress on his AMIGA that I inherited.

 

Edited April 29, 2014 by TimeKilla
Better vid

[Haukka81]

Falcon AT at 386 in my school computer. I was in 3 grade (about 8-9years old)

 

Rest is history, can leave sims alone, not anymore.

[El Hadji]

Always been interested in aviation - both civilian and military. Picked up a copy of Falcon back in the days and got hooked. Jane's, Aces of the Pacific, Aces over Europe, MS Combat Flightsim, FS9, FSX - you name 'em and I have probably played them! And one of my favourite ones is B-17 Flying Fortress 'The Mighty 8th'. Wish someone did a remake on that one!

[159th_Viper]

Must of been around 2002.

 

Walked into an Incredible Connection outlet in East London and saw Il-2 being demo'd on a desktop and told myself: One day I'll be rich enough to afford a PC so I can have myself some of that!

 

Late 2005 and my PC landed, Sturmovik in tow. A couple of weeks and a few Google searches later and my LockOn disc was ordered. The rest is history.

[arkroyale048]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strike_Commander

 

This... I remember coercing my parents to buy me a joystick. One of those PS2 connections that only has two buttons. Top button is used to lock targets; trigger for the cannons and weapon release. Everything else on the keyboard. This was back in 1996 or so.

 

Didn't really get to fly afterwards. I moved on to other games. Though that small flame for what became a passion for flight simming was already there.

 

Returned to the flying scene with (kind of ashamed to mention this) Novalogic's F-16 and F-22 Lightning 3. While these games have very simplified flight models; it at least made me somewhat proficient with BFM and tactics.

 

The year 2003-2004 brought to my attention Lock On Modern Aircraft. Saw a CD of it on sale from a bookstore. Bought it for $20 bucks. Only to find out that my computer at that time is not even capable of meeting the minimum requirements for the game. The CD was chucked away in a drawer gathering dust.

 

Year 2009; I finally have a system that can run LOMAC. However by then, there was the hype for the Flaming Cliffs 2 series (totally skipped the first Flaming Cliffs). So I didn't regret buying the LOMAC CD 3-4 years before. Turned out you need LOMAC anyway to play Flaming Cliffs 3.

 

2012, the DCS series was kicking into high gear naturally that's where I want to go. First with the Flaming Cliffs 3 series. However; I find myself again below minimum specs to run Flaming Cliffs 3.

 

Late 2012, purchased a 'proper' gaming laptop. I have reasons for wanting a laptop instead of a desktop. Also used the money I earned during my internship to buy an X-52, Flaming Cliffs 3 and Track IR all in one fell swoop. That rapid deduction in my bank account kinda makes my friends cringe. I consider it well worth it.

 

2013, joined my first online squad. Most of them are A-10C pilots. I was 'relegated' to the 'boring' job of flying cover for them. After all these years as a 'dogfighter' and Air superiority pilot. I had that sudden urge to do ground attack. I first started with the Su-25T, but I did not like it for some reason. I did join them in ground attack with the Su-25T but they notoriously hate the craft, and I hated the fact that the Shkval isn't 360 degrees like the TGP. Really purchased the A-10C just for the TGP. Purchased the A-10C. Had tons of fun flying and learning. I got to a somewhat appreciable degree of competence with it.

 

2014 after a series of on and off hiatuses from the A-10C (due to other game commitments). Fired up the old A-10C again, in my new squad. I now fly alongside helicopter pilots. I suddenly had that random thought. How fun must it be to be down there on the weeds ?

 

March 2014, bought the Ka-50. Unfortunately was not able to start immediately as my work commitment was very unholy. Resigned in April after having had enough. Been spending that time in the Ka-50 and I'm loving it as much as I loved learning the A-10C. On a side note; I've flown so much of the Ka-50 and grown somewhat decent with it, that my A-10C kinda suffered as a result.

 

 

Pardon the wall of text; but I really love sharing my story. I always tend to lament the 'demise' of the flight sims as a gaming genre to all my other 'gamer friends'. I'd like to help the cause by at least getting one or two to join in.

Edited April 29, 2014 by arkroyale048

[Irregular programming]

Mostly the hot girls, but also the money.

[NineLine]

 

No but seriously, I had an interest in fighters and air combat since I could remember, I remember watching WWII documentiers with my great uncle, he would tell me about what it was like to hear Spitfires flying over head, any time he came to visit he would be me another model.... it just grew from there... (and yes I did own the above game ;) )

[SkateZilla]

 

 

 

 

Naw... But really.... Watched TOP GUN when i was like 4....

 

Was All Over Flight Sims when we bought a Packard Bell 486

(Chuck Yeagers Air Combat mainly, then Falcon 3.0, USNF/MF)

I have EVERY Janes and EA (ATF/NF/USNF/MF/Lonbow/etc) Sim in a CD Wallet.

 

When Spectrum Holobyte Released Top Gun Fire At Will... I had me a Thrustmaster Top Gun Joystick + Attack Throttle.... and I was sold...

[Pikey]

A friend had a ZX Spectrum and i played this when I was around 13:

 

I remmeber two benchmark sims well:

 

Microprose F-19 Stealth Fighter on the Amiga whom i lost hours to flying over Murmansk listening to Public enemy on 33" (just after the Berlin wall fell i think 1990 after my GCSE's)

 

Then Falcon by Spectrum Holobyte with some COM port multiplayer (Baud rates anyone?)

 

And then I saw what a PC could do with Falcon and the series and you may just say Falcon 2, 3, 4 and so on.